The pilgrimage to Mecca Essay
The pilgrim’s journey to Mecca during the Hajj is the specifying minute in a Muslims life. Every Muslim is required to see Mecca and take part in the rites. The pilgrim’s journey to Mecca is one of Islam’s Five Pillars of Faith. This pilgrim’s journey shows a Muslim’s devotedness to Allah ( God ) . In the Muslim faith. Mecca is considered the holiest metropolis. It is regarded so extremely that non-Muslims are non allowed to come in Mecca. The heavenly house of God. the Kaaba. is located in the centre of Mecca. “Mecca. known to the Muslim faithful as ‘the female parent of all metropoliss. ’ is the holiest topographic point in the Islamic world” ( Steiger ) . It is the finish of the Hajj. or pilgrim’s journey.
The pilgrim’s journey to Mecca is the 5th pillar of religion that all Muslims are required to make at least one time in their life-time. Mecca is besides the sacred metropolis were the Prophet Mohammed was born and grew up. The Great Mosque is located in the bosom of the metropolis of Mecca. Outside the mosque. there is a courtyard. Inside the courtyard is the most sacred topographic point of Islam. the Kaaba. The Kaaba is “the house of God. believed by Muslims to hold been built by Abraham and his boy. Ishmael” ( Religion Facts ) . The “the black stone” plays a really of import portion in the Koran. Harmonizing to the Five Pillars of Faith. Muslims must pray five times a twenty-four hours confronting the Kaaba.
On each twenty-four hours of the Hajj. pilgrims must take portion in a different rite in the metropolis of Mecca. “To fix for the Hajj. the Koran instructs pilgrims to come in a province of consecration called the Ihram: A pilgrim must avoid angry words. sexual intercourse. and the film editing of hair or nails” ( Creighton ) . After the pilgrims have finished fixing. they perform the Tawaf. This is where the pilgrims walk seven times counter-clockwise around the Kaaba. Harmonizing to Dr. Zakir Naik. “Muslims circle the Kaaba to bespeak that there is one centre significance that they all worship the same God. Allah. ” Next. is the Sa’l.
This is when the pilgrims run seven times between two hills. This symbolizes Hagar’s hunt for H2O for her boy. Ishmael. The pilgrims so walk five times around the metropolis of Mina. “The clip of the journey is spent in supplication and meditation” ( Steiger ) . The 4th facet of the pilgrim’s journey is Ramy al-Jamarat. which is the reenactment of when Abraham threw rocks at the Satan. “The concluding phase of the Hajj is achieved with a festival in which a sheep. caprine animal. cow. or camel is sacrificed to mark the minute when God rescinded the bid to Abraham to give his boy and permitted him to murder a random-access memory and offer its blood in Ishmael’s stead” ( Steiger ) . To finalise the rite of the Hajj. the pilgrims walk around the Kaaba one last clip.
The one-year Hajj pilgrim’s journey to Mecca. Saudi Arabia. is among the largest mass assemblages in the universe. In 2012. the Hajj took topographic point October 24–27. Hajj 2012 was one of the biggest of all time with about 4 million pilgrims in attending. To assist guarantee the pilgrims safety. “Saudi governments have spent one million millions of dollars in recent old ages bettering Hajj substructure to avoid of stampedes and accidents” ( Arabiya ) . They have made other alterations every bit good to guarantee the safety of the visitants. In 2012 the pillars. that pilgrims throw rocks at. were replaced with long walls and a trough at the underside of the wall to roll up all the rocks.
Steiger. Brad. and Sherry Hansen. Steiger. The Gale Encyclopedia of the Unusual and Unexplained. Detroit: Thomson/Gale. 2003. Print. Creighton. Linda L. “The Pilgrimage to Mecca Is Dangerous but Exhilarating. ” US News. U. S. News & A ; World Report. 07 Apr. 2008. Web. 20 Nov. 2012. . Religion Facts. “Mecca: The Holiest City in Islam. ” Mecca: Holy City of Islam. N. p. . 13 Feb. 2005. Web. 20 Nov. 2012. . Arabiya. Al. “Saudi Arabia Declares Hajj 2012 One of the Most Successful. ” Saudi Arabia Declares Hajj 2012 One of the Most Successful. N. p. . 29 Oct. 2012. Web. 27 Nov. 2012. . Make Muslims Bow down to Kaaba or to God. Dir. Zakir Naik. Dr. 2006. Youtube.
