My Haj Diary: I have never experienced or witnessed anything like Arafat in my life

Sweltering heat, soaring temperatures did not deter over 2 million worshippers from flocking to Mount Arafat, pouring their hearts out to Allah, begging for forgiveness

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Muslim pilgrims crowd Saudi Arabia's Mount Arafat during the climax of the Haj pilgrimage on June 27, 2023. Photo: AFP

Published: Tue 27 Jun 2023, 9:54 PM

Last updated: Tue 27 Jun 2023, 10:55 PM

Imagine a vast expanse of land where millions of white-clad worshippers stand in the sweltering heat, their eyes and hands raised towards the sky, praying fervently. As temperatures soared to 48℃, pilgrims crowded the Mount Arafat on Tuesday to pray. Sweat and tears stream down their faces as the summer heat and the intensity of their prayers takes its toll. This is Arafat Day, the heart of the Haj pilgrimage.

According to a Hadith, Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) has highlighted the day's importance by saying, "The Haj is Arafat", meaning anyone who does not stay in Arafat on Zul Hijjah 9 has his Haj invalidated.

Over two million pilgrims - who remain in ihram (white clothing) - make their way to Arafat on Zul Hijjah 9 after staying at tents in Mina on Zul Hijjah 8. In their purified ihram state, men wear a two-piece plain cloth draped around their top and bottom halves. Women wear clothes covering all body parts except their faces and hands. Once they arrive in Arafat, most of them are accommodated in large tents of 300 or more.

The journey - Mina to Mount Arafat

The sunnah (the way the Prophet did it) is to leave Mina after early morning prayers. However, this is only possible for some of the over 2 million pilgrims who undertake Haj. A staggered entry method is in place to ensure everyone gets there on time. We started our journey at around 3 am on Tuesday for Mount Arafat. The approximately 18 kms drive took over two hours as the roads were packed with buses, as well as pilgrims who decided to walk from Mina to Arafat.

Muslim pilgrims pray atop Saudi Arabia's Mount Arafat during the climax of the Haj pilgrimage on June 27, 2023. Photo: AFP

We were about 350 people in one tent. Once we settled in, everyone was advised to rest for a while to have enough energy for a long day and night of prayers. The pilgrims spent the morning napping, doing dhikr (remembering God) and reading the Holy Quran. Breakfast consisting of croissants, eggs, bread, and tea was served in large tents for the pilgrims. By midday, the six coolers in the tent were struggling to cope with the soaring temperatures, and the number of people.

Arafat Day

Photo: Nasreen Abdulla

The day of Arafat begins with the Zuhr (midday) prayer. The scholar Sheikh Yusuf bin Muhammad bin Saeed gave a sermon at Nimra mosque- the only mosque in the area. This commemorates the final sermon delivered by Prophet Muhammad during the single Haj he performed during his lifetime. In his speech, he touched upon the topics of Tawheed (belief in a single God) and the importance of Muslims saying united.

Afterwards, pilgrims offered a shortened version of their prayers of Zuhr and Asr (afternoon prayer) together. This was to free up the time in the evening until sunset to indulge in prayers.

During these 6 hours, every worshipper poured their hearts out to Allah, begging for forgiveness and asking for the best in this world and hereafter. With tears rolling down their faces, they made their supplications loudly. This is a day of forgiveness, according to Muslims. A Hadith narrates that Aisha- wife of Prophet Mohammed- has said that "There is no day on which Allah frees more people from the Fire than the Day of Arafat."

The beauty of this time is inexplicable. The heat was excruciating during the day, both inside the tent and outside. But that didn't deter pilgrims from flocking to the large open stretch of the Arafat ground. Several others were asked to stay within the perimeters of their tents. Many were turned away from the ground due to the crowd. Wherever they chose to stand, the goal was the same - asking for forgiveness.

I have never quite experienced or witnessed anything like Arafat in my life. The sheer number of people, with nothing to identify their financial status or place of origin, all coming together in one place with a single goal.

At sunset, after spending the day in prayers, it wasn't yet time for the Hajjis and Hajjas to retire for the night. They prepared to go to the place called Muzdalifah, in accordance with the Prophet's Sunnah, to pray and spend the night there. Some took buses while others, including myself, decided to make the 9km trek on foot due to standstill traffic jams caused by more than 2 million people heading to the same place.

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