In early January, junior Ismail Kheiri performed his first pilgrimage to Mecca. Kheiri said the pilgrimage was an eye-opening event. 

“Seeing the Kaaba for the first time was transformative,” Kheiri said. “I had only seen it in pictures and it was pretty interesting and amazing to see it in its true form. It was a lot bigger than I expected. ”

While one of the five pillars of Islam is performing the Hajj—the major pilgrimage to Mecca—at least once, Kheiri and his family decided to perform Umrah, which is the minor pilgrimage. Kheiri and his family are part of a growing number of Muslims pursuing Umrah to seek spiritual fulfillment. The number of people performing Umrah has reached an all time high as 6,254,751 people performed Umrah in the third quarter of 2024, reflecting a 35% increase from the previous year. 

Junior Haniya Ahmad said she also felt more deeply connected to her faith after performing Umrah.

“You definitely feel more connected because everyone there is following your religion, and you feel comfortable because you can practice your religion without being judged,” Ahmad said.

Experiencing Umrah

While Umrah and Hajj are both important religious pilgrimages, Annise Adni, Iman and Muslim life adviser at Butler University, said there are key differences between the two experiences.

“The biggest distinction between the major and minor pilgrimages is the timeline. The Hajj is during the month of Dhul Hijjah, so there is a specific time during the calendar year where you are able to perform the major pilgrimage. The rituals of the major pilgrimage are divided over the course of a couple of days,” Adni said. “The minor pilgrimage—the Umrah—can be done at any point in time during the calendar year outside of the major pilgrimage time. It can be performed by any Muslim, and it’s essentially the same rituals, but it’s not set on a timeline and you don’t have to divide the rituals into different days.”

Furthermore, Adni said rituals are an important medium for strengthening religious ties during Umrah. 

“One of the rituals you engage in is called circumambulation of the Kaaba,” Adni said. “The Kaaba is the large black cube that’s in Mecca, and you walk around it seven times. Just as we pray in the direction of the Kaaba, we are walking around this point of prayer because our lives revolve around God. Another ritual people find spiritually fulfilling is the Sa’i, which is walking, jogging or running in between the two large hills of Safa and Marwa. The significance of that goes back to the founding of the settlement, and later on, the city of Mecca.”

Kheiri said learning the historical significance of Mecca helped strengthen his faith.

“(In Mecca), you feel like you’re kind of more spiritual because you’re surrounded by so many of the historical areas and so many people who are there to pray,” Kheiri said. 

Kheiri said he also vividly remembered his experience circumambulating the Kaaba.

“The most transformative place or part of my trip would probably be circling the Kaaba seven times,” Kheiri said. “I felt very connected to God at that moment. You make all your wishes, you ask for forgiveness and you’re in pretty much the holiest place in the Islamic world. Being so close to it with all these people near me definitely brought me close to my religion.”

Beyond temporary immersion, Ahmad said Umrah was a culmination of her life experiences.

“(Seeing the Kaaba) was the most life changing part because your whole life, you pray in the direction of the Kaaba, but you’ve never actually seen it in person. So it’s like you’re seeing it for the first time, and it’s just crazy,” Ahmad said. “It’s like, ‘Oh my God, this is what I’ve been praying toward five times a day for for 17 years straight.’”

Overcoming Challenges

Kheiri and Ahmad said although Umrah was an amazing experience, they also endured some unexpected challenges. 

“While it’s very rewarding spiritually to go around the Kaaba, it can be very physically draining because you’re pushing against like a crowd of thousands of people all at once,” Kheiri said. “You’re all back to back and squished together. You’re trying to walk, trying to not lose your little siblings, trying to say your prayers, trying not to get trampled and trying to touch the Kaaba, which is very difficult.” 

Highlighting logistical concerns, Ahmad also said the oppressive heat, coupled with a lack of water, posed unforeseen difficulties.

“It was very hot there since it’s a desert, and I was overheating,” Ahmad said. “I was about to pass out.”

Finding Unity in Diversity

Despite performing Umrah with people from all over the world, Ahmad said she felt a deep sense of community while in Mecca, with strangers coming to her aid as she was suffering under the brutal heat.

“My face was super red,” Ahmad said. “If you have water, you usually keep it to yourself when you’re doing the Tawaf. This random old lady threw water on my face and handed me a cold water bottle. She wasn’t like a staff member there to help, she was just a person. And then she told my parents in Arabic, ‘Give her water, she’s going to pass out.’ It was really nice to see people looking out for you, even though you don’t know them, you’re not part of their family and you’re not the same race or ethnicity. They have no ties to you besides the fact that they’re also Muslim, but they were still willing to help you out.”

Kheiri said experiencing the unifying nature of Islam deepened his religious conviction.

“It’s like a big mix of cultures because you have people coming from the entire Muslim world,” Kheiri said. “They come from Asia, Africa, the Middle East and all over, so it’s like a big blend (of people) and it feels like you’re definitely more compelled to your religion.”

Adni said experiences like Kheiri and Ahmad’s highlight a key reason Umrah is so powerful.

“Muslims are a kaleidoscope of cultures, languages, skin colors and ethnicities. It’s amazing to go to Mecca and see so many people from so many varied backgrounds all united, striving for God’s compassion and mercy,” Adni said. “Everyone there comes from different parts of the world for the same objective. You find that in the pilgrimage, it doesn’t matter where any of us come from or what any of us look like. God will look at the sincerity of our hearts and the sincerity of our devotion—not what we look like or where we came from. That’s where the beauty of Islam lies.”