The following account of Mahomet's farewell pilgrimage is from Jaber,
son of Abdallah, who was one of the company: "The apostle of God had not
made the pilgrimage for nine years (for when he conquered Mecca he only
made a visitation). In the tenth year of the Hegira, he publicly
proclaimed his intention to perform the pilgrimage, whereupon a
prodigious multitude of people (some make the number near one hundred
thousand) flocked from all parts to Medina. Our chief desire was to
follow the apostle of God, and imitate him. When we came to Dhul
Holaifa, the apostle of God prayed in the mosque there; then mounting
his camel he rode hastily to the plain Baida, where he began to praise
God in the form that professes his unity, saying, 'Here I am, O God,
ready to obey thee; thou hast no partner,' etc. When he came to the
Kaaba, he kissed the corner of the black stone, went seven times
round--three times in a trot, four times walking--then went to the
station of Abraham, and coming again to the black stone, reverently
kissed it. Afterward he went through the gate of the sons of Madhumi to
the hill Safa, and went up it till he could see the Kaaba; when, turning
toward the Kebla, he professed again the unity of God, saying, 'There is
no God but one, his is the kingdom, to him be praises, he is powerful
above everything,' etc. After this profession he went down toward the
hill Merwan, I following him all the way through the valley; he then
ascended the hill slowly till he came to the top of Merwan; from thence
he ascended Mount Arafa. It being toward the going down of the sun, he
preached here till sunset; then going to Mosdalefa, between Arafa and
the valley of Mena, he made the evening and the late prayers, with two
calls to prayer, and two risings up. Then he lay down till the dawn,
and, having made the morning prayer, went to the enclosure of the Kaaba,
where he remained standing till it grew very light. Hence he proceeded
hastily, before the sun was up, to the valley of Mena; where, throwing
up seven stones, he repeated at each throw, 'God is great,' etc. Leaving
now the valley, he went to the place of sacrifice. Having made free
sixty-three slaves, he slew sixty-three victims[63] with his own hand,
being then sixty-three years old, and then ordered Ali to sacrifice as
many more victims as would make up the number to one hundred. The next
thing the apostle did was to shave his head, beginning on the right side
of it, and finishing it on the left. His hair, as he cut it off, he cast
upon a tree, that the wind might scatter it among the people. Kaled was
fortunate enough to catch a part of the fore-lock, which he fixed upon
his turban; the virtue whereof he experienced in every battle he
afterward fought. The limbs of the victims being now boiled, the apostle
sat down with no other companion but Ali to eat some of the flesh and
drink some of the broth. The repast being over, he mounted his camel
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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