Allah says in His Glorious Book: {Pilgrimage to the House is incumbent upon men for the sake of Allah, (upon) every one who is able to undertake the journey to it; and whoever disbelieves, then surely Allah is Self-sufficient, above any need of the worlds}.

He, the most Exalted, wants the Muslims all over the world to meet in His sacred house, the international house of Islam, so as to live the meaning of Islam as a unified nation. All pilgrims would address Allah in a collective voice, to reaffirm their obedience to Him and their positive response to His call: I stand up for Your service, O God! I stand up! I stand up! There is no partner with You! I stand up for Your service! Verily Yours is the praise, the beneficence, and the dominion! There is no partner with You. 

With these words, every Muslim whether performing Hajj or Umrah, would be pledging that he would serve Allah and obey Him not only once but in very moment of his life.

Then, when he says that there is no partner with God, he would be pledging that he would not worship or obey any other god. Then, he would acknowledge that there is no one worth praise but God and that whatever beneficence he would receive, it is from God alone. These words fill the pilgrim’s mind, heart and conscience with God. He would feel that God has entered his soul and that He is present in all his life "Fear God as if you are seeing Him, for if you do not see Him, He sees you”.

Then, in Mecca you will be fulfilling a new obligation "Go round the Ancient House".

Allah wants all Muslims whether from the East or the West to go to this house to feel that they have one place to turn their face towards. You would be then feeling the unity of Islam through the unity of the House you turn your face to in prayer.

Then you go round the House seven times, but you would in no way be worshiping the House, since Allah, the most Exalted, does not want us to worship stones (whatever the shape they take; a house, a shrine…etc). This going round is but a symbol for obeying Allah and seeking His satisfaction.

The going round the House suggests that you should always go round Allah's house and not those of the tyrants and the unjust: meaning either working for them or trying to win their satisfaction.

Then, you pray on the standing place of Ibrahim (a.s.) to remember this great prophet who (When his Lord said to him, Be a Muslim, he said: I submit myself to the Lord of the worlds). He wanted you to be Muslims and called you as such.

Thus, Islam that is open on Allah in everything that our life encounters. It is Allah's trust which we have to pass from one generation to another. We have to make our major concern how to make our children Muslims, because they have to understand that their future is with God and not with any leader or rich man. They will all perish and only God remains.

surely the Safa and the Marwa are among the signs appointed by Allah; so whoever makes a pilgrimage to the House or pays a visit (to it), there is no blame on him if he goes round them both; and whoever does good spontaneously, then surely Allah is Grateful, Knowing.

When you do so, remember that you are doing it to earn Allah's satisfaction. As Saay, literarily means making an effort towards achieving a goal, to make an effort in going round Safa and Marwa symbolizes that we should seek all our lives to make an effort to execute all the good Allah ordered us to realize, like helping people and uniting them, and not to incite differences among them. When you are invited for a political rally called by an arrogant, you have to think about if attending it pleases Allah. If it serves dissension then it will be an action which will be punished by Allah. Thus, you have to make sure before any action you take or any word you say that it does not cause Allah's wrath.

The same thing applies to every step in Hajj, when you cut your hair; it symbolizes cutting some of your sins.

Then, when you stand in Arafat, in the second phase of your journey to God, you have to know that this is the place to ask for God's forgiveness. It has been said in our traditions that whoever does not think that Allah will forgive him there, he will not be forgiven.

Then, when you go to Al-Masha'r Al-Haram, Al-Muzdilifa, to pray to God, do not pray for the good of this world only

{So when you have performed your devotions, then laud Allah as you lauded your fathers, rather a greater lauding. But there are some people who say, Our Lord! Give us in the world, and they shall have no resting place. And there are some among them who say: Our Lord! Grant us good in this world and good in the hereafter, and save us from the chastisement of the fire}.

Then, you go on with the rest of the Hajj duties, including throwing the stones after you have stood in Mina and until you go back to Mecca where you go round the house and perform Saay…until you have finished all the steps, keeping in mind all the time that you are there to respond to His call and to live the spirituality of being nearer to Allah, the most Exalted.

