K' this is driving me nuts
:salam2:
lol. u know what happens when u partially remember something and can't get it all the way? v v bothersome... so i went searchin' and here's what i got...
this is about 4 yrs old... but whatever, i think it's just this idea spread everywhere.
Children simulate a pilgrimage to learn about Islam
By Peggy Goetz
Irvine World News
Opening presents
Children at New Horizon Elementary School in Northwood went to Saudi Arabia last week. It was only a simulated trip but nevertheless for many it was a first concrete taste of one of the most significant goals in the lives of faithful Muslims: a pilgrimage, or "hajj," to Mecca, the holy city of Islam in western Saudi Arabia near the Red Sea.
About 100 students made the simulated pilgrimage while parents and guests looked on.
Girls and boys both wore "ihram," the traditional clothing worn by those making the pilgrimage in Mecca. Girls wore white head coverings with their red and blue plaid school uniforms.
Sixth-grader Lamija Silajdzic's white coverings were ankle length because she acted as a "mutawif," or guide, for a group of younger children. Boys' ihram were white towels pinned over their uniforms around a shoulder and under the other arm.
In a real hajj, male pilgrims wear nothing but two white unsewn cloths. The clothing acts as an equalizer, making people of all cultures and stations in life the same, according to parent and school board member Samar Cook, who made her own hajj to Mecca about 10 years ago.
Circling the Kaaba
The hajj is supposed to be symbolic of the unity of Islam. It draws people of many countries, races and classes to Mecca.
New Horizon principal Omar Ezzeldine said it was obvious last year when he made his own hajj to Mecca that only about 15 or 20 percent of those there were from the Arab world.
The children and families gathered at New Horizon School reflected much of the Islamic world and its diversity. There were multiple races and people who come from a wide swath of the world.
Families at the school come from such diverse places as Bosnia, Pakistan, Circassia, Libya, Morocco, South Africa, Indonesia, Lebanon and Vietnam, as well as Iraq, Iran, Ethiopia and Syria. Native languages number about 10, but their faith and religious culture has drawn them together, said principal Ezzeldine.
The time of year for the traditional hajj is during the first nine days of the month of Zul-Hijjah, the 12th month of the Islamic lunar calendar. The period ended this year on the day the children had their simulated hajj, Feb. 21.
Eid al-Adha, the Islamic Feast of the Sacrifice, that follows the pilgrimage was celebrated for three days starting Friday, Feb. 22, in many locations in Orange County and around the world.
Mediha Fejzagic DiMartino/For Irvine World News
Evian Moustafa, 9, left and Lana Malley, 9, pray silently while participating in a hajj simulation, Thursday morning at the New Horizon Elementary School
Making the pilgrimage to Mecca is one of the five Pillars of Islam, the obligations required of faithful Muslims. Followers should make the pilgrimage at least once in their lifetimes. If physical and financial circumstances permit it should be at this time of year.
Mecca is the birthplace of the Prophet Muhammad. The Kaaba is a black silk draped building on the traditional site of the altar built by the Prophet Ibrahim (Abraham) when he was ordered by God to sacrifice his son.
According to Islamic belief, the prophet's son involved in the sacrifice is Ishmael, son of Hagar. In the Christian and Jewish traditions, the son is Isaac, son of Sarah. Muslims also recognize Isaac and honor him, noted principal Ezzeldine.
Children usually do not accompany adults on a real hajj, though there is no official age at which one can attend, according to several parents at the school. However, there are so many people, millions, and the crowds are so thick each year that it is not safe for small children.
Also, pointed out the mothers, it cannot be as spiritual an experience for a mother if she has to spend time taking care of the children at a hotel.
"It is a very spiritual, individual experience. You usually travel with a small group, about 25 people, who are also making the trip. They are family or friends," said Cook.
The children at New Horizon have studied the hajj tradition and Eid al-Adha for the past month. They learned the proper speeches and sayings to use during the simulated pilgrimage. Parents and children constructed models of the sites to visit on the pilgrimage in the schoolyard.
To begin, children boarded a Mecca Airlines flight in a classroom, waving goodbye to their parents at the door.
Sam Nettnin, 11, was the pilot. Tasneem Nebelsi, 11, was the flight attendant. He greeted the passengers and according to his script cautioned, "If you are suffocating, put on the oxygen mask. The plane will take off in five minutes. We will arrive at the Mecca airport in 10 minutes. We will be serving dates during the flight. Please eat quickly."
Arriving in Mecca, on the playground, the black cube-shaped model of the Kaaba was the first destination on the pilgrimage. It was about six feet tall and decorated by a mother, Sahar Abdel-Aziz. The real Kaaba is about 50 feet tall and inscribed with all the names of God. On one corner is a black stone said to be part of the altar built by Ibrahim.
