Answer
In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.
In this fatwa:
The prophet Ibrahim’s name is closely associated with hajj. It was he and his son, who were ordered by Allah to rebuild the Kabah; once it was completed, he was also told to announce the pilgrimage.
Responding to your question, Sheikh Ahmad Kutty, a senior lecturer and an Islamic scholar at the Islamic Institute of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, states:
The prophet Ibrahim’s name is closely associated with hajj. It was he and his son, who were ordered by Allah to rebuild the Kabah; once it was completed, he was also told to announce the pilgrimage. Here are the specific verses that relate to this issue in the Quran:
“For, when We assigned unto Abraham the site of the Sanctuary (i.e., the Kabah) [We said unto him:] “Do not ascribe divinity to aught beside Me!” and: “Purify My Sanctuary for those who will walk around it, and those who will stand before it [in meditation], and those who will bow down and prostrate themselves [in prayer].” (Al-Hajj 22:26)
“AND LO! We made the House (i.e., Kabah) a goal to which people might repair again and again, and a sanctuary: take then, the place whereon Abraham once stood as your place of prayer.” And thus did We command Abraham and Ishmael: “Purify My Temple for those who will walk around it, and those who will abide near it in meditation, and those who will bow down and prostrate themselves [in prayer].” (Al-Baqarah 2:125)
“O our Lord! Make us surrender ourselves unto Thee, and make out of our offspring a community that shall surrender itself unto Thee, and show us our ways of worship (i.e. rites of hajj), and accept our repentance: for, verily, you alone art the Acceptor of Repentance, the Dispenser of Grace!” (Al-Baqarah 2:128)
It is clear from the above that hajj as we know it today was originally instituted by prophet Ibrahim and his son Isma’eel (peace be upon them). However, after a lapse of many years, it had been turned into a pagan form of worship by the people. The prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), who was born into the lineage of Ismaeel, was commissioned by God to restore the monotheism of Ibrahim and Ismaeel. Accordingly, he restored hajj to its pristine form.
It is, therefore, no wonder that most of the rites of hajj such as going around the Kabah, running between the hillocks of Safa and Marwa, pelting the stone pillars as well as the sacrifice and the fervent affirmation of the Oneness of God are all directly linked to the legacy of Ibrahim, his wife Hagar and son Ismaeel (peace be upon them all).
The pilgrims go around the Kabah and pray at the station of Ibrahim; they drink from Zamzam well–God’s gift to Ismaeel; they then proceed to run between the two hillocks of Safa and Marwah, which is a re-enactment of the frantic running of Hajar to find water for her baby, who was on the verge of death due to thirst. When she returned, she found water gushing forth miraculously at the feet of her baby!
Pilgrims, while drinking the water of Zamzam, are inspired by the unconditional faith and trust of Prophet Ibrahim and his wife Hajar in God. They pelt the stones, again, re-enacting Prophet Ibrahim’s attempt to stone the devil who tried to tempt him away from carrying out the order of God.
Finally, they perform the sacrifice, which once again commemorates the great sacrifice of Ibrahim (upon him be peace) as he was willing to sacrifice his own son in obedience to God. However, God only wanted to test him, and Ibrahim passed the test with flying colours.
Almighty Allah knows best.