photograph © Ali Kazuyoshi Nomachi/PPS

Day One – It starts at the Miqat, specific points outside Mecca where pilgrims shower, change their street clothes for Hajj garments, and state their intention to perform Hajj. For men, these garments consist of two lengths of white unstitched cotton cloth, one worn around the waist (with a sort of belt) and the other draped over one shoulder. Women wear the usual forms of their national Muslim dress. The clothes, called ihram are not intended as a means of identification. In fact, they make everyone look alike, which is the point: Everyone is leveled and stripped of obvious social distinctions before entering Mecca, just as everyone is equal before God.

Ihram also is more than the proper dress. It is a state of mind where pilgrims try their best to be spiritual, calm, forgiving, peaceful and non-judgmental. In ihram, pilgrims refrain from angry words and backtalk. They also refrain from any kind violence, even killing an insect. To maintain the state of ihram is to be living the spirit of the Hajj: a tranquil, uplifting, and challenging mindset unique to the essence of being a pilgrim.

By this time, the vehicles the pilgrims are riding in begin to fill with chanted verses of the Talbiyah, an ancient prayer that when repeated sounds like a "round." An English translation runs, "I am here, God, I am here. I am here because nothing compares to you. Here I am. Praise, blessings, and the Kingdom are yours... (I am here.)" The Talbiyah engages the tongue in the remembrance of Allah. It is the aural signature of the Hajj experience. For the next few days, it can be heard starting up and fading out, anywhere the pilgrims go.

[ Listen to the Talbiyah -- requires RealAudio ]