Hajj
From WikiIslam
The Hajj (حج) is a Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca. It is an obligatory duty (Fard الفرض), and constitutes one of the Five Pillars of Islam. The pilgrimage takes place on the 12th month of the Islamic calendar, from the 7th to the 13th day of Dhu al-Hijjah.
The Hajj, along with the Ka'aba, the black stone, and many other aspects of Islam, are pagan in origin.
[edit] Incidents and accidents
Allah made the Ka'ba, the Sacred House, an asylum of security for men, as also the Sacred Months, the animals for offerings, and the garlands that mark them: That ye may know that Allah hath knowledge of what is in the heavens and on earth and that Allah is well acquainted with all things.
- 1979: Seizure of the Grand Mosque in Mecca (deaths: 117 militants, 127 Saudi security forces)
- 1987: 400 die in Iranian-Saudi confrontation
- 1990: 1,426 pilgrims killed in overcrowded pedestrian tunnel leading to holy sites
- 1994: 250 killed in a stampede as worshippers surged forwards during the Stoning the Devil
- 1997: 343 pilgrims die and 1,500 injured in fire
- 1998: At least 100 trampled to death
- 2001: 35 Pilgrims killed in Mecca stampede
- 2003: Fourteen killed in Hajj stampede
- 2004: 244 Dead In Hajj Stampede
- 2006: Hostel housing Muslim pilgrims performing Hajj collapse kills 76 people
- 2006: 345 Killed in Hajj Stampede
- 2009: 77 Muslims killed while performing Hajj by Saudi floods
- 2009: 5 Pilgrims die of swine flu leading up to, and during, the annual hajj
Experts say the pilgrimage provides perfect conditions for the spread of the virus
- Other Muslim pilgrimage incidents
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Hajj: Pilgrimage to Mecca - For further information on the Hajj
- Controversy in Egypt - Hajj and the kissing of the black stone are remnants of paganism
