بسم الله الرØمن الرØيم
I begin in the name of Allah, The Most Beneficient, The Most Merciful. As I start to reflect upon the memories of my first visit to the Holy Lands recently with my best friend, Sriyathi. I must say that words will do no justice to the feelings and emotions I experienced on this blessed journey.
My journey begins from Changi International Airport on 3-July 2009, Friday evening. I'm so happy that all my brothers and their spouses and children and not forgetting my other best friend Nosha and her husband Brian came to the airport to see me off.
As we were flying Qatar Airways, we have to transit at Doha for our connecting flight to Jeddah. Upon landing at Jeddah, the atmosphere completely changed. The heat hit us as soon as we came out of the airport terminal. It was really hotter than the hottest days in Singapore that I had experienced. No wonder the Arab women cover their faces. It's not because it's customory to do so, but it's the practical thing to do there. I was told that the temperature is around 42-44 degree C. SubhanAllah.
As I did not go with my muhrim (my husband), I was asked to tag along Cik Jamil (one of the jema'ah who came with his wife and daughter) and pretended to be one of his muhrim. After a few formalities with the immigration there, our passports were returned to us.
I have mixed emotions as I left Jeddah and headed towards the blessed city of Medina, the final resting place of our Rasullullah, Nabi Muhammad (SAW). The journey took us around five hours cutting through numerous rocky mountains and miles and miles of deserts. Now, we were travelling in luxury and comfort in an air-conditioned vehicle (and yet I'm complaining that the AC is not cold enough), so different from the time when this journey was undertaken on camels in the scorching heat of the desert.
It was late evening when we arrived in Medina Al-Munawarah, the Illuminated City. The calm and peaceful atmosphere of Medina is just beyond imagination, this is where our beloved Rasullullah (SAW) spent the last 10 years of His blessed life and this is the place where Rasulullah (SAW) will rest until the Day of Judgement.
The next morning around 3.00 am, we walked to the magnificent mosque, Mesjid an-Nabawi for our subuh prayer. Over the centuries, many extensions have taken place and today the size is just unbelievable. The most famous sign is the Green Dome, this dome has been created upon the chambers which housed the maqam of our Holy Prophet, Nabi Muhammad (SAW) and His two Companions, Sayidina Abu Bakar (RA) and Sayidina Umar (RA). Adjacent to Nabi Muhammad's (SAW) grave is the original site of Saidatina Aisyah's (RA) house, the Prophet's wife, and also the site of Saidatina Fatimah's house, the Prophet's daughter. The segregation facilities within the mesjid is remarkable. The maqams are situated at the front of the mesjid. The section between the maqam and the mimbar from where Rasullullah (SAW) used to deliver His sermon is known as Taman Raudhah (Garden of Paradise), this particular section is always very crowded with thousands of worshippers. The mesjid is open 24 hours, however, for women, Taman Raudhah is open only three times a day with only two hours each time (after solat subuh, after solat zuhur and after solat isyak). It was a very emotional moment as I entered the chamber. Words will do no justice to the feelings of that precise moment. Here I am, standing a few metres away from the Leader of the Prophets and Leader of the whole mankind. I cried when I presented my salams and the salams of my beloved husband, and all my brothers and sister-in-laws to our Rasullullah (SAW). I was very fortunate to be able to perform my solat sunat a number of times within Taman Raudhah.
The Medina visit was not entirely confined to ritual activities. Since Medina was the first Islamic administration centre established by our Rasulullah (SAW), there are a lot of historical places around it worth visiting. On our fourth day in Medina, we were taken to various places of interest.
Our first stop is Jabal Uhud , the place where the Muslims battled with the Kafirs of Mekah. At first, the Muslims won the battle but later lost it because the Muslim archers, who were not supposed to leave their position on the hill (Jabal Rahmat), abandoned their position against the instruction of Rasullullah (SAW). The enemy took advantage of this situation and launched a counter attack on the Muslims. Sayidina Hamzah bin Abdul Mutalib, known as the "Lion of Islam" and also uncle of Rasulullah (SAW) was also killed in this battle. The graves of 70 Islamic martyrs including Sayidina Hamzah were laid to rest at the foot of Jabal Uhud.
