I hurriedly walked down the street, looking for a street that wasn’t cordoned off by the police.  It was just before midnight and I was trying to get to the main street, but block after block was blocked off by the cops.  I must have walked twenty blocks, each street being blocked off.  Beyond each blockade, crowds upon crowds of people could be seen.

I was just thinking to myself, “Why so many people?  And why so many cops?”

Then… all of a sudden, everyone started going C-R-A-Z-Y!

3!!!

2!!!

1!!!

“YEAAAAAAAAAHH”

“WOOOOOOHOOOOOOO”

“$#%&!!!!”

“HAPPY NEW YEAR!”

“LET’S GET WASTED!!!”

No… Alhamdulilah (all praise and thanks are Allah’s), this isn’t something that happened here in Makkah, but rather in a place called New York City.

That was the most people I had ever seen simultaneously in any one place.

…Until I came to Makkah.

I got here in the beginning of the Hijri year.  My perception told me that sometimes Al-Masjid Al-Haram (the sacred masjid ["mosque"] which houses the Ka’bah) was lightly packed, sometimes it was crowded, sometimes it was really crowded, and sometimes it was so crowded I couldn’t believe it!

My perception was wrong.  I found that out rather quickly when the ninth month, Ramadan, came in.  As soon as Ramadan got in, I realized that any crowd I had seen before was mild at the maximum, and in the lighter times–like father’s cabin in the woods.

And each day of the blessed month got more and more crowded so much so that on the most crowded night–the 27th night of the month–I walked outside the masjid, and walked, and walked, and walked for a kilometer (.625 miles)–and ma sha’Allah (what Allah wills), throughout this entire kilometer, there were people praying shoulder to shoulder, row after row, millions and millions.

I was so shocked that I was speechless.

And now here I am writing about it as if the only thing to be found in Ramadan at Al-Masjid Al-Haram is millions and millions of worshippers.

But after a moment of thought, this brings things back to the big question… what’s the big deal with Ramadan and what are all those worshippers here for?

Ramadan, Ramadan, where do I begin?

شَهْرُ رَمَضَانَ الَّذِيَ أُنزِلَ فِيهِ الْقُرْآنُ هُدًى لِّلنَّاسِ وَبَيِّنَاتٍ مِّنَ الْهُدَى وَالْفُرْقَانِ فَمَن شَهِدَ مِنكُمُ الشَّهْرَ فَلْيَصُمْهُ وَمَن كَانَ مَرِيضاً أَوْ عَلَى سَفَرٍ فَعِدَّةٌ مِّنْ أَيَّامٍ أُخَرَ يُرِيدُ اللّهُ بِكُمُ الْيُسْرَ وَلاَ يُرِيدُ بِكُمُ الْعُسْرَ وَلِتُكْمِلُواْ الْعِدَّةَ وَلِتُكَبِّرُواْ اللّهَ عَلَى مَا هَدَاكُمْ وَلَعَلَّكُمْ تَشْكُرُونَ

“The month of Ramadan in which the Qur’an was revealed, a guidance for mankind and clear proofs for the guidance of the Criterion between right and wrong. So whosoever of you sights the crescent for the month of Ramadan, he must fast that month….” (Qur’an, Al-Baqarah:185)

It’s one of the five pillars of Islam as Allah’s messenger (peace be upon him) said: “Islam is built upon five: Testifying that none has the right to be worshipped except Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, establishing the prayer, giving the zakaah, performing Hajj to the House, and fasting in Ramadan.” (Sahih Muslim, Book 1, Number 18)

Fasting has been legislated in order that we may gain piety as Allah says in the Qur’an:

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُواْ كُتِبَ عَلَيْكُمُ الصِّيَامُ كَمَا كُتِبَ عَلَى الَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَّقُونَ

“O you who believe! Observing As-Saum (the fasting) is prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you, that you may become Al-Muttaqun (the pious).” (Al-Baqarah:183)

