Farewell Pilgrimage

The Farewell Pilgrimage (حجة الوداع) was the last and only Hajj pilgrimage Muhammad, The Prophet of Islam, participated in 632 CE (10 AH). The Muslims observed every move, act, and gesture of Muhammad on this occasion, and everything that he did became a precedent to be followed by Muslims all over the world.

The old picture of Kaaba during Hajj

The old picture of Kaaba

Beginning of the journey

Muhammad lived in Medina for 10 years and had not performed Hajj in full, although he had performed the Umrah on two previous occasions. The revelation of the verse:

And proclaim to the people the Hajj [pilgrimage]; they will come to you on foot and on every lean camel; they will come from every distant pass (22:27)

caused him to announce that he would go on the Hajj that year. The people of Medina and surrounding towns gathered in the city to accompany the Islamic Prophet during the Hajj rituals. Before his departure, he appointed Abu Dujana Ansari as governor of Medina during his own absence. On the 25th of Dhu al-Qi’dah, 4 nights before the end of Dhu al-Qi’dah (February 632), he left Medina, accompanied by all his wives.

Wearing Ihram

Before arriving in Mecca, Muhammad stayed at Miqat and taught people the manners of wearing Ihram. He performed ghusl (ritual bath) and then put on Ihram for Hajj. His clothing in the state of Ihram was two pieces of Yemeni unsewed white cotton that later on became his shroud, and moved on so that he did his noon prayers in the mosque of Shajara. Muslims later built some mosques at the places Muhammad stayed and prayed.

Doing rituals

Circumambulation and prayers

The next day, Muhammad and his companions arrived at the Masjid al-Haram. They entered from the gate of Dar al-Salam, went to the Kaaba and touched black stone. Then Muhammad proceeded to Circumambulation of the Kaaba (Tawaf). Finally once again touched the Black Stone, kissed it and cried long near it. Then, he did two Rakat of prayer behind the Station of Abraham.

Sa’ay

After his prayers, he drank from the Zamzam well, prayed and then went to Mounts Al-Safa and Al-Marwah and said that he would begin Sa’ay (runs back and forth between the hills of Al-Safa and Al-Marwah) from the mount al-Safa since God mentioned it in Quran first. When he arrived there, turned toward Kaaba and long prayed to God and jog-trotted part of the way. When he arrived at Mount Al-Marwah, stopped and prayed.

Jabal-i Rahmah

Jabal-i Rahmah

Mina and Arafat

On the eighth sunset of Dhu al-Hijjah, Muhammad left for Mina and stayed there for a night. Then he passed along on his camel, al Qaswa’, till he reached Mount Arafat. As he ascended the mountain, he was surrounded by thousands of pilgrims chanting Talbiyah and Takbir. By Muhammad’s order, a tent was erected for him on the east side of Mount Arafat at a spot called Namirah. He rested until the sun passed the zenith, then he rode on his camel until he reached the valley of Uranah. On the 9th of Dhu al-Hijjah he delivered his Farewell Sermon concerning different social rights of Muslims and led Zuhr and Asr prayer. Then he moved to plain of Arafat, stayed there and spent the afternoon in supplication.

Standing at Mash’ar al-Haram and stoning of the devil

Upon the sunset, Muhammad rode towards Mash’ar al-Haram (Muzdalifa) and advised pilgrims that slowly pass the way. Islamic Prophet did his Maghrib and Isha prayer in Mash’ar al-Haram then made a rest. At the dawn, he prayed and supplicated before God, which is so much recommended in Hajj. In the morning, he went towards Mina and straightly to Jamrah of Aqaba and threw seven pebbles at it.

Sacrifice

He then went to place of sacrifice and sacrificed 63 (the number of years he remained alive) camels. He gave 37 camels from a hundred camels he had brought with himself from Medina to sacrifice. They ate little from what they sacrificed and gave the rest for charity. Then a barber got his head shaved by his order. He went to Mecca, circumambulated the Kaaba and did Zuhr prayer in Masjid al-Haram. After that he came near the well of Zamzam and drank its water and returned to Mina on the same day and spend days of Tashriq (11th, 12th and 13th of Dhul Hijjah) there, did Stoning of the Devil and exited Mina.

Return to Medina

Main article: The event of Ghadir Khumm

On the way back to Medina, Muhammad stopped at Ghadir Khumm on Dhu al-Hijjah 18, to convey the message to the pilgrims before they dispersed. He gave a long sermon on a rostrum of camel saddles. Part of the sermon is as follows:

O people, Allah the Most Kind the Omniscient has told me that no apostle lives to more than half the age of him who had preceded him. I think I am about to be called (to die) and thus I must respond. I am responsible and you are responsible, then what do you say?’ They said, ‘We witness that you have informed, advised and striven. May Allah bless you.’ He said, ‘Do you not bear witness that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is His servant and Apostle, and that His Heaven is true, His Hell is true, death is true, the Resurrection after death is true, that there is no doubt that the Day of Judgment will come, and that Allah will resurrect the dead from their graves?’ They said, ‘Yes, we bear witness.’ He said, ‘O Allah, bear witness.’ Then he said, ‘O people, Allah is my Lord and I am the lord of the believers. I am worthier of believers than themselves. Of whomsoever I had been Mawla, Ali here is to be his Mawla.[a] O Allah, be a supporter of whoever supports him (Ali) and an enemy of whoever opposes him and divert the Truth to Ali.’

O people, I will go ahead of you and you will arrive at my Pond (in Heaven) which is wider than the distance between Basra and San’a. It has receptacles as numerous as the stars, and two cups of gold and two of silver. I will ask you about the two weighty things that I have left for you when you come to me to see how you dealt with them. The greater weighty thing is Allah’s book—the Holy Qur’an. One end is in Allah’s hand and the other is in your hands. Keep it and you will not deviate. That other weighty thing is my family (Ahl al-Bayt) and my descendents. The Most Kind the Omniscient had told me that both of them, would not separate until they come to my Pond.

Another similar narration of part of the hadith goes as follows,

O people! Reflect on the Quran and comprehend its verses. Look into its clear verses and do not follow its ambiguous parts, for by Allah, none shall be able to explain to you its warnings and its mysteries, nor shall anyone clarify its interpretation, other than the one that I have grasped his hand, brought up beside myself,(and lifted his arm), the one about whom I inform you that whomever I am his Mawla, this Ali is his Mawla; and he is Ali Ibn Abi Talib, my brother, the executor of my will (Wasiyyi), whose appointment as your guardian and leader has been sent down to me from Allah, the mighty and the majestic.

After the sermon, Muhammad ordered that all of the companions pledge their allegiance to Ali.

See also

Prophet Muhammad’s Last Sermon

Notes

  1.  Man kunṫu mawlāhu fa-ʿAlī mawlāh (مَـن كُـنـت مَـولاه فَـعَـلي مَـولاه‎).

Adapted from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Leave a Reply