Caution Againt After-Hajj Sins

10/10/2010| IslamWeb

A slave of Allah The Almighty would not be able to achieve righteousness that results from performing Hajj unless he avoids sins and is cautious of committing them. Although it is forbidden to commit sins and misdeeds at all times, Allah commanded the pilgrim to leave them entirely during the days of Hajj, as mentioned in the verse that says (what means): {Hajj is [during] well-known months, so whoever has made Hajj obligatory upon himself therein [by entering the state of Ihraam], there is [to be for him] no sexual relations and no disobedience and no disputing during Hajj.} [Quran 2:197] that is due to the honor of the time and the greatness of the place.

Allah The Almighty also said (what means): {and [also] whoever intends [a deed] therein of deviation [in religion] or wrongdoing - We will make him taste of a painful punishment.} [Quran 22:25]

How grave would the punishment be then for a person who actually does evil and commits sins!

The attitude of people during Hajj reveals a lot of evildoings and mistakes that result from the lack of fear of Allah The Almighty, and lacking due regard of the sanctity of the time and place, due to ignorance of the Sharee'ah (Islamic legislation) and following customs and habits instead. Among the most apparent evil actions and mistakes that are widespread in Hajj:

·        To commit a restriction of the state of Ihraam (sacral state) intentionally, with no Sharee'ah-approved excuse

·        To harm Muslims through words and actions

·        To refrain from advising one another and from enjoining good or forbidding evil

·        To delay prayer from its due time

·        To get involved in backbiting, tale-bearing, falsehood, disputation, ill speech extravagance or stinginess in spending

·        Vain trifling with food and bad manners

·        Regarding sins as trivial, such as giving free rein to the sight and hearing to what is unlawful

·        Women crowding men, and disclosing what is impermissible for them to expose

·        Hastiness or delaying when fulfilling the rites of Hajj in their Sharee'ah-prescribed times, and lacking observance of the boundaries outside which performing the rites of Hajj are not valid, etc.

What a great loser is the one who tires himself and spends from his property, transforms his status and appearance if he returns only with the burden of the unlawful acts he committed and incurs upon himself the wrath of Allah, the Most Merciful!

Fifth: Striving in obedience and utilizing time:

In the verses which mention Hajj, there are references to urge the slave of Allah The Almighty to do more acts of worship at the time of performing the rites of Hajj. An example of this is what Allah The Almighty mentioned (what means): {And whatever good you do - Allah knows it. And take provisions, but indeed, the best provision is fear of Allah.} [Quran 2:197] Among the most important acts of worship which the slave of Allah The Almighty should frequently occupy himself with during performing the rites of Hajj are:

1-    To observe the deeds of the heart: such as sincerity, love, reliance upon Allah, fear of Allah, hope, honoring, submission, showing neediness to Allah, truthfulness in asking and supplicating Allah, repentance, turning to Allah, patience, satisfaction and reassurance, to the end of the series of those deeds in which the slave of Allah should engage during Hajj, since upon them Islam revolves.

Ibn Al-Qayyim said, “Whoever contemplates the Sharee'ah in its sources and origins, will realize the relation between the deeds of organs and those of hearts, and without the deeds of hearts, those of organs are of no benefit.”

2-    To recite Quran and Thikr (remembrance), and ask for forgiveness: Allah The Almighty commanded pilgrims, in the verses that mention Hajj, to remember Him, and ask Him for His forgiveness. Also, the Prophet, , said, encouraging recitation of Talbiyah and Thikr: "No one ever raises his voice with Talbiyah, nor ever says Takbeer but that he is given the glad tidings (of entering Paradise)." [At-Tabaraani in Al-Mu’jam Al-Awsat, and Al-Albaani in Saheeh Al-Jaami’: Hasan] it is reported that the Prophet, , was asked: “Which pilgrim is the best?” he said: “Whoever remembers Allah most among them.” [in Musnad: Dha'eef Hadeeth]

3-    Striving to do good: Ibn Rajab said,

“Among the most comprehensive characteristics of righteousness needed by a pilgrim is that with which the Prophet recommended Abu Jurayy Al-Hujaymi, may Allah be pleased with him, saying: “Do not disdain any act of goodness, even if it is to pour water from your bucket into the utensil of a person who is thirsty, to give the piece of rope, to give a shoelace, to move something harmful from the way of people, to meet your brother with a cheerful face, to meet your Muslim brother and greet him with peace, or to ease the trouble of he who is distressed.”

It is reported in another Hadeeth that it was said, “O Messenger of Allah! Who is the most beloved of people to Allah?” He said: “The most beloved of people to Allah is the most beneficial among them to people.”

4-    Giving Da’wah to Allah The Almighty: Ignorance is widespread among pilgrims, and so are a lot of religious innovations, evildoings and errors during Hajj, which requires the religious scholars and Islamic callers to undertake their obligatory role of guiding, counseling and instructing, enjoining good and forbidding evil with wisdom and good instruction, and argument in a way that is best. Shujaa‘ Ibn Al-Waleed said, “I performed Hajj in the company of Sufyaan, and he did not weary of enjoining good and forbidding evil during his going and returning.”

5-    Supplication and imploring Allah: Hajj is one of the great seasons of imploring Allah and supplication which one should utilize, and show submission to Allah The Almighty on it. The Prophet, , said: “The best supplication is the supplication (on the Day of) ‘Arafah.” [At-Tirmithi] he also said: “The people who perform Hajj and 'Umrah are the guests of Allah: He called them and they answered His call, and they asked Him, and He gave them (what they asked for).” [Saheeh Al-Jaami‘, Al-Albaani: Hasan]

6- Uprightness: The evidence for the Hajj that has been accepted by Allah The Almighty is that the Muslim pilgrim becomes upright after Hajj, abides by obedience and leaves disobedience. Al-Hasan Al-Basri said, “The (sign of the) Hajj Mabroor is that one returns as abstaining from the worldly life, and desirous for the Hereafter.” That is attested by the verse in which Allah The Almighty Says (what means): {And those who are guided - He increases them in guidance and gives them their righteousness.} [Quran 47:17]

So beware, lest you would destroy what you have built, disperse what you have collected, consume what you have obtained, with the result that you would be overturned after guidance, and regress after attaining purity.

You also should remember that Hajj effaces all sins committed before it; and that by your Hajj, you return (as sinless) as when you were a newborn child just delivered by your mother. So, beware of meeting Allah The Almighty after that favor with sins. Rather, open a new page in your life with Allah The Almighty, the content of which is obedience, and the title of which is uprightness.