Hajj, the fifth pillar of Islam

Hajj is the fifth pillar of Islam, an obligation that must be carried out at least once in their lifetime by every muslim able to perform & who can afford to do so, & this is the largest annual pilgrimage in the world. The pilgrimage occurs from the 8th to the 12th day of Dhul Hijjah, the 12th month of the Islamic calendar.

"Hajj" means literally "to set out for a place". For a Muslim, that place is the Holy City of Makkah. Upon arrival in Mecca, the Hajji, performs a series of ritual. one of them is wearing Ihram, if they are not already wearing it upon their arrival, pilgrims put on ihram clothing, & then leave Mecca for the nearby town of Mina, where they spend the rest of the day.

On the first day of the Hajj, the 8th day of Dhul Hijjah {the 12th month}, the pilgrims perform their first;
Tawaf which means all the pilgrims entering the sacred mosque Masjid Al Haram walking in 7 times in a counter-clockwise direction around the Kaba, & kissing the Black Stone of each circuit.

Sa'i; after Tawaf, the pilgrims perform S'ai, running & walking 7 times back & forth between the hills of Safa & Marwah. As part of this ritual, the pilgrims also drink water from the Zamzam Well.

Arafat, the next morning, on the 9th of Dhu al-Hijjah, the pilgrims leave Mina for Mount Arafat. This is considered the highlight of the Hajj, as they stand in contemplative vigil, near a hill from which Muhammad (PBUH) gave his last sermon. Pilgrims must spend the afternoon within a defined area on the plain of Arafat until after sunset. If a pilgrim does not spend the afternoon on Arafat then their pilgrimage is considered invalid.

Muzdalifah as soon as the sun sets, the pilgrims leave Arafat for Muzdalifah, an area between Arafat and Mina, where 49 pebbles are gathered for the next day's ritual of the stoning of the Devil (Shaitan).

Ramy al-Jamarat, at Mina, the pilgrims perform Ramy al-Jamarat, throwing stones to signify their defiance of the Devil. This symbolizes the trials experienced by Abraham, as he wrestled with whether or not to sacrifice his son per God's demand. The Devil challenged him three times, and three times Abraham refused. Each pillar marks the location of one of these refusals. Each pilgrim must hit each pillar at least seven times.

Eid ul-Adha, after the Stoning of the Devil, an animal is sacrificed. This symbolizes God having mercy on Abraham, and replacing his son with a ram, which Abraham then sacrificed.

Tawaf az-Ziyarah, on this or the following day the pilgrims re-visit the Masjid al-Haram in Mecca for a tawaf called the Tawaf az-Ziyarah (or Tawaf al-Ifadah) which is an obligatory part of the Hajj. The night of the 10th is spent back at Mina.
On the afternoon of the 11th, pilgrims must again stone all three jamarat in Mina (seven pebbles per jamarat). The same ritual must be performed on the following day. Pilgrims must leave Mina for Mecca before sunset on the 12th. If they are unable to leave Mina before sunset, they must perform the stoning ritual again on the 13th before returning to Mecca.

Tawaf al-Wada, Finally, before leaving Mecca, pilgrims perform a farewell tawaf called the Tawaf al-Wada.

Journey to Medina, though it is not required as part of the Hajj, many pilgrims also travel to visit the city of Medina and the Mosque of the Prophet. Muhammad's tomb is enclosed by the mosque. Pilgrims may also visit the tomb of Muhammad's daughter, Fatimah.