In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful
All praise is due to God, Lord of the Worlds, and may peace and greetings be upon our Master and our Prophet, Abul-Qasim al-Mustafa Muhammad; upon his untainted, pure Progeny; upon his chosen companions; and upon those who follow them in goodness until the Day of Judgment.
Welcome, dear brothers and sisters, whether you are pilgrims or organizers. I congratulate all of you. First, I congratulate those who are about to perform the Hajj pilgrimage, which is a great achievement, a great blessing, and a gift from God to you that you should cherish. God willing, this will be a blessed journey for you. I would also like to congratulate the Hajj organizers — including the government agencies mentioned, the ministries, the agencies, the organizations, and the various sectors of the country that each participate in this great endeavor in one way or another — as well as the caravan leaders, administrative bodies, the Hajj Organization, the office of the Leader’s representative [for Hajj and pilgrimage affairs], and others. I congratulate you because Almighty God has granted you the blessing of being able to serve the Hajj pilgrims. You should value this gift too, and God willing, carry out this task in the best possible manner.
Now, before I begin the discussion that I have prepared to present to you, I feel it's necessary to refer to the bitter tragedy in Bandar Abbas once again and offer my condolences to the families of the deceased and the injured. It truly was a bitter event and a tragedy for all of us because of the families involved. Well, various events happen to organizations — earthquakes, fires, destruction, both intentional and unintentional, all sorts of things can happen — but they are compensated for. Here too, if any problems have arisen for the organizations, God willing, they will be compensated for promptly, with strength, and using the capabilities of our energetic, competent, young executive bodies. But what truly makes one’s heart ache are the families — the families of those who lost their lives and whose loved ones have been taken from them. We offer our condolences to them and say that if we endure the various calamities that arise in life with patience, the value and importance of the reward that Almighty God will grant us for this patience is thousands of times greater than the bitterness of that tragedy. "It is they who receive the blessings of their Lord" (Quran 2:157). Almighty God bestows His blessings upon those who are patient. This is very important. May Almighty God bestow peace on their hearts and fill them with tranquility and calmness.
Now, regarding the Hajj, I have some recommendations regarding it, both for the pilgrims themselves and for the organizers. I have spoken about these things many times, and God willing, I will continue to mention these. However, what I wish to speak about today is not about these things. It’s about understanding the action you are about to undertake, about truly understanding Hajj itself. You, who are Hajj pilgrims and are about to become Hajj pilgrims, God willing, should know what you are doing.
This isn’t an ordinary pilgrimage. It isn’t a sightseeing trip. Your Hajj journey and your performance of Hajj is a participation in a very important action that Almighty God has established for managing humanity and not just for the management of the believers and Muslims. Hajj is for the management of all of humanity. That is why, when addressing Abraham in the Quran, God says, "And proclaim to the people the Hajj" (Quran 22:27). "To the people" means all the people in the world, all of humanity. Most people at that time didn’t have faith in Abraham, but the call to Hajj, the announcement of Hajj, and the invitation to Hajj belong to all of humankind.
"God has made the Ka’bah, the Sacred House, a means of stability for mankind" (Quran 5:97). Almighty God has designated this noble house to be a source of support and stability for humanity. That’s what it’s for. Or in another noble verse states, "Indeed, the first House established for mankind was that at Bakkah" (Quran 3:96). This house that’s in Mecca, which is also known as Bakkah, has been established for mankind. Look at it from this perspective. Your actions, your pilgrimage, your tawaf [circumambulation], and your visitation of this House are actions with benefits and rewards that come to humanity.
Of course, this is provided that it is done correctly and provided that it is carried out with the proper conditions, which we have repeatedly emphasized in these messages. A proper Hajj is a service to humanity. It isn’t just about serving yourself, your country, or the Islamic Ummah alone. It’s a service to all of humanity. So see how important Hajj is. You’re participating in this action. That’s one point.
Second, the Hajj obligation is a religious obligation. Perhaps it can be said that it’s the only religious obligation where the form, appearance, and composition are 100% political. It gathers people together in one place, at one time, every year, all those who are able to attend. What is this? The gathering of people and their coming together — this act in itself has a political essence. So contrary to the efforts, words, and actions of some who try to undermine these statements, the essence of Hajj is political, its form is political, and its composition is political. This is another feature.
Another feature is that the content of this combination of political actions, or this political structure, is 100% spiritual. Its content is purely spiritual. From the very beginning when you start Ihram and say "Labbayk," you begin to present your needs to Almighty God and express your devotion. "Labbayk Allahumma Labbayk." Then you enter Ihram. There’s Ihram, there are supplications, there’s zikr, and there are worship acts. Whatever is there has spiritual and devotional aspects. In other words, this political structure has purely devotional content. So all these aspects reflect the various dimensions of Hajj. And there’s even more to it.
Another point is that each aspect of this devotional content has a symbolic reference to human life. All the devotional acts performed during Hajj each have a symbolic dimension. They are "symbolic," to use a foreign term, which I generally avoid, and they all point to some aspect of human matters and human beings.
For example, when you do the Tawaf [circumambulation], the lesson of circumambulation is to move around the center of monotheism. It teaches human beings that their lives should revolve around the center of monotheism in this way. One’s life should be based on monotheism, governance should be based on monotheism, the economy should be rooted in monotheism, a person’s behavior with their brothers and sisters should be guided by monotheism, and families need to be monotheistic. All aspects of life should be centered around monotheism. The circumambulation [in Hajj] is directing us toward a lesson for our lives. It’s a lesson.
