By Fatima Muraina

The 502 Ondo State Muslim pilgrims have joined other Muslim faithful all over the world to commence the 2024 pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia yesterday (Thursday).

The Ondo State Chairman of the Muslim Welfare Board, Alhaji Zikirullah Chandy Adam, made this known in a telephone chat with The Hope yesterday.

Explaining the process of the Hajj obligation, Adam said the pilgrims left Mecca yesterday (Thursday) for Mina, where they will spend the night.

He said they will take their baths and put on white garments (Ihram) from their homes in Mecca, reciting ‘Labaika’ as they travel to Mina, where they will stay throughout Friday (today) and early on Saturday, before dawn.

“They will leave Mina for Arafat to observe the Subh (morning) prayer at Arafat and will stay there till Dhuhr (afternoon) prayer, which will be observed together with the Asr (mid-afternoon) prayer, and remain there till evening before leaving for Muzdalifah.

“Upon reaching Muzdalifah, the Maghrib and Isha prayers will be observed together in the evening at Muzdalifah, where we shall spend the night.”

“Early on Sunday morning, around 4 am, we will return to Mina to spend the night. Then, by 8 am, we will leave Mina for Jamrah, which is about a 7-kilometer journey, to throw the first pebbles. Afterward, we will return to our tent at Mina to cut off our hair, remove the white garments, and start greeting each other with congratulations,” he stated.

Adam continued, saying they will put on the State identification cloth to observe the second pebble throwing at Jamrah and come back the next day for the third day’s throwing of the pebbles.

He explained that the pilgrims will later be expecting the government of Saudi Arabia, after the last pebble throwing, to transport them back to Mecca to perform Tawaf (circling the Kaaba) and then run between Safa and Marwah seven times.

This, he stated, marks the end of the pilgrimage rites.

Speaking on the basics of Hajj performance, the Chief Imam of the Police Officers Mosque in Akure, Alhaji Eyitayo Taofik Akintola, said it is important for every Muslim who has the financial capability to visit Mecca.

He noted that it is the fifth pillar of Islam, which symbolizes faith in Allah and the Sunnah (teachings and practices) of the Prophet Muhammad (SAW).

The throwing of the pebbles, Akintola emphasized, is part of the pilgrimage rites. When Satan tried to convince Prophet Ibrahim and his family to go against his promise to God to sacrifice his son Ismail, they threw pebbles at Satan. This practice has continued to this day.