Written by Zaviaar Hasan
The train was zooming down the tracks at 186 miles per hour. One piece of cloth was wrapped around my waist while the other draped over my shoulder as I joined the chanting crowd. My heart was beating, my thoughts were racing, and all I could do was wonder: what would it feel like to see it? How big would it be? How crowded would it be? I had seen pictures, but for the first time in my life I would see it for myself.
Speeding down the highway, peeking out the window, I noticed lots of masjids every two minutes, and as the car moved on many minarets showed up. Behind the minarets, huge, rocky, and brown mountains came into view. We saw lines and lines of mountains across the horizon. I wondered, were those the mountains where the battles I had grown up hearing about were fought thousands of years ago?
Finally, we arrived and dropped off our luggage before walking toward the Kaaba, which was surrounded by Masjid al-Haram. When I first walked into the masjid, I was amazed because it was so bright and beautiful. The walls and floors were shiny white marble, the lights were bright and golden, and the tall minarets made the whole place feel huge. As I kept walking, I suddenly saw the Kaaba right in front of me. It was a huge black cube with shiny gold writing and designs on the fabric, and seeing it for the first time completely stunned me.
I walked in sync with the crowd; I felt the cold white tiles under my feet, the rhythm of everyone’s duas surrounded me, and in that moment under the beautiful stars and the dark night sky I felt closer to Allah. After, we prayed 2 rakaat sunnah upon finishing the seven circuits of tawaaf around the Kaaba. We then went to get a quick drink of Zamzam water, and moved on to the next part of the Umrah.
When I was walking between the two mountains, Safa and Marwa, I felt so many emotions all at once. There were so many people around us that it felt like a moving river of people, all walking with the same purpose. It was very crowded, except everyone was calm and focused. I even joined the men to run under the green lights that hung from the ceiling, and it felt so special to see everyone following the same ancient tradition. The mountains were far apart from each other. You would know if you were approaching either mountain because the ground would start to go upward, and you would get a glimpse upon getting close to it.
When we finished walking seven times, it was time for the last step. I shaved my head, and as my hair fell, I felt free, and light.
Reflecting on my experience, I am so very grateful that my parents brought me to do the Umrah pilgrimage, and I hope Allah (SWT) accepts my worship.