HAJJ: WELCOME BACK TO THE LAND OF STRUGGLE
Oleh Legisan Samtafsir
Selamat datang kembali ke Tanah Air, wahai para Haji & Hajjah. Sejatinya, bukan kembali ke tanah air tapi ke tanah perjuangan. Inilah Indonesia. Bukan tanah tempat kita menunggu tua, sampai kematian datang, tapi tanah untuk kita berjuang hingga syahid menjemput. Inilah Indonesia; tanah tumpah darah, tanah medan juang bagi para Haji dan Hajjah.
The Land of Heroes
Indonesia is the land where heroes are born, a place where those who defend truth and justice are born, raised, and buried. History records, stretching from the Aceh Sea of Pasai to Ternate and Tidore in the East, not only islands but also the photos of heroes and the tombs of heroes line the path.
Those whose photos are displayed are people who, in their lifetime, were called to create and achieve, to advance their country, to educate and improve the welfare of its people, and those who were called to rise and defend the oppressed from unjust laws.
Now, we return from the Holy Land to the land of these heroes, the land where the spirits of our ancestors roam, calling the new generation of their descendants to continue their fighting spirit to build the nation, advance education, improve the economy, refine morals, and nurture a harmonious family.
The voices of these heroes’ spirits echo from their statues scattered along various streets, their photos in history textbooks, and posters displayed on billboards. Look at their faces, see and capture their spirit, and say to them, “I have returned from Hajj, and I will continue your spirit, heroes, to build this nation.”
The Land of Villains
If in this land there are photos of heroes, it means that this land has also been home to villains, because there will be no heroes without villains. And indeed, it was these villains that our heroes faced: the colonizers who came to seize the country’s wealth and plunder the people’s rights, over 400 years ago. Unfortunately, or sadly, they did not fight alone but cleverly collaborated with local elites who, proudly, became their compradors or henchmen.
This happened in the pre-independence era of our Republic. But after that, in the era of independence, the Old Order, the New Order, and even after the Reformation Order, was this country free from these villains? No. It turns out that the compradors also created their children. The hypocrites, the corrupt, and the ignorant, gave birth to a new generation. Villains also have offspring and descendants. Even the devil did not perish, even though humans constantly perish, one after another.
That is the fact we will continue to face. Are we intimidated? No. Are we pessimistic? No. We are, in fact, eager and bold in facing it. Why? Because we have just returned from Hajj. We have just returned from a battlefield training camp that is incredibly intense, a spectacular life-drama performance; it is the largest training in the world—Hajj.
After the Call of Hajj, Now Comes the Call of Jihad
If we have answered the call of the adhan and fulfilled the call of Hajj, then before the call of death approaches, we must first fulfill the call of jihad.
Jihad is a sincere and professional effort to create, achieve, give, serve, help, and assist others. That is the vast and endless field of jihad. It is the field of deeds where we continue to plant seeds of good actions.
According to the timeline, our lives are not long. Life will not last longer than 80-90 years. We just have to count how much time is left. That is our opportunity. An opportunity that, once passed, will never come again.
Therefore, our spirit and enthusiasm after Hajj must burn brightly to carry out the responsibility we have now; to create new, better opportunities, change what is wrong, and continue what has been good.
Mabrur: Fulfilling the Promise to be Better
Thus, after Hajj, we are challenged to prove our ability and commitment to fulfilling the call of jihad. The promise we made to live as Allah’s servants when we entered ihram, to guard ourselves, our speech, and our actions to be better, more sincere, and more earnest, must be fulfilled.
The promise we made at Arafah to become His khalifah, to create goodness and honor, must be realized. The promise to be pure-hearted and to keep ourselves free from bad traits, made when we stoned the Jamarat, must be fulfilled.
The promise to have faith and love for Allah, to be stronger and more patient, to be optimistic and never despair, made when we performed Tawaf, must be carried out. The promise to work hard, smart, and thoroughly, to be more loving, nurturing, and serving like Siti Hajar during Sa’i, must be maximized.
Closing
All the promises we made in the Holy Land must be realized, not just empty words. Hajj is not for travel, not for fulfilling a work assignment, not for earning the title of Hajj, but to prove and dedicate our lives, that after Hajj, we become better and more honorable.
Mabrur, in the end, is not a title for those who have performed Hajj unconditionally, but an effort to become better, which must be continuously realized by those who have performed Hajj. Fa’tabiru ya ulil albab.