How is Hajj performed?
The rituals of Hajj go back to the time of Prophet Abraham (peace be upon him) who built the Ka’bah (cubical building covered in black silk) over five days.
The Hajj rituals include circumambulating the Ka’bah (Tawaf), and walking and lightly jogging between the hills of Safa and Marwah, as Hajar (Abraham’s wife) did during her search for water for her son Isma’il. This is when God blessed her with the spring of ZamZam water, which still exists, and is drank by millions of pilgrims to this day!
The pilgrims then stand together on the wide plain of Arafah and join in prayers for God’s forgiveness, in what is often thought of as a preview of the Last Judgment. The pilgrims also cast stones at stone walls which represent Satan. The pilgrimage ends with Eid al-Adha, which is celebrated with prayers, the sacrifice of an animal, and the exchange of greetings and gifts in Muslim communities everywhere.