My to-do list in Makkah
In my first visit to Makkah, and after making Umrah, I had that feeling of "MISSION COMPLETED", or in womens' words," it is shopping time!" Well, I was wrong. There were so many things that should have been done.
If you think of all the virtues of Umrah and Hajj combined together, and compare it to the virtue of praying in al-Masjid al-Haraam , which -according to prophet Muhammad may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him-" is better than one hundred thousand prayers elsewhere ", you will certainly feel bad for every five minutes you wasted in this place not praying. One Hundred thousand, we are talking here about five zeroes, for each and every prayer.
One more thing you must take advantage of when you are in Makkah. It is Tawaf-which was my best friend's golden advice to me right before I boarded on the plane."Tawaf is the most special thing in Makkah", she told me, "make Tawaf as much as you can, it has to be seven rounds each time".Well, I thought praying is the most special thing in Makkah, so I asked her, "what is the virtue of it?", she said,"freeing a slave reward". Still, wasn't convincing enough for me, but I took it into my consideration. After all, she is the Umrah and Hajj expert.
Experiencing Tawaf
If it wasn't for my best friend's last moment advice, I would have never made it. Actually, I didn't know in the first place that I can make tawaf whenever I want. I thought it was only associated with Umrah or Hajj.
My favorite time for tawaf was right after Fajr. It's such a heavenly atmosphere as the sun rises and the pigeons of the Haram glide in the sky. It was also one of the least crowded times in the Haram.
Seven rounds around the kabah would usually take me thirty to forty minutes- that's on the second floor. I haven't been walking that much for so long, and I thought it is going to be as tiring as my exercising attempts always tend to be, but by the grace of Allah it was as easy and smooth as can be.
In order to tag my rounds so I don't forget which round I am at, I assigned each round for one type of
I have always loved making duaa and conversing with Allah, but doing it in tawaf tasted exceptionally sweet. You feel you are so close, not that Allah is closer to the people in the kabah than the people elsewhere; it is rather what prophet Muhammad- may the blessings and the peace of Allah be upon him- said, ‘The performers of Hajj and Umrah are the delegation of Allah (swt); He called them, and they answered Him; they asked Him, and He gave them.’dua’a. The first round for hereafter dreams, the second for short-term dreams, the third for long-term dreams, the fourth for family and friends, the fifth for husband and children, the sixth for the country and the ummah, and the seventh for my heart. Undoubtedly, the rounds were ending annoyingly fast.
I know it is always better to be discreet about your good deeds- it is more secure when it comes to sincerity and acceptance, but as I was experiencing the sweetness of a brand-new Ibadah, I couldn't resist spilling the beans. I told my husband, and my mother-in-law, who agreed to join me for Tawaf .
On our last day in Makkah, we couldn't resist making our Farewell Tawaf right before our travel zero hour, and I couldn't resist taking a picture of AbdAllah and Gehad in the closest point they made to the Kabah.
The Haram Company
Submerging in the crowds of worshipers feels as exciting as wading through the ocean. It is so refreshing and inspirational. It humbled my heart, and made me realize to what extent our religion is universal.
You see people from all over the globe-from weird countries, and different backgrounds. It is such a human mass that reminded me with the hereafter, and imagining all these people competing for Paradise, I got the picture of how hard I should work for it.
I though since I am speaking English, and know a little Urdu, besides my Arabic mother-tongue,I would be able to communicate with most of the people, but I didn't. Sign language would work best in most cases. I met Turkish, Americans, Dagestanis, East-Asians who are not Pakistanis, Hindi, or even Malaysians. Gehad- my daughter- was gifted candies from Iran, Poland, and many other countries that I couldn't figure out because I wasn't able to read the language on the wrapper of them.
Of all the sisters I met, there was that one sister who touched my heart. I prayed Maghrib next to her. She was from Dubai, and her brother lived in Makkah. I wanted to buy a special niqab, which was available in Saudi, and I didn't want to waste the time looking for it, so right away I decided to ask her. Alhamdulillah, she knew about it, and she told me where I could buy it .
