2023-06-27 16:03:58
ISLAM-RELIGION-ARABIA, PREV
The Muslim faithful on Mount Arafat, the flagship stage of the great pilgrimage
Par Haitham EL-TABEI
MOUNT ARAFAT (Saudi Arabia), June 27, 2023 – Hundreds of thousands of worshipers gathered around Mount Arafat, near Mecca, on Tuesday for a day of prayer and meditation marking the most important stage of the great Muslim pilgrimage. , in sweltering heat.
From dawn, worshipers flocked to this religious site — where the Prophet Muhammad is said to have delivered his last sermon, in western Saudi Arabia — after spending the night in air-conditioned tents in Mina, a valley surrounded by rocky mountains located a few kilometers from Mecca.
They spent the day praying and reciting the Koran, in temperatures that reached 48 degrees Celsius, according to the kingdom’s meteorology department.
“It’s a moment I’ve been waiting for all my life,” said Fadia Abdallah, a 67-year-old Egyptian woman carrying a parasol.
“I can’t believe I’m God’s guest,” said Rahma, a Libyan housewife, holding back tears.
The great annual Muslim pilgrimage, the hajj, one of the largest religious gatherings in the world, takes place this year in the middle of summer, in one of the hottest regions in the world.
– “Chosen by God” –
Wearing hats being forbidden during the hajj for men, many of them have procured umbrellas while women try to protect themselves from the sun with their veils.
The Saudi Ministry of Health has called on the elderly or sick to avoid exposure during the hottest hours of the day.
Around Mount Arafat, giant vaporizers were installed to allow pilgrims to cool off, while numerous trucks ensured the free distribution of fresh water and meals.
Six field hospitals with more than 300 beds have been set up in the area, Sasser Bair, an official with the Saudi Ministry of Defense, told the public broadcaster Al-Ekhbariya.
The great pilgrimage, which consists of a series of codified rites taking place over several days in Mecca and its surroundings, is one of the five pillars of Islam. It must be undertaken by every Muslim at least once in his life if he can afford it.
“I can’t believe I’m here,” rejoices Yassin, a 23-year-old Yemeni technician before returning to his prayers.
Ahmad Ahmadein, a 37-year-old American engineer, said he was very happy to have “been chosen by God from among millions” of Muslims to perform the great pilgrimage this year.
“It’s a chance that won’t come again,” he said, before starting his ascent on Mount Arafat.
– Affluence record –
Saudi authorities this year lifted restrictions on the age or number of participants imposed during the previous three years due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The rich oil monarchy hopes to exceed the number of 2.5 million visitors reached in 2019, to make it the “largest pilgrimage in history”.
In 2020 and 2021, at the height of the pandemic, only a few thousand worshipers were welcomed to Mecca, Islam’s holiest city, before the quota was raised to 926,000 last year.
The crown prince, the kingdom’s de facto ruler, Mohammed bin Salman, visited Mina, transformed into a giant camp, on Tuesday to assess the quality of the infrastructure and services offered to pilgrims, the official SPA news agency said.
Pilgrims will sleep tonight under the stars in Muzdalifa, halfway between Mina and Mount Arafat, before proceeding on Wednesday to the symbolic stoning of Satan, by throwing stones at a large stele symbolizing the devil in the valley of Mina .
This ritual had turned tragic in 2015, with a gigantic stampede that left 2,300 dead.
Worshipers will then return to Mecca for a ‘farewell tour’ of the Kaaba, a cubic structure at the heart of the Grand Mosque that Muslims around the world turn to in prayer, on the first day of Eid al-Adha. .
This feast, the big one of the Muslim calendar, is celebrated in memory of the sacrifice that Abraham had almost accomplished by wanting to immolate his son, before the angel Gabriel offered him in extremis to kill a sheep in his place.
According to tradition, Muslims slaughter an animal on this occasion and offer part of the meat to the needy.
With AFP
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