So drawing closer to Allah – the Most Perfect – in this blessed month, can be achieved by fulfilling one’s obligatory duties; and also reciting the Qur’an and reflecting upon its meanings, increasing in kindness and in giving charity, in making du‘aa (supplication) to Allah, attending the Taraaweeh Prayer, seeking out Laylatul-Qadr (the Night of Power and Pre-Decree), a night which is better than a thousand months, attending gatherings of knowledge, and striving in those actions that will cause the heart to draw closer to its Lord and to gain His forgiveness. Our level of striving in this blessed month should be greater than our striving to worship Allah in any other month, due to the excellence and rewards that Allah has placed in it. Likewise from the great means of seeking nearness to Allah in this month is making I‘tikaaf (seclusion in the mosque in order to worship Allah) – for whoever is able.

Imam Ibn al-Qayyim (rh) said: “Allah also prescribed i’tikaaf for them, the objective being that the heart becomes fully preoccupied with Allah (SWT) concentrated upon Him alone, and cut-off from being preoccupied with the creation. Rather, the heart is only engrossed with Allah – the Most Perfect – such that loving Him, remembering Him, and turning to Him takes the place of all the heart’s anxieties and worries, so that he is able to overcome them. Thus all his concerns are for Allah, and his thoughts are all directed towards remembering Him and thinking of how to attain His Pleasure and what will cause nearness to him which leads him to feel contented with Allah instead of people. This, in turn prepares him for being at peace with Allah alone, on the day of loneliness in the grave, when there will be no one else to give comfort, nor anyone to grant solace, except Him. So this is the greater goal of I‘tikaaf.” [Zaadul-Ma‘aad (2/87) - Ibnul-Qayyim]

- Lessons for Ramadhan

As peaceful and nice as things usually are in Al-Masjid Al-Haram, Ramadan intensified that effect even more.  Random people would invite you to come eat with them.  People I knew would keep inviting me to eat with them to the extent that it wasn’t possible for me to accept every invitation.

Ever since I came to Makkah, Ramadan was one of the two things (Hajj is the other one) that I had been anxiously anticipating.  It felt slow to come, but as soon as it came, it was gone.

On one a.m. after the last day of Ramadan, the 29th, I paced around Al-Masjid Al-Haram like a Bedouin, staring in amazement.  Just hours earlier, and for the past ten days, you could rarely take a step without having to step over someone as so many people were doing I’tikaaf.  But now, most of those people were gone.  I was still in shock and sadness that Ramadan wasn’t one more day longer as I was wishing it would have been thirty days instead of twenty-nine, but this year, the lunar month passed in the shorter of the two possibilities.

A couple of hours later, the masjid started getting crowded again, until the time for the Fajr (dawn) prayer, and then the Eid prayer about an hour after that.  During those few hours that all the people had left the masjid, they went home and put on beautiful new clothes and prepared for the next day before coming back.

So alas it was Eid and Ramadan came to an end, and the feeling kicked in–the feeling you get when you bid farewell to someone, not knowing if you will ever meet them again.

But alhamdulilah, a few days later as Friday came along, the khateeb (speaker) giving the Friday khutbah (sermon) said some words of console:

“Whoever worships Ramadan, know that Ramadan has ended; and whoever worships Allah, know that Allah exists forever.”

Goodbye, Ramadan–here is Ar-Rahman (the Most Gracious i.e. Allah)!

الحمد لله رب العالمين
All praise and thanks are Allah’s, the Lord of the ‘Alamin (mankind, jinn and all that exists)

It was a Friday.  Safar 4, 1430 (January 30, 2009) to be precise.  And if you thought it couldn’t be more precise, the time was about 1:15 p.m.  I was in Al-Masjid Al-Haram (the sacred masjid ["mosque"] which houses the Ka’bah), and the Friday prayer had just ended.  I wanted to read, so I began heading towards the southern part of the masjid, not too far from AbdulAziz gate.  That’s when I saw her.

“Is she dead?” I asked [in Arabic] the guy that sat near her.

“No, she’s sleeping,” he answered.

“For sure?” I insistently asked.

“Yeah,” he replied.

