Hajj takes place from August 19 to 24, the pilgrimage begins on the 8th day of the month of Dhul-Hijjah – the 12th month in the Islamic calendar.
The dates are continent on the sighting of the moon in Dhul Hijah, according to the Islamic calendar, which is based on the lunar cycle, and so the dates change by 11 days a year.
Hajj is the fifth and final pillar of Islam, the other pillars are faith, prayer, charity and fasting.
How long does Hajj last?
Hajj takes place over a five-day period, the 9th day is known as the Day of Arafat and this day is called the day of Hajj.
The Hajjis or pilgrims wear simple white clothes called Ihram.
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During the Hajj the Pilgrims perform acts of worship and they renew their sense of purpose in the world.
The ritual is designed to promote the bonds of Islamic brotherhood and sisterhood by showing that everyone is equal in the eyes of Allah.
What do you during Hajj?
The Hajj pilgrimage begins at a place just outside Mecca called the Miqat or entry station to the Hajj.
Pilgrims bathe and put on special white clothes – ihram – men wear two white, unstitched pieces of cloth for men and any loose-fitting clothing for women before crossing the outer boundaries of the city of Mecca, called Miqat.
When in ihram, pilgrims must not cut their hair, hunt or engage in sexual activity.
Millions of pilgrims gather in Mecca and set out on an 8km journey for Mina and remain their until Fajr (dawn) the next morning.
Mount Arafat is located in the city of Mina and pilgrims stand in the open valley, praising Allah – the mountain was the location of the Prophet Mohammad’s final sermon.
At sunset, pilgrims head to Muzdalifah, about 9km away where they will spend the night.
Muslims gather together 49 or 70 small stones together to use the next day.
Eid ul-Adha is celebrated on the 10th day of Hajj, and on this day pilgrims travel back to Mina before dawn.
They converge at the Jamarat bridge to perform the Ramy – a symbolic rite in which pebbles are thrown at pillars that represent the temptations of Satan.
Then the Qurbani sacrifice is carried out in which a lamp or sheep is slaughtered and the meat distributed among the poor.
At this time, pilgrims trim or shave their hair and remove their ihram clothes.
Many will travel to Mecca to perform tawaf and sa’ee – the circling of the Kaaba seven times.
Pilgrims spend the next two or three days back in Mina, on each day they symbolically stone the devil, throwing seven pebbles at each of the three pillars.
Muslims return to Mecca again to perform the final circulation of the Kaaba, in what is known as the Farewell Tawaf and then head back home in their respective countries.