Hajj - Pilgrimage
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Date Hajj - Pilgrimage Learning Objectives : Describe clearly what Muslims do during Hajj. Explain why Muslims visit Makkah, and analyse what about their religious history makes them do this. Starter • In your book, write down one place that you would love to visit in your lifetime, and why. • For example; I would love to visit India because the culture looks amazing and I want to see the Taj Mahal. Today’s Task • Today, we are going to look at the final pillar of Islam; Hajj. • What does Hajj mean? • What is a pilgrimage? • ‘A pilgrimage is a holy journey; it often takes a long time and is about showing devotion to a particular place or religion’. • Write this down on your Hajj passport. We are going on our own pilgrimage! • There are 5 different stations – you will need to transfer the information from each one onto your Hajj Passport. 1 : What is Hajj all about? Hajj is the fifth pillar of Islam. It states that at least once in their lifetime, every Muslim should visit Makkah, which is in Saudi Arabia. In Makkah, the Kaaba can be found; Allah instructed a man called Ibrahim to build the Kaaba as a house of God (Allah). The Kaaba still stands in the same place today. The Angel Jibriel brought a Black Stone down from Paradise, which was set into one corner of the Kaaba. 2. How do Muslims prepare for Hajj? Pilgrims must enter the state of Ihram. Muslims must first bathe themselves, before putting on white clothing. After this, Muslims must declare their intention to perform Hajj. At this point, Muslims are not allowed to do any of the following; 1. wear clothes that have been sewn together 2. cut or pluck hair 3. clip nails 4. cover your head 5. wear perfume Young Muslims dressed in the pure 6. engage in sexual white clothing of Ihram. intercourse 3. What are the different stages of Hajj? Day 1 : The pilgrims enter the state of Ihram. Pilgrims will walk around the Kaaba 7 times (Tawaf). They will run between the hills of Safa and Mawah. The pilgrims then travel to Mina, where they will say 5 prayers. Day 2 : Pilgrims will visit Arafat and say lots of prayers. They will also collect the pebbles they need for the next day. Day 3 : Pilgrims throw stones at a pillar to represent killing the devil, Shaytan. They will walk around the Kaaba another 7 times. Some pilgrims will also sacrifice an animal. Pilgrims are no longer in Ihram. Day 4/5/6 : Pilgrims stay at Mina for 2 or 3 days. Day 6/7 : Perform the final Tawaf at Makkah. 4. Why is Hajj so important to Muslims? Hajj is a holy journey for pilgrims; the Kaaba in Makkah was built by Ibrahim, an important prophet in the Muslim faith. Over time, the city of Makkah became troubled; people worshipped false gods and decorated the Kaaba with their images. The Prophet Muhammad spent a long time trying to restore the city of Makkah to it’s original state. He eventually managed to clean the Kaaba of all false idols. Because Muhammad worked so hard to return the Kaaba to being the House of God (Allah) Muslims think it really important that they visit it at least once in their lifetimes. 5. Why are Muslims only expected to visit Makkah once? Some people are not allowed or expected to visit Makkah; 1. Pregnant women, as the journey will be too tough. 2. Non-Muslims. 3. People who are too young; ideally, a boy or girl should have entered puberty before they go on Hajj. 4. People who are too ill. Other people will not have the choice about whether or not they go on Hajj; the journey is very expensive, so often people can only afford to go once, if at all. What else can we know about Hajj? – Watch the video clip http://www.bbc.co.uk/education/clips/z8jpyc w Plenary • If you have any wool at home, you could make your own Hajj bracelet. Date Hajj – Postcard Learning Objectives : Work as a group to describe what Muslims do during Hajj. Compare your ideas to those of Muslims, and analyse why Hajj is so important to them. Today’s Task • You are going to present everything you know about Hajj in the form of a postcard. • You will write to a family member or friend about your trip, explaining everything you saw there, and the reasons behind the pilgrimage. • Remember; non-Muslims are not really allowed to take part in Hajj, so you will need to explain that you watched Muslim people completing the different stages, rather than you doing them