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.biu E. · .l•D, July 28, 1007, pp. 9-15 (abridged). ‘T1111t .llagi . i1te, 422 is what he loamed about the solut.ion Islam offers to the racial problem :

“The literal meaning of Baj in Arabic is to set out towards a definite objective. In Islamic law it means to set out to see the Ka’aba, the tiacred House, and to fulfil the pilgrimage rites. The Cairo airport was where scores of Hajis were entering the eta.to of lhram, the assumption of a spiritual and physical state of consecration.

Driving to tho airport with our Bajia group, I began to get nervous, knowing that from then on, it was going to be watching others who know wha.t they were doing and trying to do as they did. Entering the state of lhram, we took off our clothes and put on two white towels. One, the lzar, wo.s folded around the loins. The other, the Rida, was thrown over the neck and shoulder leaving the right shoulder and arm bare.

A pair or simple sandals left the ankle bones bare. Every one of the thousands at the airport about to leave for Jeddo. wo.s dressed in this way. You could be a king or a peasant and no one would know. Once thus dressed, we all had begun intermittently calling out, “Labbaykal LabbayJ.:a I” (Here I come, Lord !). P!aneloads of pilgrims were taking off every few minutes but the airport was jammed with more and their friends and relatives waitinrr to see them

[^0] off. Those not going were asking others to pray for them at Mecca. We were in our places in the o.ir when I learned for the first time that with the rush, there was not supposed to have been sp11.ce for me but etrin\<>s had been pulled and some·

. t h

[^0]

• one ad been put off because they did not want to d1sappoin an American l\Iuslim .

I felt mingled emotions of regret that I inconvenienced and discomforted whoever was put off the plane for nw and with that an uttur humility and grateful·

•

• ked ness that I had beon paid such an honour and respect.

P~c into the piano wero white, black, brown, reddish and yellow people, blue eyes o.nd blond hair and my kinky red hair-Bil together, brothers! All honouring the same God-Allah- all in turn giving equal honour to each other. From somr [^111]our group, the word was spreading from seat that I 11.i~ a 423 Muslim from Amorico..

F1wos turn&d, smiling tow..ir\<ls mo in greeting.

A l1ox h1U( h w11:1 passed out aml n:-1 wtt f\ttt that, tho word that n ~luslim from .\111rrica wo.11 alJorad got up intu tliu cockpit. 1’ho captain of tlao plane came back to moot me.

Ho was an Eg.’ ptian, but his co1J1plcxi1rn 1ras darker th1.1n mine. He could bavo wnlkc\<l in Xcw Y1 1rk’s Harlom (hl:i.ck ghetto) and no on\<’ would l1::in· given him a second glanco. He wnM delighted to me\<’t an American l\f11slim . When be invit\<•d mo to visit tho rockpit, I jumped at thC\ chance. ‘l’hc !’O·Jlil•,l \1a:1 even dork\<’r than the captain·uusolutoly black.

1 can’t toll you tho feeling it gave mo.

I hail uovcr befort’ s\<’on a. blac:k man flying a. j\<>t piano. ‘l’hol complicated instrum,•nt J•Unt’I ; who could know \\hat all tlaoso \<liols meant ‘!

Both thu y1ilot:1 were srnilling at mo, tn•ating mo with the s.o.mo hon11ur u11d respect I hod n·coivcd \<’Vl’rywh1•ro in Muslim lands

~ i11 cu lu..i.ving Amt•rico.. I could just slallll thc r\<’ is- sil\<’nce, gazing through tho glass at the skv ahoa.d of me.

I huve ridden in moro nirplancs than any othor ~cgro in “\ru”rica but never w11.s I orH·o invited up into tho cockpit.

And thoro 1 was with two .Muslim Sl·utmatcs, ono from Egypt, tLo othor from AraiJ111, all of us bound for M1•eca up in t lw pi lot’s cabin.

‘.!.’ho Jedda. airport scerucd C\’Cn more crowded than Cairo’s had been.

Our party became o.nothor shunting unit rn tho shifting mai::s “ith c\·cry raeo on earth r\<’jH’os1mt1·t1.

l t was then about thrco in the morning.

