You are always in a state of destitution.

Asalamualaykum,

I have been thinking about this lately... Once a couple of years back we were going through reflections on Imam al Ghazzali's book about Hajj rahimahullah by Sheikh Naeem Abdul Wali in Lakemba and something he said struck me and I haven't forgotten it since. Alhamdulilah.

Hajj is a strange ritual, men women mixing together in the masjid, rules pertaining to salah and wudu and what most would term "cleanliness" are all kinda thrown out the window. Islam has a very high emphasis on cleanliness and segregation, but on Hajj it's different.

It now becomes: Come to the House of Allah in a state of destitution! With the signs of travel eminent on you, disheveled hair, uncut nails, sweaty, tired, ugly, dirt marks on your face and clothes, no perfume, no oud, no shampoo no nothing, it doesn't even matter who is standing next to you! Male or female! Essentially you are annihilated before Allah and you ask Him for forgiveness in that state because that is more important than anything else! You are ditching your nafs and seeking Allah's All-Encompassing Forgiveness! That's all that matters. Not you, just Allah the All-Merciful!

It's actually quite ironically beautiful if you think about it. He wants you to be a beggar at His door, you are the poor, destitute, needy, slave and He is the Rich, Sustainer, Provider free of all need. He wants you to feel that on Hajj let all your senses be aware of that, because you have been living a facade your entire life! Essentially this is your state all the time with Him! You just don't realise it!

Who clothes us? Who provides water for us to cleanse ourselves? Who provides us with access to clippers to clip our nails? Who is it that causes us to smell nice? Allah. It is all Allah. We are never in a state where we are free of need from Him. But as time passes and you get used to having ready access to all the above you lose sight of the fact that indeed it's not you that's sustaining you, it is Allah! It's as though on Hajj Allah drops you down to that level so you can realise it, at least once in your life.

SubhanAllah.