it's just after fajr in mina. we spent the night here. it's very cold. we're not allowed to wear anything additional to the ihram but can wrap ourselves in a blanket, but that restricts movement so most of us just make do without for now. we're due to leave mina for arafat soon where we will pray zuhr and asr. then at maghrib time we will leave arafat for muzdalifah where we'll combine maghrib and isha prayers together.
today is the day of arafat, a day of asking for forgiveness for one's sins. it's said satan doesn't feel as bad as he does on any other day of the year because god forgives all kinds of sins to those who ask sincerely.
it already feels like a unifying, refreshing experience and we're only 1 day into it.
