Five Pillars of Islam
by Khwaja Kamal-ud-Din
Pilgrimage [Hajj]
I have pointed it out above that men’s undue attachment to their worldly possessions, their relations and other objects, have been the fertile source of all manner of disorder in the world. To adequately meet this abuse, the tenet of Pilgrimage is laid down. Under this a Muslim has to undertake once in his life a journey to Mecca1. He learns through undergoing all the hardships of such a long, arduous journey how it is to be deprived of the company of those near and dear to him. At some distance from the Holy Temple of the Lord all pilgrims have to divest themselves of their ordinary apparel and to don a uniform which is same for all. One sheet covers the upper body and the other the legs; and whatever the status of the votary the uniformity of the attire makes them all one and equal. I reserve a detailed description of other features of the “Hajj” for a later article.
What I meant to show here was this, that through this Muslim institution the narrow patriotism of our day loses some of its worst aspects, and our feelings of love of our country become softened and regulated. Briefly, to revert to my original theme, Islam aims at the establishment of the real peace in the world, and to destroy every trace of all that tends to weaken such aim. Islam tries to show not only what real peace is, but also what constitutes and brings forth real peace. The recognition of “thine and mine” which brings forth happiness and comfort, also deters its proper course. Some remedy was needed to chasten it into something noble and divest it of its abuse.
Footnotes:
- See “Mecca in the Days of Pilgrimage,” by the same author, price 2d [2 pence]. ↩