'She doesn't want to go without me': Son honours mother's haj dream

New Straits Times

11-06-2025

JOHOR BARU: Jamaliah Masron, the 11th Malaysian haj pilgrim to pass away while performing the fifth pillar of Islam this year, had been deeply worried about travelling to the Holy Land without her son as her mahram.
Her son, Muhamad Haikal Hassan, 36, said his late mother feared something might happen to her during the pilgrimage due to her existing heart condition and was adamant that she would not go alone.
"This was her first time performing the haj. She had wanted to go last year but couldn't. She was going to appeal, but I wasn't ready at the time, so I asked her not to.
"Alhamdulillah, she received her haj call this year and was overjoyed. I immediately submitted an appeal to accompany her as her mahram. But the reply took a long time to come, even when she had to submit her passport, we still hadn't received confirmation.
"She kept repeating, 'If anything happens… if anything happens…' because she knew she couldn't go without me. She needed me with her," he said when contacted today.
Jamaliah, 68, from Taman Kota Jaya, Kota Tinggi, breathed her last at 6.05pm local time on Monday at the Abraj Janadriyah Emergency Clinic due to a heart attack.
She was a retired teacher, previously serving as senior assistant for co-curricular activities at SK Bukit Lintang, Kota Tinggi.
Haikal, a teacher in Pasir Gudang, said his mother had been hospitalised at Kota Tinggi Hospital during the second week of Syawal. At the time, doctors advised against her travelling to Makkah.
"The doctors at the hospital referred her to the National Heart Institute (IJN), as she already had follow-up appointments there.
"She began heart checks in 2013 and underwent valve replacement surgery at IJN in 2022. Since then, she couldn't be as active as she once was.
"Still, doctors at IJN gave her the green light to perform haj, as her overall health was otherwise stable. She was very careful about her diet," said the fourth of five siblings.
Sharing her final moments, Haikal said his mother had been down with fever and flu during their first week in Makkah.
"The weather was extremely hot. She said she felt tired often, so I avoided taking her out during the day. Even for the compulsory umrah, we only went out after midnight. I pushed her in a wheelchair.
"Two days ago, after returning from Mina, she appeared weak when we reached our room. She asked to be taken to a clinic. But on the way to the toilet, after just a few steps, she collapsed in my arms and went quiet.
"At the clinic, they tried CPR and administered emergency aid, but after 30 minutes, she was pronounced dead," he said.
Haikal expressed gratitude that Tabung Haji managed all funeral arrangements efficiently and allowed him, as her male heir, to accompany her body right up to her burial at Al-Syarayea cemetery.
"Alhamdulillah, Tabung Haji handled everything from the moment she was pronounced dead until her burial.
"I also made a video call to our relatives in Malaysia, which lasted nearly two hours. They were able to witness her final rites," he said.
Jamaliah and Haikal had departed for Makkah on May 23 from Senai International Airport and were scheduled to return on July 5 via Madinah.
Recounting her quiet preparations before the journey, Haikal said she had given some money to her sister and asked her to organise a doa selamat and thanksgiving ceremony.
"Usually, I would manage her contributions or donations. But perhaps she knew her time was near, and since I would be with her in Makkah, she entrusted the money to her sister instead.
"My aunt kept asking what the money was for, but Mum just said to handle it later. She told my aunt that if anything happened, to organise a doa selamat. I thought she meant a thanksgiving after our safe return.
"I told her not to think like that. Only now do I realise what she truly meant," Haikal said.