If we — although we are still very far from this. Even us Muslims and believers who think we are moving on the path of God are quite far from this, let alone those who don’t know God at all. If humanity succeeds in aligning its life, governance, education, wars, peace, friendships, and enmities around God, the world will become heavenly. These selfish acts, the cruelties, the brutalities, the killings, the murdering of children, the colonialism, and this foreign interference in other countries will all disappear if monotheism becomes the guiding standard. Circumambulation teaches you this. It tells you that monotheism is a lesson for your life. And it belongs to all of humanity, not just the believers.
The "Sa'I" between Safa and Marwah is an act of worship. You repeat words in remembering God and recite supplications while doing the Sa’i, but it also has a symbolic meaning, which is that we must always keep moving and trying when passing through the mountain of life's challenges. "Sa'i" means to walk swiftly. "And there came a man hurrying from the city outskirts" (Quran 36:20). He was running. “Sa'I” means moving quickly. In passing through the mountain of challenges that exist in life, never stop and never become idle or feel bewildered. Keep moving, and act quickly. This is the lesson and symbolic inference taken from "Sa'i."
The trips to Arafat, to Muzdalifah, and to Mina are to tell us that even though we have come to Mecca, we shouldn’t remain still in Mecca for several days. "Stillness" is contrary to what Almighty God wants for human beings. Human beings were created for "movement." You have hands, feet, a tongue, intellect, abilities, and strength. You need to move — movement. Go to Arafat, go to Muzdalifah, and go to Mina.
The "sacrifice" has a symbolic meaning, referring to the fact that sometimes a person must sacrifice even their most cherished possessions. The perfect, complete example of this is the sacrifice made by those closest to God, like the case of Abraham sacrificing Ishmael, "So when they had both surrendered [to Allah’s will], and he had laid him down on his forehead …" (Quran 37:103). Is this a trivial matter for one to bind the hands and feet of his young son who is a teenager, to throw him to the ground, and to draw a knife to his throat because God had commanded this?! "Sacrifice." In some places, one must make a sacrifice. In some places, one must offer a sacrifice. And in some cases, one must become the sacrifice. This has a symbolic meaning.
"Rami al-Jamarat" means "Stoning the Devil." Wherever he may be, in whatever form he may appear, and wherever you find Satan, strike him. Recognize the Devil and strike him. Satan exists in both in the form of human beings and in the form of the jinn. "That is how We appointed for every prophet an enemy, the devils from among human beings and the jinn, who inspire each other with flashy words to deceive them" (Quran 6:112). [Striking] the Devils. You see, all of these things are lessons. All these movements, the acts we perform during Hajj, and the worship acts that are the essence of Hajj are all lessons.
"Ihram" is a lesson. Ihram means being humble before Almighty God. It means setting aside the various garments and adornments of life and replacing them with a simple piece of cloth in an act of worship, an act of humbleness. But it’s also a lesson. This practice must be performed in the same way by both the wealthiest person in the world and the poorest person participating in Hajj. There’s no difference between them. Both a king and a peasant must do the same thing. It’s the same for everyone. It’s about all human beings becoming equal before Almighty God.
So you see, the third point I’ve mentioned is that the essence of all these acts, which are entirely spiritual, also serves as a reference and is symbols related to aspects of human life each in its own way, which I have briefly touched upon.
The next point I would like to mention is that this gathering is essentially to benefit human beings, "liyashhadu manafi‘a lahum" [So they may witness benefits for themselves] (Quran 22:28). The "l" in "liyashhadu" is apparently a "lām" to show reasoning [lām al-ta’līl] — "liyashhadu." People should gather in Mecca, in God’s house, in God’s sacred house, and in the various places of Hajj. For what purpose? "Liyashhadu manafi’a lahom." So that they may attain benefits. Now, some think this benefit is merely a transaction or something like that. No, it includes anything that can be regarded to be a benefit.
What is this benefit today? It’s the unity of the Muslim Ummah. In my opinion, there’s no greater benefit for the Muslim Ummah than unity. If the Muslim Ummah were united, joined hands, worked together, and there was synergy, such tragedies in Gaza and Palestine wouldn’t happen. Yemen wouldn’t be under this kind of pressure.
When we are detached from each other, the colonial powers — the US in one way, the Zionist regime in another way, and some European and non-European countries in their own way — impose their own interests and desires over the interests of other nations. This leads to the situation we see in countries that are under the pressure brought by them. You can see what's happening. It becomes like Gaza.
When there’s unity, security follows. When there’s unity, progress follows. When there’s unity, synergy develops. We can help other Islamic countries when they have some lack, and they can help us too. We can all benefit from one another. We can all help each other. This is how we can benefit, "liyashhadu manafi’a lahum" [So they may witness benefits for themselves]. Look at Hajj in this light.
In any case, we should learn about Hajj. The points I have mentioned offer some insight for learning about Hajj. Understand where you are about to go and what you are about to do. Of course, Muslim governments play a significant role. The government hosting Hajj has an immensely important role and a great, heavy responsibility. The officials of countries, scholars, intellectuals, writers, speakers, and those with influential positions among the people and whose words have an impact all have a role. These individuals can explain the true essence of Hajj to people, help them understand it, and influence public opinion.
Ask Almighty God to help you. From the very beginning of your journey, say, "My Lord! Admit me with a worthy entrance, and bring me out with a worthy departure" (Quran 17:80). Ask God for help so that your entry into this great undertaking is with divine help, and your departure is also pleasing to Him. Move correctly, and God-willing, Almighty God will bestow His blessings [upon you].
May God’s greetings, mercy, and blessings be upon you.
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