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WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
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Saudi Arabia
Index
Muslim pilgrims praying on Mount Arafat
Courtesy Aramco World
The hajj, or pilgrimage to Mecca, occurs annually between the
eighth and thirteenth days of the last month of the Muslim year,
Dhu al Hijjah. The hajj represents the culmination of the
Muslim's spiritual life. For many, it is a lifelong ambition.
From the time of embarking on the journey to make the hajj,
pilgrims often experience a spirit of exaltation and excitement;
the meeting of so many Muslims of all races, cultures, and
stations in life in harmony and equality moves many people
deeply. Certain rites of pilgrimage may be performed any time,
and although meritorious, these constitute a lesser pilgrimage,
known as umra.
Improved transportation and accommodations have increased
dramatically the number of visitors who enter the kingdom for
pilgrimage. In 1965 almost 300,000 Muslims came from abroad to
perform the rites of pilgrimage, primarily from other Arab and
Asian countries. By 1983 that number had climbed to more than 1
million. In addition to those coming from abroad, each year
600,000 to 700,000 people living in the kingdom join in the hajj
rituals. In 1988 and 1989, a total of 1.5 million pilgrims
attended the hajj, representing a drop of about 200,000 in the
number of foreign pilgrims, probably the result of a temporary
ban on Iranian pilgrims instituted after a violent confrontation
with Saudi police. In the hajj season of 1992, the Saudi press
claimed a record of 2 million pilgrims.
The Ministry of Pilgrimage Affairs and Religious Trusts
handles the immense logistical and administrative problems
generated by such a huge international gathering. The government
issues special pilgrimage visas that permit the pilgrim to visit
Mecca and to make the customary excursion to Medina to visit the
Prophet's tomb. Care is taken to assure that pilgrims do not
remain in the kingdom after the hajj to search for work.
An elaborate guild of specialists assists the hajjis. Guides
(mutawwifs) who speak the pilgrim's language make the
necessary arrangements in Mecca and instruct the pilgrim in the
proper performance of rituals; assistants (wakils) provide
subsidiary services. Separate groups of specialists take care of
pilgrims in Medina and Jiddah. Water drawers (zamzamis)
provide water drawn from the sacred well.
In fulfilling the commandment to perform the hajj, the
pilgrim not only obeys the Prophet's words but also literally
follows in his footsteps. The sacred sites along the pilgrimage
route were frequented by Muhammad and formed the backdrop to the
most important events of his life. It is believed, for example,
that he received his first revelation at Jabal an Nur (Mountain
of Light) near Mina.
The haram, or holy area of Mecca, is a sanctuary in
which violence to people, animals, and even plants is not
permitted. The word haram carries the dual meaning of
forbidden and sacred. As a symbol of ritual purification, on
approaching its boundaries the male pilgrim dons an ihram,
two white seamless pieces of cloth, although many don the
ihram upon first arriving in the kingdom. Women wear a
white dress and head scarf and may choose to veil their faces,
although it is not required. Once properly attired, pilgrims
enter a state of purity in which they avoid bathing, cutting hair
and nails, violence, arguing, and sexual relations.
Approaching Mecca, pilgrims shout, "I am here, O Lord, I am
here!" They enter the Grand Mosque surrounding the Kaaba, a
cube-shaped sanctuary first built, according to Muslim tradition,
by Abraham and his son Ismail. The Kaaba contains a black stone
believed to have been given to Abraham by the angel Gabriel,
according to some sources, and by others, to have been simply
part of the structure of the original Kaaba. In pre-Islamic
times, the Kaaba was the object of pilgrimage, housing the idols
of the pagan jahiliya, the age of ignorance, and,
according to Islamic tradition, was cleansed by Muhammad of idols
and rededicated to the worship of the one God.
On the eighth day, the pilgrims go to Mina, a plain outside
Mecca, spending the night in prayer and meditation. On the
morning of the ninth day, they proceed to the Plain of Arafat
where they perform the central ritual of the hajj, the standing
(wuquf). The congregation faces Mecca and prays from noon
to sundown. Muhammad delivered his farewell sermon from a hill
above the plain called the Mount of Mercy, or Mount Arafat,
during his final pilgrimage. In performing wuquf, the
pilgrim figuratively joins those the Prophet addressed. It is
believed that the pilgrim leaves Arafat cleansed of sin.
