Prophet’s pilgrimage in the final year of his life and his Farewell
Dr. Issah Abeebllahi Obalowu
Description of his pilgrimage
The pilgrimage was the last pillar of Islam made obligatory. So, after the Prophet (saw) delivered the message of Allah, the religion of Islam was almost complete, and many people entered the fold of Islam after the conquest of Makkah, Allah revealed the obligation of Hajj on the Muslims at the end of the ninth year of the Hijra.
The Prophet (saw) did not perform Hajj this year, but he ordered Abubakr to lead the activities of Hajj. In the following year, he decided to perform Hajj, and announced it to the public, so many people came to Medina from different places wanting to perform Hajj with the Messenger of Allah and learn the proper way of Hajj. Likewise, many other Muslims joined them on their way to Makkah. He and other companions left Madinah for Makkah on the twenty-fifth of Dhul-Qa'dah of the tenth year of the Hijra.
The Prophet (saw) performed Hajj and demonstrated to entire Muslims the correct way of doing Hajj activities. Hence, he said, “Take your hajj rites from me.” Thus, he completed his Hajj, after explaining to the Muslims their rituals, and teaching them what Allah had imposed on them in their Hajj, and what had been forbidden to them.
So, the only hajj performed by the Prophet (saw) was the Hajj of Message, the Hajj of Islam, and the Hajj of Farewell. He did not live after this hajj for months until he died. On the Day of Arafah of this hajj, the following verse was revealed to the Prophet (saw) “This day I have perfected for you your religion and completed My favor upon you and chosen for you Islam as your religion.” (Al-Ma’idah: 3). This verse signifies the completion of religion with its last pillar.
His Farewell Sermon
During this Hajj, the Prophet of Allah delivered several sermons; on the day of Arafah, he gave a comprehensive sermon to the people in which he mentioned the principles of Islam and the rules of the religion. On the Day of Sacrifice, the next day of Arafah, he arrived at Mina and addressed the people with an eloquent sermon in which he informed them of the sanctity of the Day of Sacrifice, its superiority in the sight of Allah, and the sanctity of Mecca over any other place.
He commanded them to listen and obey Allah, His Messenger, and their leaders, and to take their hajj rites from him, and to deliver his messages to other Muslims, and he forbade them to return to infidels after him, striking the necks of one another.
Likewise, he delivered sermons during the days of Tashreeq, the third and fourth days after ‘Eid al-Adha.
Some major points of the sermons:
1- Prohibition of trespassing on people’s blood and property and making their sanctity the same as the sacred month, the sacred land, and the Day of Arafat.
2- Abolition of the rituals and practices of pre-Islamic times, such as nullifying the revenge that existed between the tribes during their pre-Islamic era, and putting an end to the usury that was widespread among them before Islam. So, the first usury he abolished was that of his uncle Al-Abbas. This is to set an example in this regard and begin implementing the divine commands with himself and his family.
3- A piece of advice on being kind to women and having a good relationship with them, and an explanation of the part of their rights and responsibilities and how to handle their rebellion.
4- The importance of being obedient to Allah by adhering to His book and the Sunnah of the Prophet (saw).
5- Prohibition of differences and divisions between the Muslims that can lead to quarreling and fighting that will divide the Muslims into different sects.
6- A statement that every person is held responsible for his sin, and bears the consequences of his action, and no one else is held accountable for that; Contrary to what the people of pre-Islamic times used to do, which held the family, kinship, or tribe responsible for the guilt of one of its members.
7- Warning against obeying Satan by turning to unbelievers due to the killing of one another.
6- Emphasizing brotherhood in religion, a Muslim should not oppress another Muslim nor transgress the rights of other Muslims, regarding their blood, properties, and honors.
7- The importance of the pillars of Islam.
8- The command to carry knowledge and convey it to those who did not have it.
9- The Prophet (saw) questioned them whether he conveyed the message of his Lord to them and asked Allah to testify to his conveyance of the message.
(b) In your opinion, what was the most important teaching from the Farewell Sermon?
Reasons to support these
All the teachings from the Prophet’s Farewell Sermon are very important since they cover the vital aspects of Islamic teachings. However, I think that the most important aspect of the sermon is emphasizing the importance of Salat (prayer). Thus, one of the last statements uttered by the Prophet (saw) be he gave up was about the importance of prayer. Prayer is the second pillar of Islam and the main difference between Muslims and non-Muslims. Prayer is the first thing a servant will be held accountable for on the Day of Resurrection. If he succeeds in his prayer, he will succeed in all other deeds. He who does not pray at all is considered an infidel by many scholars even if he believes in Allah and His messenger.
The benefits of the Qur’an being available to everyone on the internet are obvious. Firstly, this can be considered as one of the practical interpretations of Allah’s promise to preserve His book, as Allah said: “We revealed the Dhikr (Qur’an) and We are going to protect it.”
The availability of the Qur’an on the Internet also gives Muslims the opportunity to associate with the Qur’an at any time with convenience without needing to carry a hardcopy of the Qur’an; just by holding their phones and other gadgets they can read the whole Qur’an and revise their memorized chapters of the Qur’an. It also allows learning the Qur’an to non-Muslims, especially when it has been translated into several world languages.
Moreover, when male or female Muslims are in conditions that do not allow them to hold hard copies of the Qur’an, they can use their gadgets to do whatever they wish with its soft copy.
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