Monday 2 January 2012

..the plains of Arafat..

....by the sun and its morning glow
by the moon as it follows in tow
by the day as it reveals its glory
by the night as it conceals it totally
by the heaven and He who built it
and by a soul and He who proportioned it
inspiring it with depravity or piety
he who purified his soul has succeeded
and he who stifles it has failed....
surah Al-Shams

..on the 4th of November, 2011, the 8th of Zuhiljah, 1432 we left for the plains of Arafat...towards the Mount of  Arafat, Jabal Rahmah...it was a Friday... some walked the distance..some took a ride on the roof of a bus, in the cargo hold, as it were...but for pakmat and wife, it was a comfortable ride in one of the Muassasah air-conditioned buses...bus no. 16...

..for some, the journey was on top of a bus..
..we left the comforts of hotel Luat Al-TawHeed, Misfalah, with its attached bathrooms and hot water on tap, for two nights under tents pitched together to house more than a 100 of us per tent, with bedding of carpets spread on sand and communal toilets built on a rise, right on the septic tanks, where we lined up and waited our turns...it was one of haj most important rituals - the wukuf...and pakmat savoured its moments and the opportunities it brought...


..silhouetted in the evening sun..
...and it revealed pakmat's defects and weaknesses...as a muslim and as a man...but the moon that peered unhesitantly through the gaps of the tent bore witness...that the nights pakmat sat with those who read His Book...and solat with those who solat those additional solats...and the days he walked the plains of Arafat...mixing freely with his fellow pilgrims, trying to bridge differences in languages and cultures...and always, always, Jabal Rahmah as a backdrop....
..'by the moon as it  follows in tow'..viewed from
within the tent of Arafat as pakmat pondered...
..others before him had made this journey...clutched the same sand he clutched in between the carpets...looked up the same sky...others before him from amongst his family, his kin and kindred...they were here before there were airplanes....braving the waves for months on ships...bringing along stocks of food, budu and salted fish....

..pakmat with his brethren, all in ihram..
..as there will be others after him...his children, of which and of whom he fervently prayed...his grandchildren and great grandchildren...they will wukuf the same plain, look up the same sky...for the haj is His Gift...an opportunity...



..missus with her sisters...pic taken upon their request..
...he who purified his soul has succeeded...

9 comments:

Wan Sharif said...

A beautiful record of the event that will be read by our children and grandchildren in future insyaAllah..

Abam Kie said...

i wish i could be there! InsyaAllah.

jamilah said...

beautiful Pakmat...

Fadhil said...

Beautifully written, as always. The wukuf was such a peaceful time for me. The real challenge of patience came after that, on the trip from Arafah to Mudzalifah.

Unknown said...

Salam guys...insyaAllah, abe wan...and I am sure you will, Daddy Zuki, one day...dont forget to tell me about it...I will drop by Machang for tips and hints..:)..thank you, jamilah..you r being kind..you, too, Oldstock...cheers and may Allah blessed you all...

Red Alfa said...

Salam Pak Mat

One unforgetable quite comical scene... during the big move from Arafat to Muzdalifah evening after the wukuf...

As this bus sped ahead the driving wind had flapped up his ihram robe exposing the naked buttock of a man who had bent over and hanging on to the steps going up to the bus roof.

Imagining people was cheering him on with the following buses screaming the horns and traffic policemen blowing their whistles, the man nodded back happily not realising the spectacle he had made himself of.

It still leaves me till today wondering of the prayers for forgiveness that man might have made but that his certain sin was still not forgiven!

It has been said a man's huge ego is ungorgiveable as shirik...

Unknown said...

..redalfa, I had such an experience..he was sitting on the steps, enjoying his food, his ihram askewed, showing his glory for all to see...and I was too embarassed to tell him...my wife averted her eyes...and we had a good laugh later at the maktab...my the Lord forgive us..

daun inai said...

Salam Pakmat,

Pantai Bachok macam mana kena ombak krimas? Dalam gambar Pakmat tak pakai ihram biasa yang puteh tu, ke?Kenapa .


Meru

Unknown said...

..salam meru/daud inai...pantai irama terhakis teruk...dan pakmat memang pakai ihram berwarna puteh saperti jua jemaah lain..cuma sewaktu gambar dirakam pakmat bersalin dengan kain tidak berjahit untuk ke tandas..seselesai hajat pakmat kembali berihram saperti biasa...