Allah invites all sorts of people for Hajj—and it is out of His mercy that people come and are given a chance to repent and return back to Him, correct their errors and become better Muslims. If you intend to go, make the sincere intention, and do your best to prepare and the best thing after that is to leave the rest up to Allah because as always, you will be pleasantly surprised

I would say do not delay Hajj because I have a feeling that subsequent years will become more and more difficult, not just because of the rising temperatures, but other complications.  Sisters, let your husbands go for Hajj if they have the ability, even if you cannot go.  It’s not just helping them fulfill their obligation, but having that extra experience is a plus for when in sha Allah you both go as a couple.  As for taking children, I would say that it’s not an issue about whether or not YOU will be able to handle Hajj and taking care of kids.  The problem is really if the kids themselves can handle it.  I’ve seen parents bring along their children, and I never felt sorry for the parents; I felt sorry for the kids because they don’t have the ability to handle it, many becoming terribly ill.  There is wisdom in Allah stipulating that one must have the ability to perform Hajj—and I would say that this also applies to others beyond you, such as your children.

When choosing a Hajj Package, I highly recommend going to Madinah first.  You could avoid at least one leg of the long bus trip, and also avoid the confusion of exiting and re-entering the Meeqaat and being in the state of Ihraam.  I would not recommend making Ta’ajjal (leaving on the 12th of Dhul-Hijjah); it’s better to stay until the 13th, and that way you avoid all the rush and chaos that is common on the 12th.

From the perspective of the Ummah, this was finally a chance to see what state the Ummah is really in instead of hearing about it.  To me, the most poignant test for the health of this Ummah was really the Salat al-Istis’qaa’ incident.  For many readers, when I narrate about this incident, it doesn’t seem like a big deal, but I was surprised to find how much I had learned and benefited from this event and how it had changed my perspective on a lot of things regarding the Ummah.  I believe that the day I cried when the Imam mentioned this in his Khutbah on the Day of ‘Arafah, that was perhaps the first time I really cried for the Ummah and felt this intense grief and sadness.   It wasn’t just the fact that it didn’t rain, but the major issue was how little people actually cared.  Sure, Muslims today do not care about a lot of things and are in a state of Ghafl that is going to be difficult to get out of.  But more specifically, at least in the past, perhaps an effort was made to figure out WHY it may not have rained—it was a time for the Muslim community to reflect within themselves and repent from their sins; and they didn’t give up.  But today, you don’t find people doing that, and it’s not simply that they do not care, but also that they may not even realize that there is a problem.  Also, as I mentioned regarding this incident earlier, there is such an atmosphere of doubt hanging over the heads of Muslims regarding practice of the Sunnah that it sometimes made me wonder… are we really, truly, satisfied as Muhammad (sal Allahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) as our Prophet?  Allahul-Musta’aan.

However, do not get me wrong—it’s not that I returned from Hajj only to become even more critical of the Ummah.  Rather, at the same time I found that an intense love for Muslims also develops in your heart during and after Hajj.  You find yourself a more patient and tolerant, and more merciful and loving with your brothers and sisters.  You learn that you should never, ever belittle a Muslim, and that the honor of a Muslim is a precious thing indeed.

I would have to say that no one truly has the ability to perform Hajj.  You may be wondering what I mean by this!  When I returned home, and reflected about the different situations we were in, I thought to myself, “How did I get through all of that?”  And I didn’t really.  No one truly has the ability and strength to bear all of the hardships and challenges of Hajj—it is Allah that gives you that ability.  All the patience and strength you gather throughout the journey has only one source, and when you realize that you could truly say from the bottom of your heart:  La hawla wa la quwwata illaa billaah.

In conclusion, I am grateful to Allah to have had the ability to share this experience this way.  Once again, it really was for myself, to sort my thoughts, to record these precious memories I’ll cherish for the rest of my life, but if anyone has derived benefit from this account and whatever is in it that is sound and good, it is surely a blessing from Allah (swt), and whatever errors are found there in, it is verily Shaytan’s influence on me to commit these errors.

May Allah accept our good deeds, Ameen.