We talked a little bit more as she opened her heart to me and talked about her life ; I gave her the best advice that I could give, made duaa for her, and excused myself so I can focus on my prayers. Before she left, we exchanged cell-phone numbers, and Facebook accounts.
On the next day, I got a call from her as she asked me to meet with her at the first floor entrance. It was before Isha time. I told her if I left my spot now I won't be able to come back. "Let’s meet after Isha", I said. "By Allah, come now. I bought you a couple of the niqabs you asked me about yesterday, and I want you to accept it as a gift from me", she said. I couldn’t resist her offer, I accepted her gift and surely enough they were the most precious niqabs I have ever worn.
I learned from Aliaa that gifting someone you know you are not meeting again only because you love that person for the sake of Allah is a genuine evidence of this love. How often we hear this statement “I love you for the sake of Allah”, and how rare we feel it. May Allah make us among those whom He will call on the day of judgement, “those who loved each other for the sake of My glory? Today, - on a day when there is no shade but mine – I shall shade them with My shade.”
The Haram joys
It is the spiritual energy that resembles a Ramadan night , the tranquility you feel in your heart, and the freedom from the dunia tangling ties and all world worries.
At the beginning, it felt like Alice in Wonderland. Such a humongous place, with a huge community-which most of the times I had no clue what language they are speaking. I wanted to concentrate, so I decided to make myself a spot.
I wanted something, which is not too far from the kabah, and not too crowded, I know I was dreaming, but I looked and looked till I found it. It was in the second floor close to the mataf. It used to get jam-packed around the prayer times, but other than that it was empty enough for me to enjoy the kabah sight and a soothing solitude.
One tip that I learned from my mother-in-law may Allah reward her greatly- was that the early worshiper gets the spot. She would never wait for us. I did not understand at the beginning why she was doing that, but I came to know that being in the haram fifteen minutes before adhan time inevitably means you are too late to pray inside.
Yes, the gates are shut.
Being there thirteen minutes earlier might give you a better chance of praying inside, but you will still have to fight the crowds which I really abhor. So save yourself the trouble and be there an hour early; after all, it is not your local community masjid, it is the one-hundred-thousand-double-reward masjid.
I had my cell phone ringing tone set up on a nasheed; while I was in Makkah, surprisingly the set up was changed-most probably by one of my kids- on another nasheed which goes like that "I am the slave who is sick with sins, and I am coming seeking the doctor;I am the lost slave who did myself wrong, and I am coming to your door repenting".
The words brought tears to my eyes, and I felt like Allah was sending me a message. In the haram, I received another message over-hearing that sister who was saying,"O Allah, I don't deserve to be here. I know I don't, but You made it possible for me by Your Mercy and Grace. O Allah, don't deprive me by my sins!"
It made me feel the same way, remembering my sins and shortcomings versus His Mercy and Grace. "O Allah don't deprive me by my sins"; it surely became one of my favorite duaa ever since.
The Children's joys
Whenever I met with AbdAllah, he had plenty to talk about. With a bright look and a genuine pride, he would narrate to me everything he did with his dad that day. "Mama, I prayed with papa, drank from Zamzam, and made duaa for Teta(grandma)". I felt awesome when he once told me, "I went with Papa to put the dead man in the grave".
Well, I didn't expect that my husband would take him to the graveyard there, but it was obvious that my six-year-old has been growing up a great deal spiritually in his Papa's camp.
He had so many art utensils in his bag which he was using in his spare time in the Haram after reviewing his Quran. We had a couple of small toys as well, but we found that art utensils were the most suitable for the Haram environment- the quietest activity you would like your kids to work on there. He made a couple of extraordinary pictures inspired by our stay there that he would show me every time we met.
Most of all, AbdAllah enjoyed the hotel open-buffet breakfast, especially the fact that he was able to choose his omelet himself, and watch the chef cooking it for him:)
My little Gehad -an anti-crowd person-did not enjoy the spiritual aspect of our trip as well as her big brother. However, she found her joy in watching the Haram babies, and most importantly as she made friends with her favorite cat there. -onislam,net
In my first visit to Makkah, and after making Umrah, I had that feeling of "MISSION COMPLETED", or in womens' words," it is shopping time!" Well, I was wrong. There were so many things that should have been done.
