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Please be careful about certain things :-
1. Purify your intention (Niyyat) for Hajj only for the sake of
Allah and exclusively keeping in view the heavenly reward. Do not allow
any worldly honour and vanity or any financial advantages or any worldly
selfish design to mix up with your intention for Hajj. There is of course
no Harm if even then some worldly benefits are attained to by Allah's
grace (and according to Hadith wordly benefits will also be certainly
available), but you should not impurify your intention for their sake.
2. Turn to Allah in penitence from all sins small or grievous.
There are three pre-requisites for a sincere penitence :-
(i) Repentence and regret for the sins committed in the past in
the possible redress of the omissions.
(ii) For the present, to give up all the sins.
(iii) For future, to resolve not to commit any sins.
These are the three requisites of a sincere penitence without which mere
uttering the words of penitence will not be sufficient.
The omissions and short-doings of the past which can be accomplished after
their due time are as under :-
(a) Fasts and prayers which could not be fulfilled after your having
attained to the age of puberty. They must be calculated correctly and
if correct calculation is not possible, then they should be accomplished
on the basis of a guess calculation.
(b) If you have not paid the 'Zakat' of your money and effects
in the past, it should be paid now by way of calculations or a careful
guess.
(c) If you took an oath and violated it, it should be expiated
for. Similarly if you made a vow to Allah but could not fulfill it, it
should be fulfilled now.
The rights of human beings which can be redressed may be defined as for
example you owe a debt to a person or you are under financial dues to
any one; you have teased someone with your words or caused him trouble
by your acts or you have spoken ill of someone in his absence ; for all
such things you are to beg pardon of the rightful persons as well as well
as to pay back all the dues which otherwise should be got remitted if
the rightful persons willingly do so.
Rules Of Action:
If the person whom you owe a debt has died, pay it back to his heirs or
get it absolved by them. If the creditors are numerous and their whereabouts
are not known, give as much amount as you owe to them to the poor as alms
on their behalf. If you did any Haram to them with your words or acts,
pray often for the remission of those whom you had harmed. You would,
Allah willing, be relieved from the liability for all their rights.
If the missed prayers and fasts are too large in number to be accomplished
before the 'Hajj' journey, or your liabilities to others are so excessive
in quantity that, at present it is out of your power to pay them back
or to get them absolved, then what you are to do is that you determine
just now a firm resolution in your mind either to discharge all these
obligations or to get them remitted by the rightful persons. At the same
time, you are to pay back whatever dues you can. For the rest, you are
to execute a will and appoint someone of your relatives or sincere friends
as its executor, so that in case of your failure he may pay back all your
liabilities.
For an indebted person who cannot spare funds after paying his debts,
it is better not to intend to go for 'Hajj' before the payment of his
debts. He should first avail of all his resources in relieving himself
from all the liabilities. If before payment of the debts he performed
'Hajj' , the 'Hajj' obligation would however stand discharged. This, of
course, excludes the usual current commercial loans for which Hajj cannot
be postponed.
If an indebted person has no effects, whatsoever, which can suffice the
payment of his debts, his proceeding to 'Hajj' will not be lawfull without
the permission of his creditors. (Manasik, Mulla Ali).
3. Be careful in legitimate collection of funds for 'Hajj'. The
'Hajj' performed with ill gotton funds stands unapproved and loses the
Heavenly reward, though even then it stands discharged.
Rule Of Action:
A person with doubtful resources of his funds should borrow sufficient
money for 'Hajj' expenses from a non-Muslim and then he should pay it
back out of his own funds, so that he may not be deprived of the divine
bounties and Heavenly rewards.
4. At the time of preparations for 'Hajj', do not forget to arrange for
necessary cloth for 'Ihram'. A sheet and a loin-cloth (i.e. two sheets
of cloth) suffice the dress for 'Ihram'. It is better to be of white cloth.
An 'Ihram' comprising of two big towels, which can be easily used in place
of the necessary sheet and loin, is far better for the days of intense
summer or chilly winter seasons. If conveniently possible, arrange two
or three 'Ihrams' for use one by one in case of their being dirty.
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