Muslim Advice

Muslim Advice

The first step for any pilgrim wishing to perform hajj is to enter a state of Ihram, which is a special state of purity. (File photo: Reuters)
Each year millions of Muslims perform the hajj pilgrimage, convening in the holy city of Makkah, in modern day Saudi Arabia, to enact rites laid down in Islam’s holy book, the Quran.
The first step for any pilgrim wishing to perform hajj is to enter a state of Ihram, believed to be a special state of spiritual purity.
Men must don a distinctive outfit consisting of two pieces of white, unsown, cloth. One of the pieces is wrapped around his midriff to cover his lower body, while the other is draped around his shoulders to cover his upper body.
Women must cover their bodies in a loose fitting outfit and cover their hair. However, they are not permitted to cover their faces.
It is not just about being physically prepared; pilgrims must complete their Ihram by reciting an intention to perform hajj called the Talabiya.

Article 225
Sa’y of Safa and Marwah is one of the obligatory acts of “Umrah al-Tamattu’” and “Hajj”. It means shuttling between these two small hills, the pilgrim goes from “Safa” to “Marwah” and returns from “Marwah” to “Safa” until seven rounds are completed (shuttling from one to another is considered as one round). Therefore, the pilgrim goes from Safa to Marwah four times and returns three times from that and does not return the fourth time and it becomes seven rounds in this way.
Article 226

Article 236
Some obligatory things in Sa’y:
First: Niyyah (intention) – it is obligatory that the pilgrim performs “Sa’y” with “intention” for the satisfaction of Allah, and as much as he/she knows what is he/she doing and it is for Hajj or Umrah then it is enough, and it is not necessary to say it in words.
Second: Sa’y begins from “Safa”
Third: finishes at “Marwah” (as it has been mentioned before, Safa and Marwah are two small hills near Masjid al-Haraam and when a pilgrim exits Masjid al-Haraam he/she sees “Safa” in the right side and “Marwah” in the left, therefore Hajji first goes to Safa and begins Sa’y from there).
Going from Safa to Marwah is considered as one round and returning from that is considered as another round, therefore the seventh rounds ends in Marwah.
Article 237

Qur'an says moon is created for Calendar
1. Sun and moon follow Hisab:
"The sun and the moon follow courses exactly computed." (55:05)
2. Phases of the moon are the standard to be used for reckoning of time:
"They ask you about the waxing and waning phases of the crescent moons, say they are to mark fixed times for mankind and Hajj." (2:189)
3. Sun and Moon to be used for reckoning of time:
"It is He who made sun a lamp, and the moon a light and fixed the phases, so that you can count years and Hisab." (10:5)
4. Sun and Moon to be used for reckoning of time:
"And He who made the night for rest and sun and moon for reckoning of time. This is the decree of the Exalted, the All-knowing." (6:96)
5. Moon is the measure of month and year:

Muharram, a sacred Muslim festival is observed for ten days. Know the rituals and significance of this holy celebration.

Shia Muslims celebrate Muharram, a festival observed in the memory of bravery of Prophet Mohammed's grandson, Imam Hussain, who was killed in the Battle of Karbala in AD 680. Muharram symbolizes the beginning of the Muslim New Year. Muslims mourn on the first ten days of the Muharram. The act of mourning during this period is also known as mass mourning. Unlike any other festival, Muharram is not a joyful festival or a colourful celebration. It is a sacred festival to remember the death of Imam Hussain.

Rituals Muslims observe

Tonight, in shaa Allah, we will be ushering in the year 1434 of the Hijri calendar, a calendar that begins from the first year of the Prophet’s migration from Makkah to Madinah. Although the numbering of years was only decided during the Caliphate of Umar al-Khattab between 13H to 23H, the Arabs prior already had a dating system in which the ‘mark’ of the year was decided by any important event that happened during said year. Hence, for example, the year the Prophet (S) was born was aptly named the ‘Year of the Elephant’ based on the events eternally archived in Surah Al-Fil.
To commemorate the coming of the New Year, let us look into the significance of the month of Muharram and the importance of the 10th of Muharram, also known as the day of Ashura.

Muharram – One of Four Sacred Months

The Hajj and Umrah are religious pilgrimages to Mecca, Saudi Arabia. Islamic religious doctrine dictates that every able-bodied adult Muslim who can afford to do so is required to make Hajj at least once in his or her lifetime. Hajj takes place from the 8th through the 12th day of Dhul Hijah, the last month of the Islamic year. Because the Islamic calendar is lunar, the timing of Hajj varies with respect to the Gregorian calendar, occurring about 11 days earlier the following year (for example, it was held September 22–27 in 2015 and September 10–14 in 2016). Umrah is called the “minor pilgrimage,” can be completed at any time of the year, and is not compulsory.

