São Paulo – The numbers of this year’s Hajj pilgrimage, in the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, surpassed last year’s, according to the country’s General Authority for Statistics. According to the Saudi statistics department, the total number of international and local Muslims that visited Mecca this Monday (20) reached 2,371,675, with 612,953 of those being Saudis or residents of the kingdom.
From this total, 1,327,127 are men, and 1,044,548 are women. The main source countries of pilgrims are Egypt, Iran, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Yemen, Sudan and Jordan. Last year, nearly 2.35 million pilgrims made the trip for the Hajj. The data is from the website of the Dubai-based Arabian Business magazine and from the Saudi Press Agency (SPA).
The high point of the pilgrimage to the holy city is Mount Arafat (picture above), where prophet Mohammed delivered his last sermon. Pilgrims, donning white special garments, stand in contemplation, praying, asking God for forgiveness and listen to clerics delivering sermons near Jabal Al-Rahmah.
Prince Khaled Al-Faisal, who’s the chairman of Hajj Central Committee, said that 10 projects were executed in the holy sites, including the expansion of roads and the route separation of pedestrians and buses, adding that over 1.8 million pilgrims will ride in 18,000 buses.
Hajj is considered the world’s largest annual religious gathering and is one of Islam’s five pillars, an act all Muslims must perform at least once, if they are able and have the means to.
Eid Al-Adha, the Sacrifice Feast
The first day of Eid Al-Adha, or Sacrifice Feast, which ends the end of the Hajj pilgrimage, is celebrated this Tuesday (21). Traditionally, Muslims slaughter sheep for the three-day festival, a tribute to the sacrifice of a sheep by prophet Abraham after God spared his son. The tradition is to consume part of the slaughtered animal’s meat and give the other part to the poor.
Translated by Sérgio Kakitani
