Haj 2019: Make the most of the blessed Day of Arafat

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Day of Arafat, Arafat, Haj, Saudi, Makkah, UAE, Muslim

Dubai - Day of Arafat is the culminating event of the annual Islamic pilgrimage, Haj.

By Saman Haziq

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Published: Fri 9 Aug 2019, 11:45 PM

Those few hours spent on Mount Arafat are probably when the the Haj pilgrims feel the strongest-ever connection with Allah. The pleasures, the worries and every connection to the materialistic world fades away there.
Day of Arafat is special, so prepare your list of wishes that you want to be fulfilled and ask Allah as he loves to forgive and grant wishes on this day.
There is no day on which Allah frees more people from hellfire than the Day of Arafat - this hadith of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) best describes the importance of the Day of Arafat that falls on the ninth day of the Islamic month Zul Hijjah.
Day of Arafat is the culminating event of the annual Islamic pilgrimage, Haj.
In other words, this is the most important day of Haj and the day that follows is marked as Eid Al Adha.
Dressed in the simplest possible clothes called 'ihram' - men in two plain white sheets of cloth that serve as a lower and upper body cover, and women in lose clothing - Haj pilgrims make their way from Mina to a nearby hillside and plain called Mount Arafah or Arafat, also known as Mountain of Mercy. The ihram helps foster a conviction that all people are equal before Allah, regardless of their background, wealth or social standing.
Over two million Muslims are expected to camp out on Mount Arafat in Saudi Arabia, to mark the holiest day of the Haj pilgrimage.
At dawn of this day (Zul Hijjah 9), pilgrims will make their way from Mina to a nearby hillside - Mount Arafat. It was from this site that Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) gave his last sermon, in the final year of his life.
Muslims believe that part of the Quranic verse announcing that the religion of Islam had been perfected was revealed on this day. This day is also known as the day of repentance; hence, those who are not performing Haj, or are unable to go, can spend their day fasting and seeking forgiveness from Allah. Prayers are believed to be answered on this day and it is said that those who fast on that day will get all sins of the prior year, as well as all sins for the upcoming year, expiated.
Pilgrims stay put till sunset on the mountain spending their time praying for forgiveness and wellbeing. After that, they move to Muzdalifah for sunset and night prayers.
saman@khaleejtimes.com


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