RE Coursework - Hajj
The hajj is a pilgrimage to Makkah. It is presently the largest yearly pilgrimage in the world and is the fifth pillar of Islam, and a responsibility that must be carried out at least once in their lifetime by every healthy Muslim who can afford to do so. The Hajj is a display of the solidarity of the Muslim people, and their compliance to Allah (God). The pilgrimage occurs from the 8th to 13th day of Dhul-Hijjah, the 12th month of the Islamic calendar. Because the Islamic calendar is a lunar calendar, eleven days shorter than the Gregorian calendar used in the Western world, the Gregorian date of the Hajj changes from year to year. Ihram is the name given to the special state in which Muslims live whilst on the pilgrimage.
The Hajj is connected with the life of Islamic prophet Muhammad from the seventh century, but the ceremony of pilgrimage to Mecca is considered by Muslims to elongate back thousands of years to the time of Ibrahim (Abraham). Pilgrims join motorcade of hundreds of thousands of people, who concurrently converge on Mecca for the week of the Hajj, and perform a series of rituals: Each person walks counter-clockwise seven times about the Kaabah, the cube-shaped building which acts as the Muslim route of prayer; kisses the Black Stone in the corner of the Kaabah; runs back and forth between the hills of Safa and Marwah; drinks from the Zamzam Well; goes to the plains of Mount Arafat to stand in vigil; and throws stones in a ritual Stoning of the Devil. The pilgrims then shave their heads, perform a ritual of animal sacrifice, and celebrate the three day global festival of Eid al-Adha.
The hajj is a pilgrimage to Makkah. It is presently the largest yearly pilgrimage in the world and is the fifth pillar of Islam, and a responsibility that must be carried out at least once in their lifetime by every healthy Muslim who can afford to do so. The Hajj is a display of the solidarity of the Muslim people, and their compliance to Allah (God). The pilgrimage occurs from the 8th to 13th day of Dhul-Hijjah, the 12th month of the Islamic calendar. Because the Islamic calendar is a lunar calendar, eleven days shorter than the Gregorian calendar used in the Western world, the Gregorian date of the Hajj changes from year to year. Ihram is the name given to the special state in which Muslims live whilst on the pilgrimage.
The Hajj is connected with the life of Islamic prophet Muhammad from the seventh century, but the ceremony of pilgrimage to Mecca is considered by Muslims to elongate back thousands of years to the time of Ibrahim (Abraham). Pilgrims join motorcade of hundreds of thousands of people, who concurrently converge on Mecca for the week of the Hajj, and perform a series of rituals: Each person walks counter-clockwise seven times about the Kaabah, the cube-shaped building which acts as the Muslim route of prayer; kisses the Black Stone in the corner of the Kaabah; runs back and forth between the hills of Safa and Marwah; drinks from the Zamzam Well; goes to the plains of Mount Arafat to stand in vigil; and throws stones in a ritual Stoning of the Devil. The pilgrims then shave their heads, perform a ritual of animal sacrifice, and celebrate the three day global festival of Eid al-Adha.
