The Hajj and the ‘Umra

the Hajj [Major Pilgrimage] and the ‘Umra [Minor Pilgrimage]

Before Islām, the Arabs used to perform their pilgrimage in the month of Dhū-l-Hijja every year. They performed the very same ceremonies that Muslims continue to perform today. The Talbiyya [answering the call], the Ihram [consecration], the wearing of the garments of Ihram, the leading of Hudī [leading of the sacrificial animal] and its rituals—standing at ‘Arafāt, dashing forward at Muzdalifa, heading to Mina to cast stones, nahr [sacrificing by cutting the jugular vein] the Hudī and compassing the Ka‘ba [as well] seven times [neither increased or decreased in Islām], kissing the black stone [to glorify it], and the Sa‘ī [retracing Hajar’s route] between the Safā and Marwa]—all remain the same. They [pre-Islāmic Arabs] also used to call the eighth day of Dhū-l- Hijja [Yawm al-Tarwīya] stand at ‘Arafāt on the ninth day, and start on the tenth, the days of Mina and the casting of stones. They [also] called these days [al-Tashrīq days]. They further performed the minor pilgrimage on months other than that of the Hajj.

(‘Abd al-Karīm, al-Judhūr al-Tārīkhīya li-l-Sharī‘a al-Islāmīya 16-17)

What captures the attention is how astonishingly similar the Islāmic pilgrimage rituals are to the pagan pilgrimage rituals. To demonstrate this strong similarity, consider the elements of the pagan pilgrimage.

The time of the pilgrimage is in the month of Dhū-l-Hijja, which is why it is called the month of Hajj. This is the last month in the Islāmic calendar, and it was also known by this name before the advent of Islām. The ancient texts mention the month by the name Dhū-Hijjatin, which means Dhū-l-Hijja, and indicates that the Arabs regarded this month as their month of pilgrimage before the founding of Islām as a religion.

Historical sources say that because of the presence of numerous holy sites (ka‘bas) in the Arabian Peninsula, the pilgrimage did not take place in only one location. So the pilgrimage was not only to Mecca but to different holy sites as well. In addition, the ceremonial practices of both the major and minor pilgrimages were not the same in all locations. These ceremonial practices differed from one tribe to another. When Muhammad considered adopting Hajj as a pillar of Islām, he adopted the Quraysh form of hajj (pagan pilgrimage). One of the most distinctive rituals of the Quraysh was to go hastily between the Safā and Marwa.

When we compare the pagan rituals with the Islāmic, we find complete commonality between them. For example, the scholars relate several different forms of talbīya (“answering the call by a religious chant”). Every tribe answered its special idol’s call in its own form. The people of Mecca had their unique form as well. Ibn Habīb mentions the Quraysh form of talbiyya to the idol Isāf: “Labayk Allahuma labayk, labayk lā sharīka laka illā sharīk howa laka. Tamlikuhu wa mā malak” (“We answer you, Allah, we answer you. We answer you. There is no partner with you except the one that you own. You own that one and all that one owns”). We find that the Muslim form of talbiyya is very similar to it: “Labayk Allahuma labayk, lā sharīka laka labayk, inna al-hamda wa al-ni‘mata laka wa almulk, la sharīka lak” (“We answer you, Allah, we answer you. We answer you.

There is no partner with you, we answer you. Praise and grace belong to you as well as reign, there is no partner with you”). The commonality between the pagan pilgrimage rituals and the Islāmic rituals reveals a disquieting side to Islām—that is, one of Islām’s pillars is completely derived from Arabian paganism.

Despite the spiritual danger, the act of including the pagan pilgrimage rituals in Islām was a brilliant strategic move by Muhammad, because it helped him gain the affection of the pagan Arab tribes. However, it also exposes the earthly, human nature of Islām and strips Muhammad of his claim to the divine origin of the Qur’ān. The Islāmization of the pagan hajj demonstrates Muhammad’s political genius, yet it topples his claim as a prophet sent from God.

Question: How could Allah accept the sanctioning of pagan pilgrimage rituals? If we overlook the politically beneficial dimension of sanctioning the hajj, this question remains unanswered.

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