ISLAM 269
during the pilgrimage. On the other
hand, the great variety shown in
female pilgrims’ clothing reflects
the diverse character of the global
Muslim community coming
together in spiritual unison at
the Grand Mosque.
Rites of Mecca
Once pilgrims enter the Grand
Mosque they perform the tawaf,
walking around the Kaaba in an
conterclockwise direction seven
times. They will try to get as close
as they can to the structure, and,
if possible, will kiss or touch the
black stone exposed in one of
the Kaaba’s corners. During the
following seven days, pilgrims
pray in the Grand Mosque and
take part in other ceremonies.
For example, pilgrims drink water
drawn from the Zamzam well
inside the mosque. According to
Muslim tradition, this well was
miraculously created by God in
order to sustain Ismail as a baby
when he was stranded in the
desert with his mother, Hajar
(Arabic for Hagar). Some pilgrims
run between two hills, Safa and
Marwa, to commemorate Hajar’s
search for water. They may also
travel beyond Mecca, to Mina and
Mount Arafat, where they pray to
God, asking for forgiveness for
the sins of the entire Muslim
community. From here, pilgrims
return to Mecca, to the Grand
Mosque, where they circle the
Kaaba again in a farewell tawaf.
The pilgrimage ends with
a feast commemorating Ibrahim
and his obedience to God. Even
Muslims who have not made the
pilgrimage celebrate this feast,
which lasts for three days. Much
food is eaten, with the leftovers
distributed to the poor and needy.
Those who have made the
journey to Mecca honor the
faithfulness shown by Ibrahim
by symbolically stoning the devil:
they throw stones at three pillars
representing evil. Finally, many
pilgrims end their pilgrimage
by visiting the city of Medina and
the mosque in which the Prophet
Muhammad is buried.Lightening the burden
The five pillars of Islam may be
seen to be representative of the
faith as a whole, and to reflect the
light burden that God places on his
followers. However, although they
show the simplicity of Islam, any
number of practical difficulties may
be encountered in attempting to
follow the necessary stipulations.I am here, oh Lord,
I am here!
Pilgrim’s prayer upon
reaching MeccaWhat if the direction of prayer
cannot be established? What if a
Muslim is unable to fast on one of
the days of Ramadan? God offers
a simple solution to such obstacles:
“And to God belong the east and
the west, so wherever you turn
there is the face of God. Surely God
is All-Sufficient for his creatures’
needs, All-Knowing.”
The essential point for Muslims
is to turn toward God in worship in
the best way that they know how,
until such a point in time when
they may worship him just
as their fellow believers. ■Permissible pilgrimage
Only Muslims may enter the
holy city of Mecca and, in
the very conservative form of
Sunni Islam that is practiced in
Saudi Arabia, the Kaaba is the
only permissible destination
for pilgrimage. Under this
orthodox form of Islam, known
as Wahhabism, veneration of
historical sites, graves, and
buildings associated with
Islamic history is stronglydiscouraged, because it might
lead to worship of things other
than God—the sin of idolatry, or
shirk. Since there is no concept of
a sacred site or shrine, therefore,
many old buildings in Mecca
have been demolished to make
way for new development, giving
the city an almost entirely modern
appearance. Not all forms of
Islam follow this interpretation
of shirk—Sufism, for example,
holds the tombs of its saints
and scholars in deep reverence.The Kaaba in Mecca is a square,
stone building that predates Islam
by many centuries. The Grand
Mosque was built around it.