These thoughts on hajj come from Owais Bayunus, a Muslim from Minnesota. Many of us bemoan the fact that we must take off from work for a couple of weeks in order to make hajj. For some travelers, making hajj is a condition of their lives–a process that may consume months or even years. Before talking about his own experience making hajj, he talks about seeing hajjis travel by boat:
The ship was fully occupied by almost two thousand people, and it had a separate open place for the daily prayers. The impression of seeing these pilgrims remained on my mind for a long time, and whenever I would read about the pilgrimage to Makkah in books, I would remember seeing the same pilgrims.
And hajjis traveling by caravan:
…I once drove near Niger’s border south of Sahara. There, I came across a caravan, which, I was told, was heading towards Makkah for pilgrimage almost 18-20 months away. There are many such caravans in the Sahara heading to Makkah on camels and on foot, any time of the year. I remembered the saying “All roads lead to Makkah,” which seemed to be true.
Mr. Bayunus writes more in the blog Engage Minnesota.
June 5, 2008 at 8:34 pm |
Thanks for the link! Be well.