Civil servants will lose 11 days of payment after their salary becomes based on the solar Gregorian calendar rather than the lunar Hijri calendar

Saudi Arabia has switched to the "Western" Gregorian calendar to pay its civil servants in one of a number of financial reforms announced by the Council of Ministers.
The Kingdom has used the lunar-based Hijri calendar since it was founded in 1932, but switched to the solar-based Gregorian calendar for paying public sector staff on 1 October.

Saudi Arabia to increase visa fees for pilgrims traveling to Mecca

The Islamic lunar calendar is made up of 12 months, each 29 or 30 days long depending on the sighting of the moon, with the year usually 354 days long - 11 days shorter than its Western equivalent.
The shift will mean civil servants will lose 11 days of payment as salary days are cut, bringing the nation’s public sector in line with the way private sector employees are paid, Gulf News reports.

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For Shi'a Muslims, rituals and observances on Ashura consist primarily of public expressions of mourning and grief. Some Shi'as express mourning by flagellating themselves on the back with chains, beating their head or ritually cutting themselves. This is intended to connect them with Husayn's suffering and death as an aid to salvation on the Day of Judgment.

Passion plays commemorating the death of Husayn are also presented on Ashura. In London, around 3,000 Shi'a Muslims gather at the Marble Arch on Ashura for a mourning procession and speeches.

Many Shi'a make pilgrimages on Ashura to the Mashhad al-Husayn, the shrine in Karbala, Iraq, that is traditionally held to be Husayn's tomb.

Husayn's martyrdom is widely interpreted by Shia as a symbol of the struggle against injustice, tyranny, and oppression.

How to observe it in its true spirit
Importance of self-reform and abstention from base desires
1. “O you who believe, fasting is prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you, so that you may guard against evil.” (The Holy Quran, 2:183)
2. Allah says: “And when My servants ask you (O Prophet) about Me, surely I am nigh. I answer the prayer of the suppliant when he calls on Me, so they should hear My call and believe in Me that they may walk in the right way.” (ibid., 2:186)
3. “And swallow not up your property among yourselves by false means, nor seek to gain access thereby to the authorities so that you may swallow up other people’s property wrongfully while you know.” (ibid., 2:188)
4. “He who does not give up uttering falsehood and acting according to it, God has no need of his giving up his food and drink.” (The Holy Prophet Muhammad)

Many rewards and blessings can be gained throughout the Islamic year, not only in Ramadan.
The blessed month of Muharram (lit. sanctified) is the first month of the Hijri calendar and is one of the four sacred months concerning which Allah Almighty Says what means: {Indeed, the number of months with Allah is twelve [lunar] months in the register of Allah [from] the day He created the heavens and the earth; of these, four are sacred. That is the correct religion, so do not wrong yourselves during them...} [Quran 9:36] Ibn Abbaas, may Allah be pleased with him, said that thisphrase (so do not wrong yourselves during them… ) referred to all the months, then these four were singled out and made sacred, so that sin in these months is more serious and good deeds bring a greater reward.

The virtue of observing supererogatory fasts during Muharram

“Ramadan is the month in which we sent down the Holy Quran, as a guide to mankind, also clear Signs for guidance and judgment (Between right and wrong).” (chapter 2, verse 185)

A fasting person’s aim is to attain purity of thought and action. The act of fasting redirects the hearts away from worldly mundane activities, towards Allah – the Lord of the Heavens and the Earth. The month of Ramadan is a time for spiritual reflection, prayer, recitation of the Qur’an, doing Zikr, endurance and self-discipline. It is a month of training – training the soul and body- to be able to exercise self-restraint.

Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar. It begins upon the visual sighting of the last full moon of the year and lasts 29 or 30 days, depending on the year. The holiday of Eid al-Fitr marks the end of Ramadan and the beginning of the next lunar month.

THE PURPOSE OF RAMADAN
Ramadan is intended originated as an observation of the first revelation of the Qur'an to Prophet Mohammed.
During the blessed month of Ramadan, Muslims all over the world abstain from all food, drink, and other physical needs during the daylight hours (such as smoking or sex). But Ramadan is much more than just not eating and drinking: it is a time to purify the soul, refocus attention on God and practice self-discipline and sacrifice.
THE PRACTICE

Muḥarram (Arabic: مُحَرَّم‎‎ muḥarram) is the first month of the Islamic calendar. It is one of the four sacred months of the year.[1]Since the Islamic calendar is a lunar calendar, Muharram moves from year to year when compared with the Gregorian calendar.

The word "Muharram" means "forbidden". It is held to be the second holiest month, following Ramadan. Some Muslims fast during these days. The tenth day of Muharram is the Day of Ashura, which to Shia Muslims is part of the Mourning of Muharram.
Sunni Muslims fast during this day, because it is recorded in the hadith[2] that Musa (Moses) and his people obtained a victory over the Egyptian Pharaoh on the 10th day of Muharram; accordingly Muhammad asked Muslims to fast on this day that is Ashura and on a day before that is 9th (called Tasu'a).