Eat Walk Pray Part I

The blog title (adapted from Elizabeth Gilbert's memoir of self-discovery) describes exactly what my trip to the Holy  Haram Land of Makkah Al-Mukarramah and Madinah Al-Munawwarah was all about. It was a spiritual journey of a lifetime. It was an awesome, amazing, highly-emotional, spiritually-cleansing and life-changing experience beyond compare (except for Hajj of course). Alhamdulillah! Praises to Allah for giving me the opportunity and means to visit His Holy Haram Land.

No kind of physical and mental training could ever prepare anyone for the journey to the Holy Land. One will be easily overwhelmed physically, psychologically and emotionally by the sheer grandeur, awesomeness and holiness of the place. Not to mention the physical exertion of endless, tireless walking to and from our hotel and two of the grandest, holiest mosques in the whole wide world, Masjidil Haram in Makkah and Masjid An-Nabawi in Madinah. Indeed, Umrah and Hajj are physical forms of ibadah or worship in Islam.

This is my first, which means my compulsory Umrah (wajib). Every Muslim has to perform Umrah and Hajj once in his/her lifetime when he/she fulfills all the criteria to do it, which includes having the means to finance the journey and still able to sustain the dependents left behind at home. One can perform Umrah at any time of the year provided that the Saudi Government give permission, while Hajj can only be performed once a year from 9-13th Dzulhijjah according to Hijrah calender.

My calling to perform Umrah actually came a few years ago when I dreamt I was present in front of Prophet Muhammad SAW (Peace Be Upon Him) mausoleum. It was so surreal that when I was actually there during my visit, I felt the same overwhelming emotion. However, I was too busy with work and stuff. I kept postponing it. That I regretted. On the spur of the moment, I decided that the time was right. When I enquired TH Travel & Tour departure date of 5th of May 2012 was available and conveniently scheduled to fly from Senai Airport, Johor Bahru. It was a decision I never regretted. Having the opportunity to perform Umrah because of devotion to Allah Taala (Lillahi Taala) is a privilege by itself.

So my wife, her sister and I started preparing ourselves for the trip of our lifetime. Reading books on how to perform Umrah. Attending Umrah course. Asking friends who have been there to share tips and experience. Browsing websites and blogs on other people's accounts and experiences of their Umrah. There are even iPhone apps on Manasik Umrah and Hajj.

As the departure date approached, I felt uneasy and restless. I got goosebumps worrying about everything. Suddenly, the task at hand felt very daunting. The more I read about how to perform Umrah, the more unprepared I felt. As I said before, Umrah and Hajj are physical forms of ibadah. There are no specific recitations or incantations to memorize during the Umrah. All the supplications or du'as in the books are recommendations only. All one has to do to perform Umrah are to say one's intention to perform Umrah at one of the many Miqats (Qarnul Manazil, Zulhulaifah, Yalamlam, Hudaibiyah, Ji'ranah, Tana'im etc) after wearing the Ihram (2 pieces of unsewn cloths for men; telekung or cloak that only show face and hands for women), to perform the Tawaf (circumambulation around Kaaba 7 times), to perform the Sa'ie (walk to and fro between Safa and Marwa 7 times) and to finish off to cut or shave one's hair. It's mandatory to follow that sequence or else your Umrah will be null and void. There are also thirteen forbidden acts one must not do while wearing the Ihram but I am going to skip that part.