A cannon sounds at sunset, and all rush to Muzdalifah, where
they toss pebbles at one of three stone pillars representing
Satan. Satan, in Islamic tradition, tempted Abraham not to
sacrifice Ismail as God commanded. Ismail stoned Satan in
response to the temptation, an act that symbolizes for the Muslim
Ismail's total submission to the will of God, for he went as a
willing victim to the sacrifice. In the stoning, pilgrims
renounce evil and declare their willingness to sacrifice all they
have to God. Following the stoning, each pilgrim buys a camel,
sheep, or goat for sacrifice in imitation of Abraham, and the
excess meat is distributed to the poor. The sacrifice is
duplicated by Muslims the world over, who celebrate the day as Id
al Adha, the major feast of the Muslim year. The sacrifice ends
the hajj proper. The pilgrim may then bathe, shave, cut his hair,
and resume normal clothing.
Lastly, the pilgrims go to the Grand Mosque in Mecca. In the
sanctuary, the pilgrims walk around the Kaaba seven times and
point to the stone or kiss it as a symbol of the continuity of
Islam over time and of the unity of believers. They then pray in
the Place of Abraham, the spot within the mosque where the
patriarch prayed. During this time, the pilgrims may also reenact
the running between the hills of Safa and Marwa and may drink
from the sacred well of Zamzam, commemorating the frantic search
by Hagar to find water for her son Ismail, and the opening of the
well of Zamzam by the angel Gabriel, which saved the future
father of the Arabs. These rites constitute the umra. Some
pilgrims conclude their pilgrimage with a visit to the Prophet's
Mosque in Medina.
The rite of pilgrimage not only has special significance in
the life of Muslims but also has profound political significance
for the Saudi monarchy. The king has claimed for himself the
title Khadim al Haramayn, or "custodian of the two holy mosques,"
a title that complements the Saudi claim to legitimacy. To prove
themselves worthy of the title, Saudi monarchs must show that
they are not only capable of defending the interests of Arabian
Muslims but also of defending the holy sites of Islam for the
benefit of Muslims the world over. The Saudis have therefore
invested heavily over the years in facilitating the arrival,
transportation, feeding, and accommodation of pilgrims arriving
annually for the rites of the hajj. New airport buildings, road
networks, water supplies, and public health facilities have been
provided. Much publicity has accompanied government contributions
to the comfort of pilgrims. The government distributes bottled
water, juices, and boxed lunches during the climbing of Mount
Arafat; stations ambulances staffed with first-aid teams in
strategic locations; shows health education videos on airplanes
and ships bringing pilgrims; and relieves pilgrims of the task of
having to slaughter their sacrificial animal. The Islamic
Development Bank now sells vouchers for sacrificial animals,
which are chosen by the pilgrim and then slaughtered, processed,
and frozen for distribution and sale in slaughterhouses in Mina.
Since the late 1980s, the Saudis have been particularly
energetic in catering to the needs of pilgrims. In 1988 a US$l5
billion traffic improvement scheme for the holy sites was
launched. The improvement initiative resulted partly from Iranian
charges that the Saudi government was incompetent to guard the
holy sites after a 1987 clash between demonstrating Iranian
pilgrims and Saudi police left 400 people dead. A further
disaster occurred in 1990, when 1,426 pilgrims suffocated or were
crushed to death in one of the new air-conditioned pedestrian
tunnels built to shield pilgrims from the heat. The incident
resulted from the panic that erupted in the overcrowded and
inadequately ventilated tunnel, and further fueled Iranian claims
that the Saudis did not deserve to be in sole charge of the holy
places. In 1992, however, 114,000 Iranian pilgrims, close to the
usual level, participated in the hajj.
To symbolize their leadership of the worldwide community of
Muslims as well as their guardianship of the holy sites, Saudi
kings address the pilgrimage gathering annually. The Saudis also
provide financial assistance to aid selected groups of foreign
Muslims to attend the hajj. In 1992, in keeping with its
interests in proselytizing among Muslims in the newly independent
states of the former Soviet Union, the Saudi government sponsored
the pilgrimage for hundreds of Muslims from Azerbaijan, Tashkent,
and Mongolia.
Data as of December 1992
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