SA'J - the movement between Safa and Marwah. A remembrance of mother Hagar and her love.

English Esmir Halilović 5:47

Sa'j — obred između Safe i MerveHadžera — majka i ljubav prema djetetuHadždž i umraZemzem — čudo vodeQur'anski znakovi (sha'a'ir)

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Language Original Bosnian German

The speaker describes the ritual of sa'y, walking between the hills of Safa and Marwah, as a central part of Hajj and Umrah. Through the scene of millennia of movement across these places, he explains how sa'y was performed — with Hagar running seven times between Safa and Marwah seeking water for her son Ismail. He emphasizes how this event, which occurred centuries ago when the area was just a desert, marked the history of Mecca and became an inseparable part of Hajj and Umrah. He speaks of the miracle of Zamzam — the water source that has flowed for over four thousand years — which the Exalted Allah provided through the angel Jibril in response to Hagar's love and effort for her child. He quotes an ayah from the Quran mentioning Safa and Marwah as signs of Allah, explaining how these places are cleansed from idolatry and the filth of polytheists. He concludes with a prayer for Allah to grant understanding of the teachings that transform us for the better and make us better Muslims.

Key Points

This khutbah explains sa'j — the movement between Safa and Marwah during umrah and hajj — as a remembrance of the mother Hagar, who ran between these hills seeking water for her son Ishmael, connecting ancient history with the contemporary practice of millions of believers.

Summary

The speaker describes in detail the ritual of sa'y, the walking between the hills of Safa and Marwah, as a central part of Hajj and Umrah. Through the scene of millennia of movement across these places, he explains how sa'y was performed — with Hagar running seven times between Safa and Marwah seeking water for her son Ismail. He highlights how this event, which occurred centuries ago when the area was just a desert, marked the history of Mecca and became an inseparable part of Hajj and Umrah. He speaks of the miracle of Zamzam — the water source that has flowed for over four thousand years — which the Exalted Allah provided through the angel Jibril in response to Hagar's love and effort for her child. He quotes an ayah from the Quran that mentions Safa and Marwah as signs of Allah, explaining how these places are cleansed of idolatry and the filth of polytheists. He concludes with a prayer for Allah to grant us understanding of the teachings that transform us for the better and make us better Muslims.

Key takeaways

Sa'i is the ritual movement between Safa and Marwah, essential for Hajj and Umrah.
This ritual commemorates Mother Hagar, who ran seven times seeking water for her son Ismail, centuries ago.
The Exalted Allah granted the gift of Zamzam — a water spring flowing for over four thousand years — through the angel Jibril in response to Hagar's love and effort for her child (Qur'an 2:158).
Safa and Marwah are marked as signs of Allah (Qur'an 2:158), places cleansed of idolatry and idols once held by the polytheists.
Men should symbolically run during sa'i, as Hagar did, to express remembrance of her effort and struggle for her family.
The chemical composition of Zamzam water is unique and represents one of God's miracles in the world, as confirmed by documents.
The sa'i ritual is not just ceremonial — it carries a profound lesson that transforms us for the better, making us better Muslims and better community members.

Full article

What is sa'y and how is it performed

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Here is how the sa'y looks. During the performance of Umrah, one of the key parts is the sa'y. Sa'y is, in fact, the movement between Safa and Marwah. This hill behind me and all these thousands of people is Safa, and we are now heading towards Marwah. This green area we have, or these green signals, indicate that men at that location should jog a little.

Remembering Hagar — a mother and her love

Why is sa'y performed? Because it is a remembrance of the mother Hagar, who ran here between Safa and Marwah, seeking water for her child. So it is nice for us men, if possible, to jog a little, at least symbolically, as it is believed that a woman did this. Women are not required to do this now, but it reflects the effort and struggle for one's child, or for one's family. She ran this distance seven times, crossing this stretch, thinking she would find water on one hill or another.

History of sa'y and part of Hajj

This event somehow marked the history of Mecca, and as such, it has become an integral part of Hajj, but also of Umrah. There is no Umrah without sa'y, and there is no Hajj without sa'y. It is an essential part of these rituals, where thousands, tens of thousands, even millions of people remember Hagar and her son Ishmael. These events took place in history, four or five thousand years ago, in this area, when there were no walls, when there was nothing but desert, or stones and rocky terrain, a lifeless space.

Zamzam — a miracle of Allah

However, the Exalted Allah, the Most High, then sent to that mother and her son the angel Gabriel, who struck the ground here, about two hundred to three hundred meters from here, near the Kaaba. And there appeared the Zamzam spring, which has been flowing for over four thousand years. This is truly one of God's miracles in this world. The entire story of Zamzam, the history of Zamzam, but at the same time, the chemical composition of Zamzam water is unique in itself. There is a fantastic video, a wonderful documentary made by Al Jazeera about Zamzam water.

Ayah about Safa and Marwah

This act of worship is performed as a remembrance of that rich history, but also to draw lessons and messages from this act of worship. The Exalted Allah, the Most High, mentions these two places in the Holy Quran, saying:

﴿Indeed, Safa and Marwah are among the symbols of Allah﴾ — "Indeed, Safa and Marwah are from Allah's signs."

