MAKKAH, Saudi Arabia – In the early hours of Tuesday night, 2,000 Sierra Leonean pilgrims from both within the country and the diaspora departed from Makkah for Mina, marking the beginning of the core rituals of the annual Hajj pilgrimage.
Travelling by bus, the pilgrims journeyed to Mina, famously known as the “City of Tents,” to observe the Day of Tarwiyah. This significant ritual, held on the 8th day of Dhul Hijjah, precedes the most important phase of the pilgrimage—the Day of Arafat.
During their stay in Mina, located approximately five kilometres from the Grand Mosque, pilgrims will engage in prayers and reflection. They are expected to perform the Dhuhr, Asr, and Isha prayers in shortened form, while the Maghrib prayer will be offered as usual. The day and night in Mina will be spent in intense supplication and spiritual preparation.
After the Fajr prayer on Thursday, June 5, pilgrims will depart for Arafat to observe the wuqoof, or standing at Arafat—considered the pinnacle of the Hajj. This ritual, one of the four pillars of Hajj, involves spending the entire day in prayer, repentance, and devotion, seeking forgiveness and mercy from Allah.
At sunset, pilgrims will leave Arafat for Muzdalifah, where they will spend the night in open-air prayer and collect pebbles for the next day’s ritual. On Friday, the 10th of Dhul Hijjah, they will return to Mina to perform the symbolic stoning of the Jamarat, a reenactment of Prophet Ibrahim’s rejection of Satan’s temptations.
The stoning will be followed by the ritual animal sacrifice, commemorating Prophet Ibrahim’s obedience to Allah. The meat from the sacrifice will be distributed to the needy. Pilgrims will then shave or trim their hair to mark the end of the major rites and exit the state of ihram.
After completing these steps, the pilgrims will return to Makkah on Sunday to perform the Tawaf al-Ifadah—a central Hajj ritual. Before departing the holy city, they will perform the Tawaf al-Wida, or Farewell Tawaf, which signifies the conclusion of the pilgrimage.
This year, over one million pilgrims from around the world are expected to take part in the Hajj.
By Ibrahim Jalloh
