Haj performed amid corona curbs: Muslims must follow Holy Prophet’s (PBUH) teachings on pandemics, says Grand Imam

ARAFAT: In his Haj sermon, Sheikh Bandar Bin Abdulaziz Balila Monday said the Prophet (PBUH) had advised people against visiting an area hit by plague and urged the Muslim Ummah to follow the Prophet’s (PBUH) teachings in this regard.

“The Holy Prophet (PBUH) advised people against visiting an area where the plague had spread and also people from the affected areas to visit other areas,” said Sheikh Bandar as the pilgrims performed Haj under the coronavirus restrictions, reports Geo News.

Sheikh Bandar urged Muslims to establish equality and eliminate enmity and hatred among each other. He also asked everyone to forgive one another for the sake of Allah. The Imam of the Grand Mosque said Haj was the fifth pillar of Islam and urged those who could take the holy sojourn to complete it.

Thousands of pilgrims donning facemasks gathered on Mount Arafat on Monday to atone for their sins, expressing hope for peace and an end to the Covid-19 pandemic. Saudi Arabia has barred worshippers from abroad for a second year running and restricted entry from within the kingdom under special conditions to guard against the coronavirus and its new variants.

Only 60,000 Saudi citizens and residents, aged 18 to 65, who had been fully vaccinated or recovered from the virus and did not suffer from chronic diseases were selected for the rite, a once-in-a-lifetime duty for every able-bodied Muslim who could afford it.

“It is an indescribable feeling that I got selected among millions of people to attend the Haj. I pray to God to put an end to these hard times the whole world has gone through under the coronavirus,” said Ume Ahmed, a Palestinian pilgrim who lives in the Saudi capital Riyadh and has lost four family members to the virus.

In previous years, more than two million pilgrims used to cover Mount Mercy on the plains of Arafat, sitting close to each other in the scorching heat of the desert city of Makkah, carrying umbrellas and fans to keep cool as temperatures rose above 40 degrees Celsius. This year pilgrims, dressed in white robes signifying a state of purity, had to observe social distancing and wear facemasks on Mount Arafat. Mount Arafat is also where Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) gave his last sermon.