SAUDI
ARABIA: Mecca
Mecca where the Prophet Muhammad proclaimed
the birth of Islam in the 7thcentury, lies 80 km inland from the Red Sea
coast of Saudi Arabia. Makkah, as it is known in Arabic, is the location of
the Grand Mosque enclosing the sacred ka`aba, the direction which all
Muslims must face when offering prayer. The hajj or pilgrimage, is the
`Fifth Pillar` of Islam which requires every fit adult visits Mecca during
his or her lifetime. The lithograph shows the ka`aba draped in the kiswa a
black silk cloth, embroidered in gold with verses from the Qur`an including
the shahadah, the Islamic declaration of faith. Today some three million
Muslims of every nationality perform the hajj during Dhu al-Hijjah, the
twelfth month of the Muslim lunar calendar. Before entering Mecca, they
enter a state of purity known as ihram, wrapping a special garment
consisting of two white seamless sheets around their body. Inside the Great
Mosque, they first perform tawaf, seven counter clockwise circumambulations
of the ka`aba before entering the shrine and planting a kiss on the black
stone. Because of the awesome numbers today, it is not always possible to
get this near, so on each circuit, the pilgrims may point towards the stone.
On the following days, they perform further rituals at other holy places
(Mina, Muzdalifah, Arafat, the Mount of Mercy and Mt. Namira) before paying
a final visit to the ka`aba, thus completing the hajj and returning home to
a big family welcome. Believers who perform the pilgrimage may add a title
to their name al-Hajji (men), hajjiyah (women). Non-believers are forbidden
to visit the holy sites.