
In the valley of Arafat, on this great occasion, hundreds and thousands of people are assembling, all of them in groups shouting,” Here we are, O God! Here we are, in Your Presence!” This experience of a pilgrim cannot be described in words; it can only be felt by one who has gone through such an experience himself.
The pilgrimage has economic benefits for Muslims. They come from various walks of life; some are traders or industrialists, others are capitalists or farmers. They can discuss the financial problems of mutual benefit, the exchange of technical know-how or skills, or the exchange of goods and machinery between them.
Hajj is the fifth pillar of Islam and is an act of ibadah (worship), like prayer and fasting. It is a religious duty and is obligatory, once in their lifetime, for all those Muslims who can afford to perform it. All five pillars of Islam perform very important and specific functions in training a Muslim for the service of Islam.