Then I sat down about two meters behind her, with a nice view of her and the Ka’bah, and started reading and glancing at her every so often.  I had never seen one like her sleeping so peacefully.

I had seen her pretty face before the prayer a little more than an hour earlier, sleeping in the exact same place, but I thought she was just off for a quick doze.  But now I realized just how deeply and peacefully she was sleeping.  So peacefully.  Even though the masjid is jam-packed on Fridays, alhamdulilah (all praise and thanks are Allah’s), no one woke her up to move so they could pray in the place she was sleeping.

So I sat there and watched her… and read.

I was amazed.

She was just sleeping there so comfortably without a single care in the world.

After a little while, the guy that sat near her got up and left, so I went and sat right next to her so close to her that I could look down at her serene face.  She was sleeping so peacefully that I couldn’t even tell if she was breathing or not.  She was sleeping a sleep that I never dreamed was even possible.

I had never seen one like her sleeping so peacefully.

But then… she gently lifted up her head, got up, and looked at me!

Endless thoughts starting blazing into my mind.  “Oh my God!  Did I wake her up?  Is she going to leave now?  Is she angry at me?  How did I wake her up?”

It turned out she awoke for some unknown reason to me, but alhamdulilah, it was fine because she just changed positions and went back into that deep, deep sleep.

So I sat there reading and periodically gazing down at her beautiful face, body, and tail.

I’ve casually observed thousands of cats throughout my life, but had never ever seen one sleeping this peacefully.  Actually, I don’t think I’ve ever seen ANYthing sleeping that peacefully.  Not even a brick.

But wait…

Why am I writing my first blog entry about a cat on a blog that’s presumably supposed to be about Makkah?  Is it because I have nothing else to write about, or that there is nothing interesting here to write about?  Not at all.  On the contrary, this cat-venture is illustrious of Al-Masjid Al-Haram–the heart of Makkah and the world.

It’s the place where one feels a peace, serenity, and tranquility that can only be experienced to fully understand.

…So… back to the cat…

As I continued to sit there, some people would pass by and ask me the same as I initially asked.  Others would stop and pat the cat, but even with that–the cat did not leave its dream world.  Then… there came a very unexpected surprise…

“WAKE UP!”

An energetic little girl ran near the cat and started screaming at it at the top of her lungs for it to wake up in a voice louder than most alarm clocks!  Ma sha’Allah (what Allah wills), who would have thought such a tiny little girl would have such a super loud voice?

I gently tried to coax this little girl out of her mission, but she seemed impervious to my efforts–just as the cat was impervious to hers!  Regardless of how much she tried, her efforts were in vain–even after she called for backup (none other than her brother of about the same age)!

Alas, she was forced to turn back in defeat and attempt to wreak toddlerish havoc elsewhere.

I think that is a situation most people can understand as we’ve all been around toddlers, or at least been toddlers before.

So if you just take a moment to remember how loud they can be and picture that in coordination to the aforementioned sleeping cat… I think now you should be able to realize in just how relaxed of a sleep this cat was.  However, if you can’t, then try this:  Arrange with someone (your spouse, a parent, a sibling, friend, etc.) to bring a four year old (your child, sibling, etc.) in a room while you are asleep and have them scream “WAKE UP” right next to your ear at the top of their lungs.  See if you don’t have a heart attack.  But the heart attack would be so much bigger if you didn’t preplan for this four year old to attack your sleeping ears, but were rather taken by surprise by this audio monster.

But this cat neither had a heart attack nor even stirred one bit for that matter.

But what can explain such a phenomenon?

Well duh, it is Al-Masjid Al-Haram!

Hopefully this cat-venture has given you an itsy-bitsy glimpse of the peace, serenity, and tranquility one feels in Al-Masjid Al-Haram.

For those wondering about the rest of what happened with the cat… it finally woke up on its own after about three and a half hours, and has since been seen… wait… this isn’t a blog about cats!

الحمد لله رب العالمين
All praise and thanks are Allah’s, the Lord of the ‘Alamin (mankind, jinn and all that exists).