A flash. A bar of black was all I saw when I stepped into the Haram Shariff at Mecca. Beside me my daughter whispered, “I saw the Kabah, mom”. She confirmed my first visual treat. I moved to my right and got a full breathtaking view. I had waited many years for this moment. I had heard so much about this minute. I had rehearsed a thousand words for this second. But the power of black silenced me. I blanked out, two words escaped my lips. Allah hu-Akbar. I gathered my sense and said and did what every Muslim the world over does. Which you and I know.

The sanctity of the place, the sheer reverence and awe, hit me harder than the rivers of lava flowing out of erupting, active volcanoes. Bait Allah. Was I really here? Is this the stone I had seen in a thousand pictures in a million homes? Was the touch against my fingers real? Tears flowed uncontrolled. My sins of the past and dreams for the future inundated me. Subhan-allah – Wallah Hollah wallah quwwatah.

Proud to be born a muslim. Proud to believe in a religion so meaningful and rich. I stood humbled before the ‘first wonder of the world – the well of zam-zam. I drank of the cool liquid. It was a hair raising experience as I thought of the pain and hardship of a mother when her child was crying for water – alone on a deserted piece of land. I pressed my bare feet hard on the man-made rocks of safa and marwah and I felt the pain again. This is the reality. This is where it all began. Here is a slice of the tranquility of Paradise – the promised home for all good deeds. May my duas be accepted and may my sins be forgiven. Ameen.

In the light rain we circumambulated the Kabah, I wanted to stay here forever. I wanted to freeze the moment. We returned every day, spending hours revelling in this wonder and beauty. But the moment had come for Tawaaf – e- vida..

Convinced beyond doubt that I must come again, I kissed the stone and made my exit. Lightened in heart and clear in my head about where my future lay.

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