Hajj season is here! Ramadan is behind us and for all the people who are planning to go for hajj this year, final preparations will be underway. My husband and I had the very good fortune of performing Hajj in Oct-Nov, 2011. Just as all the final details were being worked out, I decided it’s probably time to learn a bit about it. Of course we had studied a whole chapter on hajj in O Levels, but it seemed like Islamiyat in school was too much memorization and not enough understanding and as a result, that chapter went completely over my head. I had no idea what hajj was about and words like ‘miqaat’ and ‘Muzdalifa’ sent me into a panic.

So, of course, the first thing I did was googled it. And while people write and share about everything, good resources for Muslims are few and far between. I wanted details, analysis, problems hajis encountered, pictures and maps so that I would be able to form some kind of a visual in my head. I could never memorize it because I couldn’t visualize it. So, here, iA, I will try to make the kind of guide to hajj that I looked for but couldn’t find.

Following are the topics that I will cover:

• Should I go for hajj?
• The right mindset
• Ground realities
• Dealing with the crowd
• How to prepare for hajj
• What to take with you for hajj
• Map and overview
• Ihram and intention
• Arrival and umrah
• Anatomy of Masjid al Haraam
• Anatomy of the tawaf
• A few tawaf tips
• Saee
• Hajj Day One
• Hajj Day Two
• Hajj Day Three
• Hajj Days 4, 5 & 6
• How will I know if my hajj was accepted by Allah?
• Madina
• A note about Dar El Salam
• Women

I’ve tried to break the whole experience into small parts so that it’s easier to take in and you can go through it bit by bit at your own pace.

Please click on all the pictures to enlarge.

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Now, let’s start > Should I go for hajj?