The Letter if Not the Spirit
Mar. 13th, 2008 03:43 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
4thofelevenSo, I'm doing a unit on Islamic history and culture this semester. We have to do a brief presentation on some aspect of Islam in class, so I did mine this week to get it over and done with, and I chose the Hajj, the pilgrimage to Mecca as my topic.
Now, one of the things I find fascinating about the Hajj is the size of it. Hajj is one of the Five Pillars of Islam, and all Muslims are obligated to perform the pilgrimage at least once if possible. Of course, until recently, most Muslims couldn't afford to ever travel that far - but thanks to greater prosperity and improved transportation possibilities, the number of pilgrims who can participate in the Hajj is pretty much only limited by how many visas the Saudi government is willing to issue. The last Hajj had two million participants, down slightly from previous years, mainly because, well, the facilities don't exist to accommodate the larger numbers which used to be permitted to participate a decade ago, especially when all those pilgrims are trying to cram into a small area simultaneously.
So the Saudi government both limits the number of Hajj visas it issues, and makes efforts to improve the facilities to prevent the trampling and other deadly incidents that have marred recent Hajjs. And that's great and all, but I can't help but think something is being lost. For example, the ancient stone pillars that pilgrims throw stones at as part of the "Stoning the Devil" ritual were replaced in 2004 with high stone walls, so more pilgrims can throw stones simultaneously.
And then there's the sa'i ritual. This is part of the first day of the Hajj, and is supposed to be a re-enactment of the incident described in the Qu'ran where Hagar, the mother of Ishmael, frantically ran across the desert serching for water for her infant son, before Ishmael miraculously uncovered the Zamzam springs. So, historically, pigrims have re-enacted this by running seven times between the hills of Safa and Marwah, before drinking from the Zamzam Well. Except, of course, having two million pilgrims running back and forth is just a recipe for disaster, as pilgrims end up either being trampled or collapsing from the heat. So now the pilgrims don't run - they walk. And instead of traveling in the open air, they go through air-conditioned tunnels. And they don't drink from the spring directly, they get given bottled water from coolers.
Now, alright, it's not my religion, and it's not my pilgrimage, and it doesn't really affect me either way how the Hajj is performed. And it is good that the Saudi government it making an effort to ensure as many pilgrims can participate in the Hajj as possible without compromising safety. On the other hand, it ends up sounding less like the holiest pilgrimidge of the Islamic faith, and more and more like being trapped in an airport for a few days...
Now, one of the things I find fascinating about the Hajj is the size of it. Hajj is one of the Five Pillars of Islam, and all Muslims are obligated to perform the pilgrimage at least once if possible. Of course, until recently, most Muslims couldn't afford to ever travel that far - but thanks to greater prosperity and improved transportation possibilities, the number of pilgrims who can participate in the Hajj is pretty much only limited by how many visas the Saudi government is willing to issue. The last Hajj had two million participants, down slightly from previous years, mainly because, well, the facilities don't exist to accommodate the larger numbers which used to be permitted to participate a decade ago, especially when all those pilgrims are trying to cram into a small area simultaneously.
So the Saudi government both limits the number of Hajj visas it issues, and makes efforts to improve the facilities to prevent the trampling and other deadly incidents that have marred recent Hajjs. And that's great and all, but I can't help but think something is being lost. For example, the ancient stone pillars that pilgrims throw stones at as part of the "Stoning the Devil" ritual were replaced in 2004 with high stone walls, so more pilgrims can throw stones simultaneously.
And then there's the sa'i ritual. This is part of the first day of the Hajj, and is supposed to be a re-enactment of the incident described in the Qu'ran where Hagar, the mother of Ishmael, frantically ran across the desert serching for water for her infant son, before Ishmael miraculously uncovered the Zamzam springs. So, historically, pigrims have re-enacted this by running seven times between the hills of Safa and Marwah, before drinking from the Zamzam Well. Except, of course, having two million pilgrims running back and forth is just a recipe for disaster, as pilgrims end up either being trampled or collapsing from the heat. So now the pilgrims don't run - they walk. And instead of traveling in the open air, they go through air-conditioned tunnels. And they don't drink from the spring directly, they get given bottled water from coolers.
Now, alright, it's not my religion, and it's not my pilgrimage, and it doesn't really affect me either way how the Hajj is performed. And it is good that the Saudi government it making an effort to ensure as many pilgrims can participate in the Hajj as possible without compromising safety. On the other hand, it ends up sounding less like the holiest pilgrimidge of the Islamic faith, and more and more like being trapped in an airport for a few days...