We also visited Mesjid al-Qiblatain (mosque with two qiblah directions). The mosque obtained its name from an event where Rasullullah (SAW), while performing the Asar prayer, was given an instruction to shift the qiblah from Mesjid Al-Aqsa in Jerusalem to the Ka'abah in Mecca. Hence, Rasullullah's first two raka'ats were facing Al-Aqsa and the 3rd and 4th raka'ats were facing Ka'abah. The shift served as a testimony of Ka'abah as the oldest holy site first marked by Nabi Adam (AS) and later built by Nabi Ibrahim (AS).
Next is Mesjid Quba'. This is the first mosque that was built by Rasullullah (SAW) and his companions when he first arrived in Medina at the early stage of of the "Hijrah".
Last is the visit to Pasar Kurma. There were many varieties of dates being sold. Among others, I bought the 'kurma Nabi', which was Rasullullah's (SAW) favourite during His time. As kurma is also my husband's favourite snack, I bought for him 2 kg and few more kg of other variety.
The rest of the four days in Medina were spent by commuting between the mosque (for prayers) and the hotel (for our meals) and some side tracking to the shopping malls.
On our last day in Medina, after our breakfast in the hotel, we went to the mosque again for ziarah wadak (bid farewell). It was sad to leave Medina and at the same time I cannot wait to see Mekah.
We proceeded our journey to Mekah after our solat zuhur and after our lunch around 2.30 pm, already in Ihram. Our miqat was at Bir Ali where we did our solat sunat ihram before jatuh niat in the coach. It was a sea of dry land and rocky hills throughout the five over hour journey. We stopped for our Asar prayer in one of the many small mosque along the highway.
It was around 7.30pm when we reached the Holy City and nothing can describe the feeling as we entered the sacred land. As per Ustadz Misran's instruction, we did our solat jamaq takhir for Maghrib and Isyak in our own room. After a quick fresh-up and dinner, we went straight to Masjidil Haram to perform our first umrah.
My first glimpse of the Ka'abah was veiled by an astounding wave of tears. All these years I had prayed towards this structure, and here it stood before me, looking so glorious than I could ever have imagined. It was surreal. The pictures I had seen, none of it had prepared me for the moment when my own eyes lit upon the magnificense that was the Ka'abah. "Here I am, Ya Allah. Here I am before You" and I added weeping..."I need Your Mercy and Compassion right now more than ever"
A sea of people were busy in Tawaf and we joined the flow. It was amazing. Thousands of people from all over the globe with different languages and colours moving in one direction. Still, amidst the feelings of exultation and the amazement of finally being here, I experienced a sense of deep despair. For I stood before God in shame. Clad in pure white, I was imperfect, stained with sins that had been repeated time and again. Some I had sought to resist, and others for which I had not even made the effort, some for which I had sought forgiveness, others for which I had not. After the tawaf, when Ustadz Misran recited the doa and later translated them into Malay, I immediately feel it. A very strong feeling of sorrows. I felt so small. I cried as I sought God's forgiveness in front of the Ka'abah.
The seven circuits around the Holy Ka'abah took about 45 minutes. After quenching our thirst with Zam Zam water, we proceeded with the next rite, moving into the direction of Bukit Safa to start the Sa'i. Starting at Bukit Safa and finishing at Bukit Marwah. The final rite after Sa'i is to shave (tahalul) or cut some of the hair. My first umrah was completed successfully at around 11.30 pm. Alhamdullillah, thanks to The Almighty.
