According to the Prophet Mohammed, there are five fundamental practices of the Muslim religion, known as the Five Pillars of Islam. The last of these involves a pilgrimage to his birthplace, Mecca, in the Sirat mountains, inland from the Red Sea - the Hajj.
The Hajj is an obligation for every healthy Muslim man and woman to undertake at least once in his or her life, and should take place between the eighth and 13th days of the 12th month of the Islamic lunar calendar. About two million Muslims from all over the world unite to perform the Hajj each year, (Mecca is forbidden to non-Muslims) and those who do so may then add the title "al-Hajji" to their name - some cultures will demonstrate their privilege by dyeing their hair and beard a deep red.
According to ancient Arabic traditions, when Adam and Eve were cast forth from Paradise, Adam fell in Sri Lanka and Eve in Arabia. They eventually reunited near Mecca, where God granted Adam a shrine, just as he had in Paradise. Many generations later, when the shrine had crumbled away, Abraham rebuilt it, called it the Kabah and included within it a magic stone.
A ritual pilgrimage began among the nomadic tribes to the stone and shrine, but over time, various pagan elements were introduced. By 630 AD, there were about 360 pagan idols being worshipped near the shrine, so Mohammed destroyed them, leaving the shrine and stone as a dedication to Allah. Abraham's original order was thus restored and Mohammed regained political control.
Before leaving home, a pilgrim must redress all wrongs, pay all debts, and provide money both for his or her journey and for his or her family left behind. Ten miles outside Mecca, he or she must enter a state of extreme purity - know as Ihram - involving wrapping up in two seamless, white sheets. On entering the great mosque at Mecca, he must walk seven times around the Kabah shrine, and then kiss the sacred stone. After following a ritualised route to other nearby sacred places, he must then return to the Kabah on the final day.
Mecca and its surroundings is not open to non-Muslims, although it is fascinating enough for others to be at Jeddah airport around the time of the Hajj, to witness the crowds assembling and to talk to those who have journeyed from afar. Indeed, before the great European explorations, the pilgrimage to Mecca was the single largest expression of human mobility. Such unity of faith is not expressed anywhere else in the world on such a grand scale.
According to ancient Arabic traditions, when Adam and Eve were cast forth from Paradise, Adam fell in Sri Lanka and Eve in Arabia. They eventually reunited near Mecca, where God granted Adam a shrine, just as he had in Paradise. Many generations later, when the shrine had crumbled away, Abraham rebuilt it, called it the Kabah and included within it a magic stone.
A ritual pilgrimage began among the nomadic tribes to the stone and shrine, but over time, various pagan elements were introduced. By 630 AD, there were about 360 pagan idols being worshipped near the shrine, so Mohammed destroyed them, leaving the shrine and stone as a dedication to Allah. Abraham's original order was thus restored and Mohammed regained political control.
Before leaving home, a pilgrim must redress all wrongs, pay all debts, and provide money both for his or her journey and for his or her family left behind. Ten miles outside Mecca, he or she must enter a state of extreme purity - know as Ihram - involving wrapping up in two seamless, white sheets. On entering the great mosque at Mecca, he must walk seven times around the Kabah shrine, and then kiss the sacred stone. After following a ritualised route to other nearby sacred places, he must then return to the Kabah on the final day.
Mecca and its surroundings is not open to non-Muslims, although it is fascinating enough for others to be at Jeddah airport around the time of the Hajj, to witness the crowds assembling and to talk to those who have journeyed from afar. Indeed, before the great European explorations, the pilgrimage to Mecca was the single largest expression of human mobility. Such unity of faith is not expressed anywhere else in the world on such a grand scale.
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