BACKGROUND TO HAJJ
Fifth pillar of Islam
Hajj is Abrahamic  we have to go back to time of Abraham to about 2000 BCE for history behind the Hajj
Jewish people consider Abraham their greatest ancestor and father of the Hebrew people  trace their ancestor through his son Isaac
Muslims consider Abraham their greatest ancestor also and trace their ancestry through his son Ishmael
Abraham = forefather of the three monotheistic religions
Sarah, Abraham and Hagar: Abraham was married to Sarah but she couldn’t have children so with Sarah’s permission he married Hagar his wife’s slave girl.
Hagar gave birth to a son Ishmael. Sarah became very jealous of Hagar and Ishmael. Hagar and Ishmael are banished: Abraham believed that God wanted him to take Hagar and Ishmael to Mecca.
On the way he saw a sandy hill under which were the ruins of a house of God built by Adam
He left Hagar and Ishmael there with only a bag of dates and a skin full of water.
“Allah will not let us die” After Abraham had left Hagar became parched with thirst. She ran between two hills seven times looking for water.
Finally she saw water lying spouting forth from the rock near where her son was lying. This place she called Zamzam. The two hills are called Safa and Marwa.
Years later God asked Abraham to sacrifice his most precious possession.
Abraham believed that he should sacrifice his son Ishmael (Muslims believe that it was Ishmael that he was asked to sacrifice and not Isaac)
Just as he was about to carry out this dreadful act he saw a large ram running down the hill and he sacrificed it instead.
Years later after Hagar had died Abraham asked Ishmael to help him build a house for Allah
They discovered the ruins of the one built by Adam
They laid new foundations and built a house of stone. It was dedicated to the worship of Allah after it was circled seven times. This was the first Kaaba built on the already sacred spot in Mecca
571 CE – Prophet Muhammad born, by time he was 35 he was a well-respected member of the community. Beginning of Muhammad and Beginning of Pilgrimage to Mecca.
The Kaaba was in disrepair. At the time it was used as a building to house the idols that were worshipped by the four main tribes. Muhammad was troubled by this.
At the centre of the Kaaba there was a black stone (significant – was white then Adam turned it black)
When the time came, the positioning of the Black Stone in its accustomed place was the cause of some disagreement since al the tribes engaged in the rebuilding sought the honour of placing the Black Stone themselves.
To resolve the issue, it was agreed that the first man to enter Haram should make the decision. This man was the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and he accepted the role of arbiter (resolves disputes).
He told them to place the Black Stone in the middle of a strong cloth. A representative from each tribe should then take hold of the edge of the cloth and raise the stone. One raised in this way by all the tribes, Muhammad himself fixed the Black Stone in position.
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