﴿So whoever performs Hajj to the House﴾ — "Whoever performs Hajj to the House,"

﴿and performs Umrah﴾ — "or performs Umrah,"

﴿there is no sin on him to perform Tawaf between them﴾ — "there is no sin, and it is not wrong to perform, to simply circle around them, or to visit them."

Purification from disbelief and idolatry

This means a command, even though it is stated in the form of permission. Previously, there were idols at Safa and Marwah, so it was difficult for the companions to visit those places where the polytheists of Quraysh and others kept idols. However, then Allah, the Exalted, said that there is no hindrance in that. Why? Because these honorable, noble, sacred places are purified from impurity, from what the Quran has called najis — impurity, namely idols and idolatry.

﴿Indeed, Allah is Appreciative and Knowing﴾ — "Allah is the One who knows all good, and who will reward everyone for their deeds."

So I ask Allah, the Exalted, to grant us every good, and also the understanding of the correct rituals that leave lessons on our souls and leave an impact on our souls, that change us for the better, and make us better people, better Muslims, better neighbors, and improve our condition in every way.

Qur'anQur'an 2:158 (Inna al-Safa wa al-Marwa min sha'a'ir Allah)Qur'an 2:158 (Fa man hajja al-Bayt wa i'tamara fa la junah alayhi an yattawwafa bihima)

Topics#Sa'j — the ritual between Safa and Marwah#Hagar — the mother and love for her child#Hajj and Umrah#Zamzam — the miracle of water#Quranic signs (sha'a'ir)#Islamic rituals and their lessons#Mecca — the holy place

Transcript (English)

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0:00 In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

0:03 This is what the scene of performing sa'y looks like.

0:10 So, during the performance of Umrah, one of the key parts is, in fact, performing sa'y.

0:20 Sa'y is, in fact, the movement between Safa and Marwah.

0:24 So, this hill behind me, and behind all these thousands of people, is Safa, and we are now heading towards Marwah.

0:35 This green area we have here, these green signals, actually indicate that men at that location should jog a little.

0:46 Namely, why is sa'y performed?

0:49 Because it is a remembrance of the mother Hagar who ran here between Safa and Marwah, seeking water for her child.

1:03 So it is nice, for us men, if possible, to jog a little, at least symbolically, as it is considered that the woman has already done this.

1:18 Thus, it is not required of women now, and it reflects the effort and struggle for one's own child, or rather for one's own family.

1:30 So, she ran this stretch seven times, thinking she would find water on one hill or another.

1:43 This event has, in a way, marked the history of Mecca, becoming part of both Hajj and Umrah.

1:55 Thus, there is no Umrah without Sa'i, and there is no Hajj without Sa'i.

2:00 This is an integral part of these rituals, where thousands, tens of thousands, even millions remember Hagar and her son Ishmael.

2:12 These events took place in history, 4 or 5 thousand years ago, in this area, when there were no walls, nothing but desert and rocks.

2:36 However, the Exalted Allah, the Most High,

2:38 sent the angel Gabriel to that mother and her son, who struck the ground here, about 200 or 300 meters from the Kaaba.

2:56 And there appeared the Zamzam spring, which has been flowing for over 4,000 years.

3:00 And this is truly one of God's miracles in this world.

3:02 And this is indeed one of God's miracles in this world.

3:07 The entire Zamzam, and the story of Zamzam, the history of Zamzam, but at the same time, the chemical composition of Zamzam water is unique in itself.

3:19 You have a truly fantastic video, a fantastic documentary made by Al Jazeera about Zamzam water.

3:29 So, this act of worship is performed as a remembrance of that rich history, but also to draw lessons and messages from this act of worship.

3:43 Exalted Allah, the Most High.

3:44 He mentions these two places in the Holy Quran, saying: إِنَّ الصَّفَاءِ وَالْمَرْوَةَ مِنْ شَآئِرِ اللَّهِ Indeed, Safa and Marwah are among the signs of Allah.

3:57 فَمَنْ حَجَّ الْبَيْتَ Whoever performs Hajj, or performs Umrah, فَلَا جُنَاحَ عَلَيْهِ أَنْ يَطَوَّفَ بِهِمَا there is no sin upon him, and it is not wrong to circle around them, that is, to visit them.

4:16 This means, at the same time, a command, even though it is stated in the form of permission.

4:24 Because previously, there were idols at Safa and Marwah, it was difficult for the companions to visit those places where the polytheists of Quraysh and others held idols.

4:39 However, then Exalted Allah, the Most High, said that there is no harm in that.

4:41 He said that there are no obstacles to that.

4:43 Why is that?

4:45 Because these noble, sacred places are purified from impurities, from what the Quran calls najis, impurity, namely idols, idolatry, and so on.

5:05 Indeed, Allah is Appreciative and All-Knowing. Allah knows all good and will reward everyone for their deeds.

5:14 So I ask Allah, the Exalted,

5:16 to grant us every good, and also the correct understanding of the rituals that leave lessons on our souls, that transform us for the better, making us better people, better Muslims, better neighbors, and in every way, improving our condition.

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