Are you still waiting for the call?

EMBARKING on the hajj is the ultimate personal undertaking for any Muslim. It is a religious obligation – for those who are physically and financially able and fit. Many of my friends use the excuse; belum sampai seru (the call has yet to come). Indeed I can understand their worry, their anxiousness which is the reason for their unpreparedness, inertia, lethargy, unwillingness; to take the plunge. I was there, and can empathise.

But take it from me, one comes to Makkah and will not want to leave. Not quite like Hotel California when one can check out anytime but one can never leave. Here, one does not want ever to leave! (But this being the real world of passports, visas and PATIs – pendatang tanpa izin), secure your visa first so you do not get harassed by the Saudi authorities.

Makkah has nothing, yet is has everything! It’s not got your usual tourism attraction, yet it attracts Muslims by the millions.

As I write this column, there’s less than a week to go before the wuquf. That’s when an estimated two to three to million Muslims will congregate at the plains of Arafat – in effect a Saudi desert on the outskirts of Makkah between noon on the 9th of Zulhijjah till midnight before moving on to Mina, nearby where the pilgrims will stay in tents for another 3 days.

Who have I met so far from amongst the ranks of the pilgrims?

A young engineer from Bangi who I met along the corridors of our hotel while still in Madinah drew a lot of attention. Firdaus Haziq, at a young age of 24 would normally be keeping an eagle eye on the production lines at a car components parts factory in Seremban.

EXTENDING A HELPING HAND Here in Makkah he has a more demanding task to perform – one he took on voluntarily. He remembered praying that while on the pilgrimage, he would be able to render assistance to anyone in need. Boy, did he get his wish – while still on the plane he noticed an elderly man. Leiman Mat Sam, aged 76 from Slim River in Perak who had embarked on this journey on his own without any family members making the trip. The 24-yar-old youth immediately struck an acquaintance with the elderly pilgrim he called Datuk – in effect it was the young lad who adopted the older man. Certainly, he got what he prayed for.

The same situation arose for a Tabung Haji personnel, here for the whole two-month duration of his assignment. Zulkifly Yahya now has in his care a near-centenarian. At 99-years of age, Minah Yusof from Dungun, Terengganu is here on the trip of her lifetime with her daughter Fatimah Sudin – equally elderly at 68.

Now what made Zulkifly who by all accounts is only in his mid-30s, to decide to “adopt” this grandmother?

A CENTENARIAN FOR A GRANDMA Another pilgrim, Sutan Man whose IC reads 29102588****** (that means he was born on 25th October 1929 which makes him all of 84) can attest to a miracle. He left KLIA on the 20th flight out of Malaysia back in the middle of September.

Here’s his story, told in thick Northern Penang accent: “Tengah duduk dalam kapai terbang tiba tiba bunyik telinga saya meletup! (I was sitting in my seat in the plane when I heard my ears pop!). Yes, it’s true, Sutan who was hard of hearing suddenly regained his audio faculties.

You might not want to believe in such miracles but the media spoke to Sutan accompanied by his wife who confirmed the restoration of her husband’s hearing. To be sure, one does not embark on this journey like one goes to Lourdes or Fatima for miracle cures. That it happens at all is purely Allah’s will.

Talking about centenarians’ hajjs, India’s contingent has three over 100s. Local news reports name them as Ismail from Haryana (who the media dubbed as having lived through 107 summers) is the oldest, followed by 102-year-old grand dame Havabibi Shaikh from Gujarat and the youngest of the trio, Ilyas from Uttar Pradesh – a youngish 100.

Saudi Arabia has been strict with hajj visas this year and advised participating nations to hold back the aged or the infirm who might be susceptible to any number of ravages including the MERS-COV. However, most nations adopt the policy of giving precedence to their older pilgrims as opposed to younger candidates who presumably would have plenty of healthy years ahead of them to embark on this arduous trip.

Therein lays the conundrum. The elderly would normally be given precedence to get ahead of the queue as the younger set can afford to wait. But with quotas determining numbers of pilgrims which will apply well into 2015, the current 49-year wait for Malaysians to embark the hajj if they are in the queue will stretch a lot longer.

So my friends out there, wait no more, open your Tabung Haji account and register your intention to perform the Hajj now. If you don’t grow to live that long, at least you have signaled your intention to do so.