Performing Al-Hajj in the right manner and in the right spirit is indeed a chance for a new life, for Allah forgives the sins and gives the worshipper a chance to start a new life that abides by what Allah has ordained.

Thus, Al-Hajj is actually a place where man is purified, it is a school where he learns, and it is an experience where Muslims feel the spirit of unity.

Dear loves ones

Hajj is a journey to Allah in which we seek to be closer to Him. Therefore, we have to do it right, and keep it inside us when we come back. If a pilgrim does not live the meaning of Hajj and its spirituality it would be as if he has not performed his pilgrimage… We pray that Allah, the most Exalted, will accept our Hajj and all deeds that we do in obeying Him… We ask him to safeguard those who are performing it and to facilitate the pilgrimage of those who wish to perform it in the future. 

Palestine is still drowned in the international mazes and in the dilemma of congratulating the American president, as well as the American statements that call for a balanced Palestinian policy in fighting "terrorism", which is equivalent in the American view to dismantling the Intifada organization and disarming them. It also means to accept what President Bush has endorsed in his letter to Sharon: denying the right of return, preserving the bigger settlements, and perhaps even Judaizing all of Jerusalem, which makes the proposed Palestinian state unable to become free, independent and viable entity. In addition, there are the meaningless statements of many Arab rulers who are running after the American-Israeli solution, especially that most of them has begun to normalize the relations with their enemy in violation of Arab Summit resolutions. Yet, none of them has said anything in protest against demolishing the houses on the Israeli-Egyptian borders to dig a tunnel to prevent the signalizing of weapons to the Palestinians.

In addition, Israel has asked the US to participate in funding a project to build new crossings and develop the already established ones on the separating wall. This means that this wall, although considered illegal by the International Court of Justice, have become a fait-accompli. The UN moves to establish a record of the damages caused by the wall will not be of any use as long as the Security Council is not allowed to pass a binding resolution telling Israel to remove it.

In this critical stage, we say to the Palestinians that they have to raise their level of awareness of the political motives of those who are trying to implant mines that are supposed to blow up the Palestinian society and the Intifada organization, in realization of the American-Israeli conditions. They have to reaffirm their commitment to their basic principles and continue to carry the resisting gun to target Israeli military positions and settlements.

This is the basis for an internal unity that ought to be promoted by an objective and rational dialogue that rejects internal fighting or useless debates, which could push things to where the Occupation wants them. 

Iraq too, is in a maze of bloody chaos in which more innocent people fall, and the political situation has become more unstable as a result of the difference of opinion regarding the elections, between those who are with it and those who are against it.

All this will turn the light away from the basic problem Iraq is facing: The occupation that is responsible for the political and security deterioration in Iraq and for inciting internal strife.

The Iraqis should confront all this by clinging to their Islamic and national unity despite all their differences including those that of holding the elections.

They all have to read Bush's statement in which he ended the search for WMD in Iraq since it failed to find anything, to know the big lie that America used to justify Iraq's occupation. This lie to the entire world reveals that the American and British policies are not based on truth but on the lies that justify their strategic ambitions and interests… If the occupation has toppled the Dictator who was an American puppet, it is because of these interests, and not to liberate the Iraqi people.

Therefore, we call on the Iraqi people to voice its demand to end occupation according to a timetable… We also call on the neighboring states not to add fuel to the fire, and make Iraq involved in sectarian and political calculations which benefits the occupation only…

Meanwhile, the occupation and some of its agents might try to make some accusations to pressurize the neighboring countries so as to facilitate the execution of its plots in Iraq. Consequently, we call on these countries to be vigilant and cautious in dealing with these accusations.

The Lebanese should not be hypnotized by twisted ways in closed circles where people suffocate and remain distant from crucial issues for the sake of marginal ones.

The public should carefully examine political figures who aspire to get into political life for the sake of internal and external apparatuses. Attention should be paid to the backgrounds of statements issued by representatives of some countries concerning the country's political domestic affairs.

For these countries planned to interfere in Lebanon's domestic affairs via political plots under the excuse of preserving the country's independence.