Year after year, every blessed Haj season, as the echoes of the Talbiya resonate in the air and the pilgrims don their white ihram, families in the miqat area of Qarn Al-Manazil open up stalls and prepare to greet the pilgrims, help direct them, and sell them basic necessities. Their role in serving pilgrims has been passed down from generation to generation over the past century. Miqat Qarn Al-Manazil is also known as Al-Sayl and it lies 55 km north of Taif and 75 km east of Makkah. The Miqat is the final point where the pilgrim intending Haj or Umrah must wear the Ihram and it is from there that he/she embarks on the unforgettable spiritual journey. This Miqat is for the people from the Najd region and also the residents of Taif. In fact, it is the largest miqat for local residents and Saudi nationals, as over 50 percent of local pilgrims pass through this point. The owners of these stalls seek to serve pilgrims and help them, and their desire to serve far outweighs any search for making profit and financial gain. They have inherited this responsibility from their forefathers and they continue to provide the pilgrims with everything they may need; the white Ihram, scissors, slippers, a belt to keep money and important documents safe, umbrellas, water, and snacks. One young man operates a stall with his uncle and they work long hours for the first ten days of Dhul-hijja. “Most Saudi pilgrims buy their Ihram at the Miqat. We are not after profit or taking advantage of pilgrims, we wish to facilitate their highly rewarding but also arduous trip. In fact, in order to obtain a legal permit and rent out the stall for these ten days, we must pay rent for the entire year but we only use it during Haj. So we are here just up until the first day of Eid, when we close up and do not return to our posts until the following year for Haj again. The financial returns are not worth the effort, but hearing the supplications and well wishes from the guests of Allah and helping the pilgrims is well worth all the work,” said Turki Al-Thabiti. An ophthalmologist who lives in Taif, Dr. Ali Al-Sibai, said “Every year during this time, I have guests, relatives or friends who come from different parts of the Kingdom to stay with me due to our close vicinity to Makkah to perform Haj. I know the stall owners at the Miqat by their names and I take my guests to them to purchase all that they will need for their Haj journey.” High school student who helps his father sell Ihram at the miqat, Khalid Al-Otaibi, said: “It is our family tradition and we consider it an honor to serve the guests of Allah. At our stalls here, pilgrims can find everything they need in one place. The price of the Ihram ranges between SR30 and SR60, depending on the quality of the material, and our financial returns are minimal. We have developed close ties with the pilgrims and every year we wait to hear their stories and sell them the goods that they need.”
