When the Muslims arrive at mina they throw their pebbles at the pillars, this symbolises rejection of the devil, and the pillars represent the places where Ibrahim and his family resisted the temptations and stoned the devil when god decided to test Ibrahim. -Ibrahim had a dream in which he had to sacrifice this son, he accepted this task from god and Ibrahim and his family set out for mina (the place of sacrifice) on the way to mina the devil appeared in human form 3 times – the stoning of the 3 pillars comes from Ibrahim and his family throwing stones each time the devil appeared. Next on the 10 Dhul Hajj the pilgrims will camp at minah for 2 to 3 days and have a feast. To do this every pilgrim must sacrifice a animal (mostly sheep are used) it is known as the festival of sacrifice it represents Ibrahim being prepared to accept gods test and sacrifice his most beloved possession his son. The Muslims they cannot eat all the meat even if it is shared among the poor as well so some of the carcasses are frozen and others disposed of. After the festival of sacrifice men have their hair shaved of and women cut only a little of theirs of before returning to the Kabah in Makkah for a final circling of it.
Outline the Story of how the Kabah in Mecca became a important place site of Pilgrimage for Muslims and explain this importance:
The Kabah in Mecca is a cube shaped building about 15.25 metres in height made of large stone blocks it is a sacred building / temple. It became an important site in pilgrimage as it is said to be the first house of prayer on earth. The Kabah relates to the story of Adam and Eve which is also in the Christian bible, after god giving Adam and Eve his love and protection they gave into temptation and were banished from paradise to wander the earth alone. God waited for them to plead for his forgiveness again and when they did they were forgiven this took place on the mountain of Arafat. In thanks for his forgiveness Adam and eve built a simple shrine, which was the first house of prayer for god. It is believed that Adam ws sent down from paradise to build a replica of the house of prayer that stands in paradise. The Kabah ws later restored by Ibrahim with the help of his son Ismail there is a station of Ibrahim showing where he was supposed to of started rebuilding the Kabar and where he prayed. Pilgrims copy Ibrahim and pray here also. There is a door set into the wall of the Kabar but hardly anyone uses it as Muhammad (pbuh) destroyed the idols inside it as he believed the Kabah was purely for concentration on worship for Allah and restored so it was so. Set into the corner of the Kabar is a black stone said to be sent down from heaven and turnt black by peoples sins many pilgrims try to touch the stone others raise their hands in its direction whilst circling the Kabar.The Kabah is still very important today. It is part of the Muslims faith that they should pray 5 times a day towards the direction of the Kabah in makkah this brings about the idea of Unmah, the Islamic community, whatever your race job wealth you are all united in that you believe in the same god and you pray in the same direction towards the same place,the Kabah in Mecca. It is a building that symbolises the history and meaning of Islam. Seeing the Kabah for the pilgrims is a big deal for them, as they know what they can see what they pray towards every day 5 times a day.
Explain how the various practices of the Hajj may influence the life and beliefs of Muslims:
Overall the Hajj affects a Muslims life the way they view themselves others and the way they carry about their daily lives it may give them stronger faith in their religion and they could have new beliefs to do with their faith. They may view hardships in their lives as Allah testing them the Hajj may have shown them a new way to lead their lives. The dressing in 2 simple garments of white so everyone looked the same may have shown them that everybody is the same no matter what they wear and how they look. This act of the Hajj brings about a greater sense of unity and togetherness. The circling of the Kabar not only showed the Muslims what they were praying towards but the scale of how many Muslims did the same thing every day It also may of shown them the roots of their religion, also cleansing before praying and going to the sacred mosque may of encouraged them before they go to their local mosque or pray to cleanse before doing so. The running between the mountains may of shown the Muslims the souls desperate search for that that gives true life and the history to why Hagar did this and that there is a way to overcome any problem because god is there for them as he was when a angel showed Hagar a spring of water near the place where she layed her dying son. Muslims take water from this spring home. To Muslims that have not been on the Hajj the water may seem like just holy water or a souvenir like Christians get when you go to Lourdes in France. But for the Muslims that have been there and got the water themselves on the Hajj the water may mean a whole lot more. The stoning of the pillars may of encouraged the Muslim’s to do what is right in their lives, not to surrender to temptation and to fight for their beliefs what they believe is right and the ways of the devil. The sacrificing of animals shows the Muslims what Ibrahim was prepared to do –to sacrifice his son which was his most loved and valuable possession. This shows Muslims that they should love Allah enough to sacrifice to him their most valuable possessions. The State of Ihram is when the Muslims arrive outside makkah and must try their best to reach states of purity and dedicate themselves to prayer worship and denial of vanity. In Every day life Muslims after being on the Hajj may try to keep state of Ihram leading a simple lifestyle they may try to pray more and worry less about themselves and more about others. This may also came from Wuquf –a stand before god in which the Muslims stand from morning till night praying and worshipping Allah in the blistering heat. This may also make the Muslims more resilient to the temptations and hard times life can bring. It may bring them closes to Allah and draw them away from the material things on earth. The Overall journey of the Hajj may bring Muslims further spiritually in their lives, it has impact on their lives forever and increases their faith and beliefs and knowledge of their religion. The Hajj makes Muslims feel sinless and brings tranquillity to their lives it brings them a lot closer to Allah and the true meaning to life it will give them strength to use in their lives and to help others.
Religious practises such as pilgrimage have no practical value do you agree?
Religious practises such as pilgrimage do and don’t have practical values. To awnser and understand this question you need to find out why pilgrims go on pilgrimages. For Christians pilgrimage gives them a spiritual boost and heals their souls bodies and minds, for Hindus it promises them longlife, good health and success, for the Jews it gives them a sense of community and future hopes, for Muslims it is submitting themselves to Allah and bringing then together.For Buddhists it brings a sense of community and peace and for Sikhs it is an expression of their faith and a form of holiday.The pilgrimages for all religions all bring about one major thing, a heeling of getting closer to god.All of the reasons why pilgrims go on a pilgrimage are not materialistic reasons but that does not mean they have no practical value. Through pilgrimage a sense of unity and brotherhood is developed through different people going to the same place for the same reason, it brings each and every person closer to their religious beliefs and their god. Pilgrimage gives pilgrims a better understanding of their religions and why they go to the places they go to can teach them how to lead their lives and how to use what they experienced on their pilgrimage in their everyday lives.
On the other hand pilgrimage can be shown as having no practical value it can be expensive and you may not bring anything back unless you have taken in your journey properly so it could be viewed as a waste of money. It can separate families for a while so when you are meant to be concentrating on god you could be thinking of them, which defeats the point of the pilgrimage. It could also be said that the main point of the pilgrimage which is worship and concentrating on god could be done at home so why travel such a long distance to do it. Personally I think that pilgrimage has a practical value but it may not be a souvenir or a gift you bring back pilgrimage can give you a greater understanding of your religion and the world. It can give you a spiritual guidance in how to live and can help you to help others and find the better things in life. You can make new friends and help your family with what you have learnt it can help you overcome hardships and make you more resilient to do wrong and help you to do right. Overall everyone could learn a lot from pilgrimage if they were more open-minded.
