Over four million Muslims from various parts of the world, all dressed in a two piece white garments, converged on Mount Arafat on the 9th day of Dhul Hajj, equivalent to October, 25 2012. Parts of these humble servants were 95,000 Nigerian Muslims who participated in this year’s Hajj, which is the fifth pillar of Islam.

In a small tent not far from the Jabal-ul-Rahma (Mount of Mercy), were some prominent Islamic scholars from Nigeria -also seeking for their creators’ forgiveness.

Though some of these scholars have been known to engage in hot exchanges, with some of their supporters even clashing over sectarian differences, they all set aside these primordial frictions and embraced each other, prayed together and freely interacted.

Sheikh Dahiru Usman Bauchi, a prominent scholar of the Dariqatul Tijjaniyya; Sheikh Abdullahi Bala Lau, the National Chairman of Jama’atu Izalatil Bid’a Wa’iqamatus Sunnah (JIBWS), among other clerics, all forgot their sectarian differences and prayed together.

Many have had causes to say that the house of Islam in Nigeria is being torn apart by sectarian crisis, mostly between the Darika brotherhoods, the Izala/Salafi groups and the Shiites, mostly over primordial issues.

The insurgency by the Boko Haram has, in the last two years, added to the decades-long challenges facing Muslims and their leaders, particularly in northern part of the country.

However, in far away Saudi Arabia, at the instance of Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar, who is also the leader of the Nigerian delegation (Ameerul Hajj), the Islamic scholars showcased conciliatory gestures towards one another.

The unification of purpose among the Muslim leaders was not restricted to the north as scholars from other parts of the country were involved. Among those scholars in Arafat are the Baba Addini of Lagos, Sheikh AbdulHafeez Abou and Chief Imam of Imo State, Sheikh Dawud W. Onyeagocha, Dr. Aminudeen Abubakar, Sheikh Tijjani Bala Kalarawi – all from Kano – and Sheikh Sa’idu Hasan Jingir from Jos.