In total, I did four umrahs. I actually planned to make more, but my leg is aching badly due to excessive walks that I made days before. It hurts terribly that making a simple sujud has become a challenge for me. During one of my morning tawaf with Kak Yati (representative from Halijah Travel), we managed to squeeze ourselves and had our Dhuha prayers at Hijir Ismael. Kak Yati intended to kiss Hajar Aswad and asked me to come along. So, right after our Dhuha prayer, we started to inch our way towards Hajar Aswad. It was very difficult...as there were too many people trying to do the same. But with God's help, we able to squeeze ourselves through and finally Hajar Aswad is within reach. And after a real hard push, I managed to see, touched and kissed the Hajar Aswad. However, to get out from the entangled human crowd was a nightmare, with people pushing from every direction. I was kind of trapped in the middle. I feel that my legs are not standing on the ground, I was like floating few inches above the ground. Ya Allah... and for a moment I thought I was going to faint. I could see a few faces trying frantically to reach my hand. Finally, after using all my ultimate strength, I managed to get out. Alhamdullillah... Alhamdullillah... I was sobbing when I saw Kak Yati and quickly hugged her. With tears in our eyes we said our 2 raka'ats prayers infront of Ka'abah together.
Like, Medina. Mekah is nothing but a ritual town with trading and retailing as the backbone of the economy. On our 6th day in Mekah, we were taken for a tour to various historical sites around Mekah, Mina and Muzdalifah.
First was to the foot of Jabal Thur, on top of this hill is a cave in which our Rasulullah (SAW) and Sayidina Abu Bakar lay hidden for three days at the time of their migration to Medina.
Next, we went to the foot of Jabal Nur. There's also a cave at the top of this mountain where our Rasullullah (SAW) used to meditate and detached Himself from the deviated Mekah's residents. It was here that Rasullullah received the first Wahyu of Surah al-Iqraq. The amazing thing about the cave is that it faces directly towards Ka'abah.
We also visited Jabal al-Rahmah, the hill where Adam (AS) and Eve (AS) were united after they were expelled to earth. Jabal al-Rahmah is also a sacred hill in the middle of the Plain of Arafah. I managed to inch myself to the top. Next was a tour of Arafah Plains, Mina and Muzdalifah to see the routes to be taken by pilgrims during hajj season.
Like Medina, the rest of the seven days in Mekah were spent by walking between the mosque (for prayers) and the hotel (for our meals) and again some side tracking to the shopping malls. Here in Mekah, the malls are more modern, names like Baskin Robbin, Movenpick, Burger King, KFC etc... are all there.
On our last day in Mekah, I went for my subuh prayer alone as my room-mate was sick. After solat, I sat for almost one hour at the steps facing the Ka'abah just gazing at this majestic black structure. I was swarmed with emotion and choking with tears. God... I just want to be here again, please don't let this be my last visit. I prayed that there will be another opportunity to visit Masjidil al-Haram again, hopefully with my loved ones soon.
After our breakfast we carried our luggages to the lobby before going back to the mosque again to perform Tawaf Wada (to bid farewell to the Ka'abah). And again, Ustadz Misran recited the doa in Malay and this brought tears to everybody's eyes. After the doa, we hugged each other and asked forgiveness from one another. It was a very emotional moment.
We proceeded to Jeddah at 9.00 am. In Jeddah, we visited the floating mosque which is situated on the shore of the Red Sea. Standing at the shore facing the open sea, I couldn't help myself thinking about the journey made by Nabi Musa (AS) during His crossing of this sea with the Pharaohs chasing behind him. After the brief stop, we then proceeded to Jeddah Int'l Airport to catch our flight to Doha before connecting another flight to Singapore.
This Umrah trip was never, in any way, similar to the other overseas trips I ever made. It was the best, it gave me both serenity and the chance to enhance my religious knowledge. The special attractions of Mekah and Medina are not found anywhere else in the world, this makes me want to go there again.
I pray that Almighty Allah will give me the strength to be a good Muslim. I pray that I will always be prompt and faithful to prayer. I pray that I will recite more of the Qur'an every day before & after solat. I pray that my humble umrah is accepted and I pray too that I am offered the chance to return to Mekah and Medina once more. InsyaAllah.
Kal said that Dewi had two extra cans left over from her painting project. Called Dewi, but she's not at home.
Went back sadly. Continued with the make-over until around 3am.
Went to bed at 2.30am.
Most shops are closed, so we left empty handed. My husband tak putus asa, suggested we go to IMM. The clock shop there is also closed. Aargh..... we have our lunch at Bagus before going to Jurong West to fetch MIL home.