I nevor had bC’cn in such a jammed mass of peoplo but I nevor had folt more alono and helplt> ~-1 sinco J was I\ l>a.l.>y.

Ri~h t outsiclo tho airport was a mos1uo and abo1•0 the airport was a hugo dormitory uuilding, four lit~rs hig h.

Pilgrims from Ghana, InJon c~ia, Jupuu 1rnd Russia, to mention sumo, whore m oving to and f1om tho dormitory wlwrc I [^11]as l>C’ing tnko11.

I do uot l1olic1·0 th·1t motion J•icture canH•rus lta1·0 u\·or filmed o. human s[^11]••ctaL..ll· m oro et. 11rful tha11 my 1·.1e::i took in.

\Vo reaC’hrd tho \<lorm1t,1ry .ind l ‘;!all dimliin~ up t, tl111 fourth top tiPr, p~s~inl! nwmburs

Lli1al}!iC, 1rtd\lllt’!-ia[^11]:1,

.\ fµ.hull :i 4111 p;ulh.

• \\ti\’ IJ C I’ l111u.} h~J uut. .>ct. ch\<t.ugcJ 111to tho lhr.im au\<l \1uro still· \I ea.riui:; 424 their national dress.

My guide on the fourth tier, gestured me into a. compartment thut contained a.bout fifteen poop!!’.

Most lay curled up on thf-i r rugs on tho fioor a.sleep. I could toll that somo wcro women, covered and veiled from head to foot.

An old Russian Muslim and his wifo wero not asleop. They stared frankly at me. Two Egyptian Muslims and a Persian roused and also stared as my guide moved us over into a corner. With gosturos he indicated that he would demonstrate to me tho proper prnyer ritual postures. Jnst imaf?ine, being a. :Muslim minister and a.

Jea.dor of Elijah Muhammad’s Black Muslim arnl not knowing the Ialamio prayor ritual !

I trit·1l to do what ho did.

I know I wasn’t doing it right. I could fool tho other Muslime’ oyos on me. Western ankles refused to do whnt Muslim ankles have done for a. lifetime.

Orientals squat whon thoy sit.

Wcstoruors sit in chairs.

Whon my guide gut u own in a posture, I tritid everything I could to get down as he was hut thore I wae, sticking up.

I never even thought nbout slerping. Watched by tho Muslims, I kc·pt pructing tho prnyer postures. I rofusod to lot myself think how ri1li\<’ulons I must ha.vo Jookod to them. After a whilo, I learned a. little trick that would lot me got rlown closer to tho floor.

Hut. after two or three days of doing this, my ankles wcro ~tiff nnd swollen.

As the sloep· iog Muslims wok\<’ up, whon clnwn had broken, thoy almost instantly became awaro of me and we watchocl l)ach other whilo they wont a.bout thC’ir husinPRS.

I hogan to sec what an im· portant rolo the rug played in tho ovornll cultural Jjf,, of tho Muslim. Each individual hut! a small prayer rug and each man and wife or foruily had a larg1) communal rug. Tlicso Mu!>lim~ prnycd on their rugs thcro in the compartment. Then they sproa\<.l n tublo cloth oYor the rug and a.to, i\<o tho rug became tho dining room. HC’moving tho dishes an\<l rloth, Usey 1>nt on tho rug. a living room.

Then thoy curlctl up Jnd sleep on the rug- a bedroom.

Tn that compartment Li;foru l was to leave it, it dawnorl ml’ for tho first timo, why these handwoYen Oriental rugs harl fetched such high prices whoo [^1]

was & thief in .Boston.

Tt was because so much intricate care was taken to weave thoso rugs in e nmlrics where rugs wore culturally so versatile.

Later, in ~focca, I wou ld suo yet another uso of tho rug.

Whoo any kind of \<lisputo arose, some one who was highly rospccted and who was not involved, would sit on the rug “ith tho di~puters a round him which made the rug a courtroom.

In other instances it was a class. room.

My guide thc-n rc~u rrwd, indicating that I should go with him. llo p ointed d own from our t ier to the musque. ]know that ho had come to tako me t o mnko tho morning prayM. I followod him down, and wo p nsse:cl p ilgrims by tho thousands,