My Experience during Hajj Pilgrimage 2008 (1)

Doing hajj pilgrimage was one thing I’d been dreaming of since I was single. It is one of Muslim’s duties as described in five pillars of Islam. This is a pilgrimage to Mekkah (Mecca) in Saudi Arabia which should be done at least once during a Muslim’s lifetime.

I was so grateful, finally my dream came true. I, my husband and the other 261 pilgrims from Palembang, leave to King Abdul Azis airport in Jeddah on 7 November 2008 at 15.00 WIB. The trip took 9 hours. We arrived on 12.00 WIB or 8 pm Saudi Arabia time.

Our next destination was Mekkah (Mecca). We went there by bus. Actually, going to Mekkah was not a part of Hajj ceremonies. The pilgrims went there to visit Nabawi Mosque and doing shalat Arbain (40 times shalat) and also to get more knowledge about the history of Prophet Muhammad.

Staying 8 Days at Madinah

We arrived at Madinah at 3 am SAT. The weather was so cold. We stayed at Haramain Hotel, about 400 m away from Nabawi Mosque.

I stood in front of Haramain Hotel

Madinah or Al Madinah- Al Munawwarah is a city in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia and serves as the capital of the Al Madinah province. It is the second holiest city in Islam and the burial place of Prophet Muhammad SAW.

We stayed 8 days in Madinah in order to do Arbain or 40 times shalat fardhu by jama’ah in Nabawi mosque. In the leisure time we visited many historical places in Madinah such as Nabawi mosque, Baqi, Quba mosque, Qiblatain mosque, Jabal Uhud and other interesting places such as Dates market, Jabal Magnet, Ijabah mosque, etc.

Nabawi Mosque

After getting some sleep, I and my friends, Yati, Latifah and Widya went to Nabawi Mosque, the second holiest mosque in Islam, enthusiastically. We walked to the mosque together with many pilgrims from all over the world.

The view when we got there was so amazing. The Mosque was so big, beautiful and artistic looked from inside and outside. I spent time to admire every detail of the beautiful mosque.

Nabawi Mosque is also called the mosque of Prophet Muhammad SAW. It is the final resting place of Muhammad SAW.
The original mosque was built by Muhammad SAW. Subsequent Islamic rulers greatly expanded and decorated it. The latest renovations took place under King Fahd and have greatly increased the size of the mosque, allowing to hold a large number of worshippers and pilgrims and adding modern comfort like air conditioning. He also installed 27 moving domes at its roof and decorated the mosque with the best quality marble.

The mosque enclosure is 100 times bigger than the first mosque built by the Prophet and can accommodate more than half million worshippers. The shiny new Prophet’s mosque contains the older mosque within it. The older section has many colorful decorations and numerous small pillars while the new section is in gleaming white and grey marble and is completely air conditioned.

Here are some photos taken by my husband to describe the beauty of Nabawi Mosque.