If you think of all the virtues of Umrah and Hajj combined together, and compare it to the virtue of praying in al-Masjid al-Haraam , which -according to prophet Muhammad may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him-" is better than one hundred thousand prayers elsewhere ", you will certainly feel bad for every five minutes you wasted in this place not praying. One Hundred thousand, we are talking here about five zeroes, for each and every prayer.
One more thing you must take advantage of when you are in Makkah. It is Tawaf-which was my best friend's golden advice to me right before I boarded on the plane."Tawaf is the most special thing in Makkah", she told me, "make Tawaf as much as you can, it has to be seven rounds each time".Well, I thought praying is the most special thing in Makkah, so I asked her, "what is the virtue of it?", she said,"freeing a slave reward". Still, wasn't convincing enough for me, but I took it into my consideration. After all, she is the Umrah and Hajj expert.
Experiencing Tawaf
If it wasn't for my best friend's last moment advice, I would have never made it. Actually, I didn't know in the first place that I can make tawaf whenever I want. I thought it was only associated with Umrah or Hajj.
My favorite time for tawaf was right after Fajr. It's such a heavenly atmosphere as the sun rises and the pigeons of the Haram glide in the sky. It was also one of the least crowded times in the Haram.
Seven rounds around the kabah would usually take me thirty to forty minutes- that's on the second floor. I haven't been walking that much for so long, and I thought it is going to be as tiring as my exercising attempts always tend to be, but by the grace of Allah it was as easy and smooth as can be.
In order to tag my rounds so I don't forget which round I am at, I assigned each round for one type of
I have always loved making duaa and conversing with Allah, but doing it in tawaf tasted exceptionally sweet. You feel you are so close, not that Allah is closer to the people in the kabah than the people elsewhere; it is rather what prophet Muhammad- may the blessings and the peace of Allah be upon him- said, ‘The performers of Hajj and Umrah are the delegation of Allah (swt); He called them, and they answered Him; they asked Him, and He gave them.’dua’a. The first round for hereafter dreams, the second for short-term dreams, the third for long-term dreams, the fourth for family and friends, the fifth for husband and children, the sixth for the country and the ummah, and the seventh for my heart. Undoubtedly, the rounds were ending annoyingly fast.
I know it is always better to be discreet about your good deeds- it is more secure when it comes to sincerity and acceptance, but as I was experiencing the sweetness of a brand-new Ibadah, I couldn't resist spilling the beans. I told my husband, and my mother-in-law, who agreed to join me for Tawaf .
On our last day in Makkah, we couldn't resist making our Farewell Tawaf right before our travel zero hour, and I couldn't resist taking a picture of AbdAllah and Gehad in the closest point they made to the Kabah.
The Haram Company
Submerging in the crowds of worshipers feels as exciting as wading through the ocean. It is so refreshing and inspirational. It humbled my heart, and made me realize to what extent our religion is universal.
You see people from all over the globe-from weird countries, and different backgrounds. It is such a human mass that reminded me with the hereafter, and imagining all these people competing for Paradise, I got the picture of how hard I should work for it.
I though since I am speaking English, and know a little Urdu, besides my Arabic mother-tongue,I would be able to communicate with most of the people, but I didn't. Sign language would work best in most cases. I met Turkish, Americans, Dagestanis, East-Asians who are not Pakistanis, Hindi, or even Malaysians. Gehad- my daughter- was gifted candies from Iran, Poland, and many other countries that I couldn't figure out because I wasn't able to read the language on the wrapper of them.
Of all the sisters I met, there was that one sister who touched my heart. I prayed Maghrib next to her. She was from Dubai, and her brother lived in Makkah. I wanted to buy a special niqab, which was available in Saudi, and I didn't want to waste the time looking for it, so right away I decided to ask her. Alhamdulillah, she knew about it, and she told me where I could buy it .
