Answer
Wa `alaykum As-Salamu wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.
In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.
In this fatwa:
1- Hajj is a golden opportunity to have one’s sins forgiven, one’s soul refined, and one’s heart filled with faith and tranquility.
2- The one who performs Hajj is supposed to be a model for others after returning.
3- He or she is to recall throughout the year the matchless experiences gained in Hajj.
In response to your question, Dr. Sabri `Abdur-Ra’ouf, Professor of Islamic Comparative Jurisprudence, at Al-Azhar Univ., states:
We should stress the fact that those whom Allah favored to perform Hajj and Umrah, should be thankful to Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) Who has chosen them from among His servants to perform these acts of worship, and they should implore Almighty Allah to accept their good deeds. That is very important, for it reflects their belief that being so favored by Allah to accomplish the task of traveling to the Sacred Land to perform Hajj and Umrah is a favor that deserves gratitude to Allah.
We also urge the pilgrim, after returning from the Sacred Land, to keep his mind and soul attached to Allah, remembering Him constantly because Almighty Allah says, “And when you have completed your devotions, then remember Allah as you remember your fathers or with a more lively remembrance…” (Al-Baqarah 2:200)
The new Hajji should be very keen to avoid evil and shameful deeds especially after Allah has obliterated them and forgave all his sins, as a reward of performing Hajj.
This is based on the hadith in which the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “The reward of Hajj Mabrur (the one accepted by Allah) is nothing but Paradise.” He also said, “(The performance of) Umrah is an expiation for the sins committed between it and the previous one.” (Muslim)
Therefore, it behooves every Hajji to forward due gratitude to Allah for being chosen to perform those acts of worship and, at the same time, to beseech Him for acceptance.
We advice such a person, upon returning home, to be conscious of Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) when performing all what Allah has obligated him to do of the other worships such as Prayers, Zakah, Fasting, dutifulness to his parents, visiting kith and kin, being charitable and benevolent to Allah’s creatures, experiencing the etiquettes of Islam, taking the morals of the Qur’an as a model and the like of what the Muslim should do.
The reason for all what we have said above is that the more Hajj is considered an honor and a blessing, the more it entails responsibility on which man will be asked concerning on the Day of Judgment in case he misbehaves after returning from Hajj.
Almighty Allah says, {Lo! Allah enjoins justice and kindness, and giving to kinsfolk, and forbids lewdness and abomination and wickedness. He exhorts you in order that ye may take heed. Fulfill the covenant of Allah when you have covenanted, and break not your oaths after the asseveration of them, and after you have made Allah surety over you. Lo! Allah knows what ye do.} (An-Nahl 16:90-91)
The epitome of this is that this worship (Hajj) is obligated once in lifetime. So, the pilgrim should take that as a golden opportunity which he will make use of for the rest of his life, reminiscing about the sacred places and all rituals (of Hajj), for that will strengthen his faith and help him to obey Allah.
Allah Almighty knows best.
Editor’s note: This fatwa is from Ask the Scholar’s archive and was originally published at an earlier date.