manifestations of tawheed in tawaaf (circumambulation around the ka'bah):
when the pilgrim wants to perform tawaaf, he remembers the greatness and might of allaah the almighty, who honored the ka'bah. when one stands in front of the ka'bah, he remembers the prophet who built it, the leader of the muslims and their role model, ibraaheem (abraham ).
he built the ka'bah for the sake of tawheed (islamic monotheism) and devotion so that all the people would worship allaah the almighty alone.
ibraaheem supplicated to allaah the almighty to protect him and his family and offspring from worshiping idols and to make him dedicate his whole life for allaah the almighty alone. allaah the almighty says (what means): {abraham said, "my lord, make this city [makkah] secure and keep me and my sons away from worshipping idols.} [quran 14:35]
he asked allaah the almighty to make him devoted and monotheistic. therefore, when you stand in the holy mosque of makkah, you should remember this perfect and virtuous example that allaah the almighty chose to be a role model in tawheed, devotion, and surrender to his commands for all those who come after him.
when one circumambulates the ka'bah, he should keep in mind that he only does so in obedience to allaah the almighty and to glorify him, not the stones. allaah the almighty is the one who commanded us to perform this act of worship and one must obey and surrender to the orders of allaah. allaah the almighty, who says (what means): {submit in [full, willing] submission.}[quran 4:65]
therefore, ‘umar stood in front of the black stone and said his famous words, “i know that you are just a stone that is incapable of benefiting or harming; and had i not seen the prophet kiss you, i would not have kissed you.”
this means that the whole religion is based on absolute surrender to the commands of allaah the almighty. hence, when allaah the exalted ordains an act of worship, the slave of allaah must surrender to this ordainment and perform this act of worship as it is without exaggeration or prohibited belief in the stones, trees or places. one’s belief and trust must be in allaah the almighty alone.
the manifestations of tawheed in supplication:
this is manifested when one performs the rituals of hajj with other muslims and spends these hours and moments standing before allaah the almighty humbly and thinking of his greatness.
one of the greatest acts of hajj that reminds one with the greatness of allaah the exalted is supplication. it is very impressive and touching in a way that strengthens one’s faith and reliance on the almighty, to see and contemplate all the different nations that gather with their different languages, dialects and origins to raise their hands at the same moment to supplicate to allaah the almighty, who knows their places and recognizes their voices and dialects. allaah the almighty also knows their needs and is able to grant them what they ask for.
allaah is the greatest, when the people clamor earnestly at his door asking for different needs in different languages and dialects he opens the doors of his heavens and sends down his forgiveness, mercy and blessings.
exalted is allaah the almighty, who is never tired of the requests and needs of his creatures.
exalted is allaah the almighty, who hears the creep of ants in the dark night. ‘aa’ishah said, “by allaah the almighty, i was behind the curtain while khawlah was arguing with the prophet about her husband. even so, i missed parts of what she said, so, supremely blessed is he who hears everything.”
allaah the almighty heard her from above the seven heavens.
she was an oppressed woman who came to complain to the prophet, and ‘aa’ishah could not make out parts of what she said, although they were only separated by a curtain. however, allaah the almighty heard her from above seven heavens. allaah the almighty hears everything. this makes one acknowledge that none is worthy of worship except allaah the almighty and say, “allaah is the greatest.”
when a slave of allaah needs anything, allaah the almighty knows it even before the slave has this need.
allaah the almighty knows what happened, what will happen and what did not happen, how it would be if it had happened. exalted is allaah the almighty, the lord of majesty and bounty and the one whose names are sanctified.
even amidst a teeming crowd, allaah the almighty hears the complaints and requests of his believing slaves. this strengthens our belief in the fact that none is truly worthy of worship except allaah the almighty.
did allaah the almighty forbid us from supplicating to him so we supplicate to others and seek the help of anyone other than allaah?
do we think that our problems are too great so we have been taking them to anyone other than allaah the almighty to solve them?
no, by allaah!
allaah the almighty says (what means):
· {say, "in whose hand is the realm of all things - and he protects while none can protect against him - if you should know?"}[quran 23:88]
· {so exalted is he in whose hand is the realm of all things, and to him you will be returned.} [quran 36:83]
in a qudsi hadeeth (sacred narration), the prophet, , reports that allaah, the exalted, says (what means):
“o my slaves, were the first of you and the last of you, the human of you and the jinn of you to stand in one place and make a request of me, and were i to give everyone what he requested, that would not decrease anything of my sovereignty…”
nothing decreases what allaah the almighty owns.
allaah the almighty says (what means): {his command is only when he intends a thing that he says to it, "be," and it is.}[quran 36:82]
think about the mercy of allaah the almighty, who made those who have needs leave their families, children and beloved ones to get what is better and greater. allaah the almighty will reward those slaves who have forsaken their pleasures and left their children behind while they are on hajj in order to please allaah,
allaah the almighty is generous.
hence, this strengthens your belief in the oneness of allaah the almighty and your belief that allaah the almighty made all those people leave their homes to come to hajj to have mercy and grace upon from allaah. therefore, the prophet, , said that allaah the almighty rewards whoever believes in his oneness and comes to these holy places faithfully to perform the rituals of hajj as perfectly as possible with returning him to his family without a sin. in other words, those who perform hajj will return to their families as pure from their sins as they were at the moment when they were born. he will return to his family free from sins and even emancipated from hell.
we supplicate to allaah the almighty to make all of us like such successful people.
it was authentically reported that the prophet, said, “there is no day on which allaah sets free more slaves from hell than he does on the day of `arafah.”
being emancipated from hell means that the slave of allaah the almighty will never enter hell regardless of what he has done. undoubtedly, this is a glad tiding that the person who is emancipated from hell will die in a state of tawheed and faithfulness. it is a glad tiding for the emancipated slave from hell that he will have good attributes when he dies and that allaah will grant him a happy end. may allaah the almighty make all of us happy in this world and in the hereafter. when a muslim see those nations that have come to allaah the almighty, his confidence and trust in allaah the almighty will be stronger.
he will think to himself: “are my needs too difficult to be fulfilled by allaah the exalted? no, absolutely not; nothing is difficult to allaah the exalted in the heavens or in the earth.”
when one believes in this, he will ask for the help of allaah the almighty alone in all what he needs…
one’s supplication and humble invocation should only be directed to allaah the almighty alone, because whoever asks anyone other than allaah the almighty to fulfill his needs, will be poorer and weaker, while whoever asks allaah the almighty, his needs will be fulfilled soon. allaah the almighty says (what means):
· {and whoever relies upon allaah - then he is sufficient for him.}[quran 65:3]
· {and whoever believes in allaah - he will guide his heart.}[quran 64:11]