We talked a little bit more as she opened her heart to me and talked about her life ; I gave her the best advice that I could give, made duaa for her, and excused myself so I can focus on my prayers. Before she left, we exchanged cell-phone numbers, and Facebook accounts.
On the next day, I got a call from her as she asked me to meet with her at the first floor entrance. It was before Isha time. I told her if I left my spot now I won't be able to come back. "Let’s meet after Isha", I said. "By Allah, come now. I bought you a couple of the niqabs you asked me about yesterday, and I want you to accept it as a gift from me", she said. I couldn’t resist her offer, I accepted her gift and surely enough they were the most precious niqabs I have ever worn.
I learned from Aliaa that gifting someone you know you are not meeting again only because you love that person for the sake of Allah is a genuine evidence of this love. How often we hear this statement “I love you for the sake of Allah”, and how rare we feel it. May Allah make us among those whom He will call on the day of judgement, “those who loved each other for the sake of My glory? Today, - on a day when there is no shade but mine – I shall shade them with My shade.”
The Haram joys
At the beginning, it felt like Alice in Wonderland. Such a humongous place, with a huge community-which most of the times I had no clue what language they are speaking. I wanted to concentrate, so I decided to make myself a spot.
I wanted something, which is not too far from the kabah, and not too crowded, I know I was dreaming, but I looked and looked till I found it. It was in the second floor close to the mataf. It used to get jam-packed around the prayer times, but other than that it was empty enough for me to enjoy the kabah sight and a soothing solitude.
One tip that I learned from my mother-in-law may Allah reward her greatly- was that the early worshiper gets the spot. She would never wait for us. I did not understand at the beginning why she was doing that, but I came to know that being in the haram fifteen minutes before adhan time inevitably means you are too late to pray inside.
Yes, the gates are shut.
Being there thirteen minutes earlier might give you a better chance of praying inside, but you will still have to fight the crowds which I really abhor. So save yourself the trouble and be there an hour early; after all, it is not your local community masjid, it is the one-hundred-thousand-double-reward masjid.
I had my cell phone ringing tone set up on a nasheed; while I was in Makkah, surprisingly the set up was changed-most probably by one of my kids- on another nasheed which goes like that "I am the slave who is sick with sins, and I am coming seeking the doctor;I am the lost slave who did myself wrong, and I am coming to your door repenting".
The words brought tears to my eyes, and I felt like Allah was sending me a message. In the haram, I received another message over-hearing that sister who was saying,"O Allah, I don't deserve to be here. I know I don't, but You made it possible for me by Your Mercy and Grace. O Allah, don't deprive me by my sins!"
It made me feel the same way, remembering my sins and shortcomings versus His Mercy and Grace. "O Allah don't deprive me by my sins"; it surely became one of my favorite duaa ever since.
The Children's joys
Whenever I met with AbdAllah, he had plenty to talk about. With a bright look and a genuine pride, he would narrate to me everything he did with his dad that day. "Mama, I prayed with papa, drank from Zamzam, and made duaa for Teta(grandma)". I felt awesome when he once told me, "I went with Papa to put the dead man in the grave".
Well, I didn't expect that my husband would take him to the graveyard there, but it was obvious that my six-year-old has been growing up a great deal spiritually in his Papa's camp.
He had so many art utensils in his bag which he was using in his spare time in the Haram after reviewing his Quran. We had a couple of small toys as well, but we found that art utensils were the most suitable for the Haram environment- the quietest activity you would like your kids to work on there. He made a couple of extraordinary pictures inspired by our stay there that he would show me every time we met.
Most of all, AbdAllah enjoyed the hotel open-buffet breakfast, especially the fact that he was able to choose his omelet himself, and watch the chef cooking it for him:)
My little Gehad -an anti-crowd person-did not enjoy the spiritual aspect of our trip as well as her big brother. However, she found her joy in watching the Haram babies, and most importantly as she made friends with her favorite cat there. -onislam,net
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