It is a sign of the infinite mercy of Allah The Almighty towards His slaves that He has legislated for them several acts of obedience, opened the gates of mercy before them, encouraged them to attain His reward and invited them to draw closer to Him. When they do so, in turn, He will love them, and if He loves a slave, He will become his hearing with which he hears, his sight with which he sees, his hand with which he strikes and his feet with which he walks.

Performing Hajj to the Sacred House of Allah is the foremost of the acts of worship that are a means of having one's misdeeds forgiven, ranks elevated and a cause of people being made to enter Paradise. Thus, Allah The Almighty encourages His slaves to observe this act of worship and urges them to perform Hajj, Saying (what means): {And [due] to Allah from the people is a pilgrimage to the House - for whoever is able to find thereto a way.} [Quran 3: 97]

On the other hand, Allah The Exalted warns against abandoning this act of worship while one is able to perform it, indicating that this action reflects denial of the favor of Allah. Although Allah has enabled His slave to come to His House and has subjected various means for him, the slave turned away, rejected the call and showed laziness and weak will. Thus, Allah The Almighty Says at the end of the aforementioned verse (what means): {But whoever disbelieves - then indeed, Allah is free from need of the worlds.} [Quran 3: 97]

Likewise, the Prophet warned against neglecting this religious obligation and commanded people to make haste in this respect. The Prophet said: "Whoever intends to perform Hajj should hasten to it; for one could get sick, his mount could be lost or he could face poverty and need." [Hasan Hadeeth] [Ahmad and Ibn Maajah]

‘Ali ibn Abi Taalib may Allah be pleased with him, said, "Circumambulate the House (of Allah) often before you are prevented from doing that." Indeed, Abu Al-Hasan, ‘Ali, may Allah be pleased with them, said the truth. Performing the obligation of Hajj today has become financially and physically difficult and many Muslims who are willing to perform it are no longer able to do so due to financial incapability or the difficulty in going to the Sacred House of Allah.

Purification before beautification:

It is well-known to scholars that purification precedes beautification. Thus, whoever intends to perform Hajj to the Sacred House of Allah should prepare himself first for the light he wants to receive. The best way to achieve this is by sincere repentance to Allah and giving back people's dues.

Some think that Hajj expiates sins even if one did not repent of them before going to Hajj. This is a mistake and reflects lack of understanding, for Hajj actually is expiation and reward for the slave who repents and returns to Allah The Almighty. It was narrated on the authority of ‘Abdullaah ibn Mas‘ood, may Allah be pleased with him, that he said, "Some people said to the Messenger of Allah 'O Messenger of Allah! Will we be questioned for our deeds during the pre-Islamic era?' The Prophet said: 'Whoever is a good Muslim of you will not be questioned, but whoever is a bad Muslim of you will be questioned for his misdeeds before and after Islam.'" [Muslim]

Some etiquettes of Hajj:

When one intends to perform Hajj, he should observe certain etiquettes, including:

• Dedicating the intention solely for the sake of Allah The Almighty. Allah accepts only the (good) deeds which are solely dedicated to Him.
• Ensuring sufficient resources to cover the expenses of one's dependents and advising them to be pious.
• Learning the rulings of Hajj and ‘Umrah.
• Giving back people's dues or asking for their pardon.
• Using lawfully gained expenses for Hajj. Allah is Good and He accepts only what is good.
• Choosing righteous companions and good friends for the journey. Choosing a good companion takes precedence over anything else.
• Observing the etiquette of travel while going and coming.
• Training the self in patience, enduring the hardships of travel, suppressing anger, acquiring good morals and abandoning dispute and argument.
• Keenness to do many acts of obedience as well as righteous deeds which bring one closer to Allah The Almighty. The opportunity of Hajj may not come again.  

 Hajj to the House: Virtues and Secrets - II
 To be continued …