MECCA: Malaysian pilgrims have become increasingly aware of hukum (laws) and rites related to the haj and umrah.
They are better prepared, as evident from the Tabung Haji guidance unit having received only a small number of enquiries on matters that the pilgrims have no knowledge on.
“Out of the 148 queries, only 28 were on matters that the pilgrims have zero knowledge on,” said its haj guidance operations director, Tengku Aziz Raja Abdullah.
“The rest were queries to verify or reconfirm what they already knew. We are pleased that the pilgrims are in a high state of readiness. It also shows that the various programmes organised by Tabung Haji in Malaysia, as well as here, are paying dividends.”
The guidance unit also conducts regular sessions here, and actively updates pilgrims on the programme.
Under the unit, there are religious experts to refer to, regarding queries related to hukum and new edicts. They are headed by former Penang mufti Datuk Seri Hassan Ahmad, who is based at the Janadriyah headquarters.
Datuk Razali Shahabudin, who is based at TH Travel and Services, and Professor Dr Raihanah Azahari, based at Land Premium, make up the rest of the team.
Tengku Aziz said an example of a new practice here was the calling of azan (call to prayer) 30 minutes before Zohor commenced for Friday prayers.
It is common for Muslims in Malaysia to perform the Friday sunat prayers right after the Zohor azan.
“Malaysian Muslims should not be confused as they can only perform the sunat prayers after Zohor commences.”
Tengku Aziz said the unit also handled the Talian Ibadah Haji (Taib) hotline, which will operate round the clock from Aug 23 to Sept 21. The line is open only from 7am to 1am (Saudi Arabian time).
For enquiries, pilgrims can call 012-570-6161.