yourself, if you’re not a Muslim. • You will plan this before you start! Year 8 : Hajj Postcard Complete the following tasks. Task 1 Describe the things you have seen in Makkah. ‘Dear ___________. I am on holiday in Saudi Arabia in the city of Makkah – I have so much to tell you about the things I have seen!’ 1. Describe what is in Makkah and who visits it. 2. Describe Ihram, and the other stages of Hajj – what do Muslims do on each of the different days? 3. Try to describe how you think the Muslims might feel e.g. Are they happy? What is the atmosphere there like? Task 2 Describe what Hajj actually is. 1. Explain that Hajj is the fifth Pillar of Islam – what are the 5 Pillars of Islam? 2. How often are Muslims expected to visit Makkah? 3. Are there any exceptions or people who are not allowed to go? 4. Explain the reasons why Hajj is so important to Muslims e.g. Who was the Kaaba built by? Why was it built? 5. Flightpath 7: Analyse the reasons behind a Muslim wanting to visit Makkah – we know an important prophet in Islam built the Kaaba, but why should that make Muslims want to go there? How do the 5 Pillars fit into all of this? Task 3 Compare how you feel about the place you want to visit with how Muslims feel about their pilgrimage. 1. ‘Being here reminds me of how much I want to visit __________. I really want to go there because_________’ 2. How are your feelings about your special place similar to Muslims? E.g. Does the place interest you? Is it a holy place? Do you have to go there? 3. How are your feelings about your special place different to Muslims? 4. Flightpath 7: Analyse the reasons behind how you feel about your place, and Muslims about Makkah; will visiting this place provide you with a happiness equal to Muslims visiting Makkah? Why do you think you feel how you do about your special place, and why do Muslims feel how they do about Makkah? Assessment • Look at the model answer. • You have also been given a mark scheme. • Using the mark scheme, read out the postcard ticking off the bits of the mark scheme that you think this person has achieved. You can underline or write on the work if you want to. • At the end, give the postcard a medal comment, and a mission comment. Hajj Model Answer In your groups, peer mark the following postcard. Use the mark scheme to work out how well this person has done – You can tick off what they have completed on the mark scheme as you go, and you can write on / highlight this piece of work if it helps you. Dear ___________. I am on holiday in Saudi Arabia in the city of Makkah – I have so much to tell you about the things I have seen! Makkah is a really busy city, and there is a building called the Kaaba. Lots of Muslim people visit Makkah to see the Kaaba. I have been watching what the Muslim pilgrims do when they get here (I am not allowed to take part as I am not a Muslim) – when they arrive, they dress in white clothes, and I overheard some of them saying that they are not allowed to shave or cut their nails or wear perfume. But it’s only for a couple of days so I suppose that wouldn’t be too hard to do. Muslims tend to be here for about 6 or 7 days. They do different things on each day; for example on the first day, I saw them running between two mountains called Mawah and Safa, and on the third day I saw them throwing stones at this huge pillar – I think I overhead one of them saying that this represents stoning the devil to death. I have also seen Muslims walk around the Kaaba a lot. The Muslims look really happy when they are here, and I think that sometimes they meet up with family and friends in Makkah who they haven’t seen in ages, so that must be nice for them. I managed to speak to a lovely Muslim girl the other day called Mez – she explained to me that the reason Muslims come here to Makkah is because it is part of five rules of their religion called the Five Pillars; the Fifth Pillar is called Hajj, which means pilgrimage (a kind of holy journey). The rules say that all Muslims should visit the Kaaba in Makkah at least once in their lifetime. Some Muslims don’t have to though, for example if they are ill or if a lady is pregnant, because the journey is long and all in all the pilgrimage takes about seven days! Mez told me that the Kaaba is important to visit because a really important prophet called Ibrahim built it, because the Muslim god, Allah, told him to make a House of God.