The Qur’an gives three rules for the days of hajj, and they are not about rituals. They are about how you behave.
ٱلْحَجُّ أَشْهُرٌۭ مَّعْلُومَٰتٌۭ ۚ فَمَن فَرَضَ فِيهِنَّ ٱلْحَجَّ فَلَا رَفَثَ وَلَا فُسُوقَ وَلَا جِدَالَ فِى ٱلْحَجِّ ۗ وَمَا تَفْعَلُوا۟ مِنْ خَيْرٍۢ يَعْلَمْهُ ٱللَّهُ ۗ وَتَزَوَّدُوا۟ فَإِنَّ خَيْرَ ٱلزَّادِ ٱلتَّقْوَىٰ ۚ وَٱتَّقُونِ يَٰٓأُو۟لِى ٱلْأَلْبَٰبِ ﴿١٩٧﴾
(Masa untuk mengerjakan ibadat) Haji itu ialah beberapa bulan yang termaklum. Oleh yang demikian sesiapa yang telah mewajibkan dirinya (dengan niat mengerjakan) ibadat Haji itu, maka tidak boleh mencampuri isteri, dan tidak boleh membuat maksiat, dan tidak boleh bertengkar, dalam masa mengerjakan ibadat Haji. Dan apa jua kebaikan yang kamu kerjakan adalah diketahui oleh Allah; dan hendaklah kamu membawa bekal dengan cukupnya kerana sesungguhnya sebaik-baik bekal itu ialah memelihara diri (dari keaiban meminta sedekah); dan bertaqwalah kepadaKu wahai orang-orang yang berakal (yang dapat memikir dan memahaminya).
No intimacy, no sin, no arguing. The last one is the hardest. There will be queues, heat, delays, lost luggage, crowded tents, people who push and people who are rude. Your hajj can be harmed far more by one angry argument than by a mistake in a ritual.
Arguing is the real danger
Decide now, before you go, that you will not argue during hajj, even when you are right. Practise at home: when you feel the urge to answer back this week, stay silent and say astaghfirullah. Give up your seat. Let the other person go first. These small acts are your training.
Prepare your body
- Walk every day. Hajj can mean many kilometres of walking in a day, sometimes in crowds and heat. Start now with 30 minutes and build up.
- Break in your shoes. Wear the shoes or sandals you will take on long walks before you travel. New shoes cause blisters.
- See your doctor. Take enough of your medicines for the whole trip, plus extra, in your hand luggage, with a letter from your doctor.
- Vaccinations. Saudi Arabia requires certain vaccinations for pilgrims. Your country’s hajj office will tell you which ones and when.
Respect the heat
Hajj now falls in the hottest months of the year. In 2024, more than 1,300 pilgrims died during hajj in extreme heat. According to the Saudi health minister, most of them were pilgrims without a permit who walked long distances in the sun.
- Go only with an official permit, through your country’s official route. It is the law in Saudi Arabia, and it protects your life.
- Stay out of the midday sun when you can. The Saudi Ministry of Health has advised pilgrims to avoid being outdoors in the hottest hours, around 11 in the morning to 3 in the afternoon.
- Drink water often, before you feel thirsty. Use an umbrella. Rest in the shade.
- Know the signs of heatstroke: confusion, headache, hot dry skin, fainting. Get help immediately.
Decide about your phone
Phones will be everywhere. Decide now how you will use yours, especially at Arafat. Many pilgrims switch to airplane mode for the whole afternoon and only use it to read their du’a list. Tell your family in advance that you will be unreachable for those hours.
This week
- Walk 30 minutes a day, in the shoes you will take.
- One day without arguing. Then try three.
- Book your doctor’s appointment and ask about vaccinations and medicines.
- Tell your family when you will switch off your phone at Arafat, so they do not worry.