Third-grader Tala Khalaf, 8, said she liked doing the "tawaf," walking around the Kaaba seven times.
"The Prophet Ibrahim, he built the first one but I think it was destroyed by a flood. God rebuilt the Kaaba. We walk around it and we welcome God. I hope I am not saying this wrong," Tala said.
Nebelsi said he liked walking around the Kaaba best of all the parts of the pilgrimage.
"That's when I felt most confident about my speeches," he said.
Nurin Ludin, 9, also liked the tawaf part of the pilgrimage best, especially the words the children recited as they walked around the Kaaba.
Zamzam is the name of the well now in the Great Mosque of Mecca that sprang up to give water for Ishmael. Pilgrims drink the sacred water of Zamzam. The children drank from the drinking fountain.
After finishing tawaf, the groups followed their guides, or mutawifs. Sixth-grader Silajdzic said she liked being a mutawif. "I liked walking around instructing people," she said. "But then somebody took over."
Mina is where the Prophet Muhammad went to meditate and pray when he made his pilgrimage. The pilgrimage to Mecca predates Islam. Pilgrims traditionally spend the night in tents in Mina.
Checking his tickets.
After resting in a tent at Mina, another stop on the pilgrimage was at replicas of two hills, Safa and Marwa. The hills symbolize patience and perseverance.
Tradition says Hagar, mother of Ibrahim's son Ishmael, rushed anxiously between the two hills trying to catch sight of a caravan that would have water for her son.
The central rite of the hajj takes place on the Plain of Arafat or the Mount of Mercy. Muhammad made his farewell speech at this mountain and asked God to forgive the sins of anyone who makes the "stand at Arafat," according to the Web site
www.ummah.net. According to the material studied by the children, the standing at Arafat symbolizes judgment day.
"This is a cleansing of the soul," explained Cook. "It is very spiritual. People pray and meditate and let go of their material needs and the creepers in our soul."
The meditation is conducted in silence and the faithful examine their lives, ask for forgiveness and work to accept the will of God.
The children sat for a few minutes by the playground equipment that had been turned into a model of a mountain.
Then they bounced up to follow their leaders across the playground to the next site, a tent at Muzdalifa. There pilgrims spend the night resting and praying. They also gathered stones, or in this simulation, buttons, to be thrown at the three pillars in Mina.
Abbaas Malik, 9, explained that the stones were being thrown at the devil and said that was his favorite part of the hajj. Sana Patel, 10, said she liked throwing the stones at "Shatan" (the devil).
"Finally you could throw something instead of just ignoring him," she said.
Cook explained that the three pillars represent the little, middle and great devil. Traditionally the devil tried to tempt Ibrahim and convince him not to sacrifice his son to God. Instead of being turned from his mission, the prophet threw rocks at the devil.
"It is very spiritual. People feel they are hitting something that made them do something," said Cook.
Ibrahim traditionally stayed the three days of Eid al-Adha at Mina. As he prepared to sacrifice his son, God spoke to him and allowed him to sacrifice an animal in place of his son.
Today most pilgrims do not sacrifice an animal. Instead they pay the fee for an animal to be slaughtered and the meat is shipped to poor people around the world, said Ezzeldine. The children did not simulate the sacrifice.
Pilgrims then continue the hajj by visiting a barber. Men shave their heads and women cut their hair.
New Horizon barber Abdur Ahman, 10, said, "We pretended to cut hair. It was fun."
At this point in the hajj, pilgrims also remove the ihram and put on everyday clothing.
To conclude the pilgrimage people make one final tawaf around the Kaaba in Mecca to bid farewell to the holy city.
The children at New Horizon were glad to get out of the hot sun after their final visit to the Kaaba. They ate popcorn and received bags of candy. They then had a traditional gift exchange in their classrooms.
Parents generally agreed that the simulated hajj was educational and meaningful, a good way for kids to learn some of the religious concepts and the details of an important part of their religious culture.
New Horizon in Irvine is one of four New Horizon Islamic schools in Southern California. There are others in Los Angeles, West Los Angeles and Pasadena.
The Irvine school offers classes for preschool through sixth grade. Principal Ezzeldine said he hopes to expand at least through the eighth grade.
Parents are excited to have an Islamic school for their children. There are about 100 children now attending.
Hyra Frljuick brought her younger children to see the hajj so they will have a better understanding of what it is.
"They are 3 and 4 and I am trying to teach them at home, but this way they can see it," she said.
She added that she and her husband are trying to move to Irvine so her children can attend the school.
New Horizon opened in September.
____________________________________________________________
Allahu alom.
So its a joke, it means they are strange. :astag: 
