Hajj Pilgrims Begin with Tawaf Al-Qudum Before Entering Mina

On Sunday, thousands of pilgrims started performing Hajj the ritual of Tawaf Al-Qudum in the afternoon before moving to Mina. This marks the beginning of the yearly pilgrimage of Hajj and on Monday, marks the Day of Tarwiyah.

The Saudi authorities and Hajj missions of various countries have ensured that the required arrangements and smooth preparations are made to provide pilgrims smooth Hajj experience. This eases the process especially when pilgrims are engaged in the final preparations to set out for the tent city of Mina at the beginning of their spiritual journey.

After lifting up restrictions on the ages & numbers of pilgrims, the streets of Makkah witnessed thousands of tents of pilgrims coming from different nationalities.

Upon arriving in Makkah on Sunday, pilgrims performed the Hajj ritual known as Tawaf Al-Qudoom. Following this obligatory act, they headed towards the huge tent city of Mina. Meanwhile, pilgrims who had arrived earlier were engaged in preparing the final arrangements before moving into the tent city later in the evening on Sunday.

On Sunday evening, pilgrims moved to Mina about 5 Kilometers from the Grand Mosque to settle up their tents and spend the Day of Tarwiyah there. The pilgrims then perform the Dhuhr, Asr and Isha prayers in Mina at their designated times but in shortened form. The Maghrib prayer, which cannot be shortened, is performed as in normal cases.

Throughout the day and night, pilgrims remain focused on prayers and supplications within their tents. On Tuesday, following the Fajr prayer, they start leaving Mina and head straight to Arafat to observe the significant ritual of 'wuqoof Arafat.' This is considered one of the four fundamental pillars of Hajj and represents the peak of the annual pilgrimage ritual.