One of the five pillars of Islam is Hajj. Hajj is the obligatory pilgrimage to Mecca that every Muslim has to perform one time in his life. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) performed his Hajj along with Umrah (voluntary lesser pilgrimage). Hajj is performed in the sacred month of Dhul-Hijjah the same time every year. The Prophet (peace be upon)’s Hajj marked the end years of his life. This was very important, because this marked the completion of the favors that the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) that the he owed to his people. In the speech he gave in Mecca, the Quranic verse was revealed, “This day I have perfected your religion for you, completed My favor upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion.” [Quran, 5:3]. This pilgrimage had three main points of significance: the pilgrimage performed by the Prophet (peace be upon him) gave us an example about the way to do it, the farewell speech marked the completion of the Prophet (peace be upon him)’s mission, and this was the last year of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)’s life.
The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)’s performing Hajj was a very important, because we learned the Sunnah (Prophet’s sayings and actions) way to perform the Hajj. One of the main goals of a Muslim is to imitate the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) in all his actions, because he was the model for the best of conduct and behavior. As is evident in the way he performed his Hajj and what he said, the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) avoided certain actions during Hajj so that they would not become compulsory on his Ummah (nation). He was very careful in his pilgrimage rituals and he completed them all in the appropriate times. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) also finished his mission during his stay in Mecca when he gave his farewell speech.
In his farewell speech, the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) gave his religious advice and orders to the Muslims. He started out by mentioning the Holiness of the time, place, and the month. He informed the Muslims not to shed blood in the Ka’aba. He banished the practices, feuds, and the usury debts of Jahiliyyah (Pre-Islamic times). He also advised us to take good care of our women and to give them their rights. He finished his speech with the five pillars of Islam and mentioning that the Muslims must hold fast to the Quran and the Sunnah. Then he informed the people that he had completed his duty upon them and he mentioned that he was the last prophet, and no prophet would come after him.
The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) left this world on Monday, 12 of Rabbi-Al-Awwal, 11 years A.H. (After Hijrah, migration). This was a very hard test for the believers, because they had lost their prophet and their most loved companion. That is when Abu Bakr stood up and gave a speech that started with the words: “Whoever worships Muhammad (peace be upon him), Muhammad (peace be upon him) is dead, but God can never die.” The torch was given to Abu Bakr As-Sadiq, who was the prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)’s closest companion and his most trusted friend.
The Hajj of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) had a major significance in Islamic history. This event marked the end of the greatest era in Islamic history, which was of course the time when the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) lived among the Muslims.
Date: 4/24/06
