The Hajj and Its Corrections

There follows the matter of spending in the path of Allah (swt); and then, after fasting, another substantial discussion. Prayer and zakāh were treated in the first juzʾ; now comes the Hajj, another great pillar of Islam.

Allah (swt) would have you come together in one place: the Muslims of the world, all who are able, gathering to show their solidarity, to learn from and benefit from one another, and to perform an act of worship together. Performing a rite together creates a bond, and harmony arises from it. It is mentioned that the Hajj may be performed only once, within certain months, whereas the ʿUmrah may be performed more often.

Allah (swt) then gives very specific rules concerning the Hajj. There is, of course, an entire sūrah devoted to it, Sūrat al-Ḥajj; but there the discussion is more of the sentiment and emotion of the Hajj, whereas here it is of the rites themselves, and of correcting certain practices of jāhiliyyah — for they had a Hajj before Islam.

First, many of the Quraysh considered themselves a class apart, being the keepers of the Kaʿbah and of the Ḥaram, and therefore in charge of it. There were accordingly things they would not do, which they left to everyone else. They would not go to ʿArafah, ʿArafah being the furthest station; they remained at Muzdalifah, holding it beneath them to go to ʿArafah, which others might do if they wished. So Allah (swt) tells them here that they too must go where everyone else goes.

Second, on returning to Minā for the days of the ramy, the stoning of the Shayṭān, they would make a great display, competing with one another in poetry, each asserting that his forefathers were superior to another's, that his tribe was the better for having won more battles and produced such and such a man. So Allah (swt) says that when you return:

And then:

When you have completed the principal rites at ʿArafah and the rest — remember Allah.

There follows a general encouragement to spend in the path of Allah (swt). For the sustaining of our religion and of its institutions — the mosques and the rest — people must spend of their wealth to support them. That is what is required. Spending in the path of Allah is a major part of our dīn, and an essential element in the economy and stability of our foundations. And the great matter in all of it is that Allah (swt) will give an immense reward for it.