O Allah...

O Allah, to You I have yielded myself, to You I have turned my face, and to You I have submitted all my affairs; so, guard me with the guard of faith from ahead of me, from beyond me, from my right side, from my left side, from above me, and from beneath me. And protect me with Your power and might—surely, all power and might belong to You alone.

You are the Most High, the Most Great.” Choosing A Co-Traveler Another important point to be observed is to choose a co-traveler in this spiritual journey. In the same way that any cause of preoccupation in this journey is harmful, any cause of remembrance of God, attention to the philosophy of Hajj, and a spiritual state is extremely useful for a pilgrim. Hence, he must choose a co-traveler who is truly reminder of God and keeps him in a permanent spiritual state.

A pilgrim should refuse to associate with those who, during this spiritual journey, which might happen only once a lifetime, think of eating, sleeping, and joking all the time. A pilgrim should stop complaining about the quantity and quality of the food as well as spending time in shopping.

اِنتَهزوا الفُرصَ فإِنها تمرُّ مَرَّ السّحابِ “Seize the opportunities, for they are like transient clouds.”[^6]84 Good Temperament وأَحسِنِ الصُّحبَةَ “Keep good company.”[^7]85 Good temperament is recommended but during Hajj, it is more praiseworthy, for the journey is towards God and all pilgrims are God’s guests. To honor the guests is to honor the host.

Imam Sadiq (as) says: إنَّ الخُلُقَ الحَسَنَ يُميثُ الخَطيئَةَ كما تُميثُ الشّمسُ الجَليدَ “Good temperament diminishes the sins in the same way as the sun thaws ice.”[^8]86 Having good temperament means not only to avoid nuisance to anyone but also to tolerate other people’s bad behaviors and to serve them with respect. A pilgrim should be careful not to utter an indecent word. He should know that whatever he does is for the sake of God. Only then all hardships will be easy for him to tolerate.

[^1]: See Misbah ul-Shariah; chapter 21 [^2]: See Misbah ul-Shariah; chapter 21 [^3]: See Misbah ul-Shariah; chapter 21 [^4]: See Nahjul Balagha; maxim 77 [^5]: See Taraa’if ul-Hikam; Vol. 2 [^6]: See Safinatol-Bihar, Vol. 2 [^7]: See Misbah ul-Shariah; chapter 21 [^8]: See al-Mahajjatol Beizaa; vol. 3 Previous…

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