Muslims observe the holy month of Ramadan

Ramadan starts on Thursday for most Muslims around the world. This means a month of fasting, prayer, and piety, all in an effort to deepen one's faith. The holy month is also looked upon as an opportunity to increase community ties, bring people closer together, and share blessings with those less fortunate. For some it may also mean a short pilgrimage to Mecca, as it is believed reward for good deeds is multiplied manifold during this time. All in all, the month is revered and eagerly awaited by adherents of Islam worldwide.

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There are also a bunch of apps out there to help Muslims with observing their duties during the month. In no particular order, here are 5 Ramadan apps that caught our eye: 

Umrah: A Muslim Pilgrimage To Mecca

In a few hours I am going to be leaving from New York City with a group of 85 people from the Islamic Center at NYU and NYPD's Muslim Officers' Society. Our intention is to perform a pilgrimage, known as the Umrah, to the city of Mecca along the way we will also be visiting the city of Medina. My hope is to share my reflections with you daily once I get on the ground in Saudi Arabia. 

The beauty of this journey is immense and I could sit for hours and hours writing about what I am feeling in anticipation of it. Mostly though my thoughts right now are geared toward being away from distraction and instead finding myself immersed in calmness. There is not a city that I have visited in the entire world that is more tranquil than Medina. The serenity that surrounds one from the moment he or she enters is unlike anything else. And there is not a city that I have visited that hosts a more diverse gathering of people than in Mecca. Any culture, language and skin color that you can think of is found there. It presents a great opportunity for reflection. 

The Umrah itself is a fairly simple process and consists mostly of rituals traced back to the prophet Abraham and his wife Hagar. It begins with the pilgrim entering into a state of ihram. This is signified through clothing worn (for men this consists usually of two unstitched, white sheets covering the lower and upper body and for women a simple outfit that is allowed to be stitched) and through refraining from actions that are in other circumstances permissible, such as applying any scents or perfumes, cutting of hair and nails, arguing and cursing, and engaging in sexual activity. One is allowed to eat, drink, sleep and engage in most regular activities while in ihram, but the restrictions apply until the pilgrimage is completed. The entire Umrah would usually take a few hours to finish, as opposed to the Hajj, which takes days. 

The Hajj is the fifth pillar of Islam

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Millions of Muslims are taking part in the annual Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca. The Hajj is the fifth pillar of Islam and every Muslim adult who is physically and financially able must undertake it at least once in their lifetime. 

Hajj and Umrah

A Muslim pilgrim reads the Koran at the Kaaba at the Grand Mosque in the Saudi holy city of Mecca on November 9, 2010. AFP PHOTO / MUSTAFA OZER

What Hajj taught me

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Writer: Sami Saayer

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A friend and I were shopping for my sneakers. I told him that I could not walk without Caterpillar shoes. “I can run but cannot walk without feeling pain.It’s probably a varicose vein.” My friend suggested I try Adidas. We decided that I could get them whenever I went to Dubai. 

After:

I was walking – in simple slippers and even barefoot. I walked 1.5 kilometers to the train station every day, two kilometeres in Jamrat (ritual of stoning the Satan) thrice in three days and similar distances in Arafat. Longer distances in three Tawafs (circumambulating the Holy Kaaba) and saee… almost 12 kilometres in six hours in one of Tawaf. There were no Caterpillar shoes or sneakers. There was no varicose vein. I felt no pain. There is no pain when you set your feet in the path of Allah. This is what Hajj taught me.

Before: 

My wife and I were furniture shopping for our new home. I told her that I wanted an eight-inch mattress for the bed. “Not foam. Spring is better.” We had extensive discussions on the kind of bed, sofas, coffee tables and chairs we wanted. Only the best would do.

Life First Tawaf

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Writer: Anisa Mehdi

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When you see people circling the Ka'aba it may look like a swarm, a school of fish, a galaxy swirling its way counterclockwise ... just because. From overhead it's a maelstrom that never sinks into the sea. It's a powerful, living organism, a community of Babel, in which individuals experience communion with "the other." Tawaf is the first act of the Hajj and it consists of seven rounds of the Ka'aba. The Ka'aba symbolizes the House of the One God; Muslims face toward it from everywhere on earth to pray five times daily. On pilgrimage first and foremost walking around it is your act of worship. If you cannot walk, wheelchair is the way to go nowadays; historically it was hand-carried palanquin. Today an entire floor of the sanctuary is dedicated to access for the disabled. Tala, Sameera and I arrived together through King Abdul Aziz Gate. This was their very first time and they were filled with wonder and excitement. I, the experienced one, was fighting fear. I knew the potential crush of the crowd. Yet I knew, too, that what was true for JRR Tolkien's Fellowship of the Nine heading into Lothlórien was just as true for us at this moment: you bring your truths with you. Surrender is the only way.

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We walked as if to the water's edge, where human beings flowed like a liquid current of life. Like an ocean's undertow, like a whirlpool's suck, the circling of tens of thousands of human beings around Islam's central shrine caught us up and swept us in.

Visit Makkah & Madinah Greatest Joy Ever

In my first visit to Makkah, and after making Umrah, I had that feeling of "MISSION COMPLETED", or in womens' words," it is shopping time!" Well, I was wrong. There were so many things that should have been done.

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If you think of all the virtues of Umrah and Hajj combined together, and compare it to the virtue of praying in al-Masjid al-Haraam , which -according to prophet Muhammad may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him-" is better than one hundred thousand prayers elsewhere ", you will certainly feel bad for every five minutes you wasted in this place not praying. One Hundred thousand, we are talking here about five zeroes, for each and every prayer.