The Fifth Pillar Cambridge Muslim College

Like so many aspects of modern life, the Hajj is unfortunately another instance where human activity causes detrimental impacts upon our environment. In this episode, Abdal Hakim Murad explores ways we can imagine the Hajj of the present and future which enables conscientious commitment to safeguarding our natural world and our holy cities, as he recalls the changes that have taken place since his own pilgrimage.

Our testimony acknowledging the divinity of Allah was during the first of gatherings. In this episode, Rasul Miller and Sumaiyya Ayub explore the physical space of the earthly ka’ba and the heavenly, angelic realms, to understand the ka’ba in time and space.

Qiyama, the day of recknoning, is the final gathering. In this episode, Marcia Hermansen and Jörg Imran Schröter talk about the Hajj as ‘pen-ultimate’ gathering.

Part of the Hajj involves the practical necessities of travelling and living with millions of other persons. In this episode, Besnik Sinani, Haris Farqui and Amira Rizk explore how people ‘lived together’ during hajj and what can we learn about the nature of gathering in Islam through this experience.

"One of the key elements of the Hajj is the interplay of time between past (Adam and Abraham, Hajar, Muhammad) and present. The Sa’iy is one of the most poignant communal enactments of this time and space bending that takes place in Hajj. In this episode, Hadia Mubarak, Hamida Moalim and Djermana Kuric talk about what the walk between the two hills reveal about the nature of time and space during the Hajj.

The circumambulation of the Ka’ba is one of the most famous rituals of the Hajj. Why do Muslims perform the walk in counter-clockwise circles around the ka’ba and what significance does this have? In this episode, Francesco Chiabotti, Shazuan Sidek and Khadijah-Ali Campbell talk about the significance of spheres and circles in Islamic cosmology and how this can expand our understanding of gathering during the Hajj.