With the Pilgrims to Mecca: The Great Pilgrimage of A.H. 1319
9781465672599
213 pages
Library of Alexandria
Overview
Amongst the varied and manifold impressions of my long and intimate connection with the Mohammedan world none is more lively and more interesting than my experiences with the Hajees, the dear, pious and good-natured companions on many of my wanderings in Moslem Asia. We in Europe can hardly have an idea of the zeal and delight which animate the pilgrim to the holy places of Arabia, not only during his sojourn in Mekka and Medina, not only whilst making the Tawaf (procession round the Kaaba), not only during the excursion to the valley of Mina, where the exclamation of “Lebeitk yá Allah” rends the air round the Arafat—but long before he has started on his arduous and formerly very dangerous journey to the birthplace of Islam. The Hadj, being one of the four fundamental commands of Islam, is looked upon by every true believer as a religious duty the fulfilment of which is always before his eyes, and if prevented by want of means or by infirmity he will strive to find a Wekil (representative), whom he provides with necessary funds to undertake the journey and to pray in his name at the Kaaba, and when the Wekil has returned he hands over the Ihram (a shirt-like dress in which the pilgrimage is performed) to his sender who will use it as his shroud, and appear before the Almighty in the garb used on the Hadj. The further the Moslem lives from Arabia the greater becomes the passion to visit the holy places of his religion, and if there was a country in which the desire to fulfil this holy command was most fervently cultivated and executed, it was decidedly Central Asia and Eastern Turkestan, where nearly two-thirds of the pilgrims formerly perished, partly in consequence of epidemics and inclemency of weather, partly also at the hands of robbers or through thirst in the desert. And yet these Turk or Tartar Hadjees often disregard all dangers and perils of a long journey, and begin to economise the money necessary for travelling expenses many years before they have set out, for a man destitute of means is not allowed to undertake the Hadj, the same prohibition exists also for a man who is not bodily strong enough, or who has to provide for a family left back at home. It is true, in accordance with the saying “Hem ziaret hem tidjaret” (Pilgrimage and Business together), there are people, who connect trade with religion, but their devotion is often criticised, whereas the pure religious intention meets everywhere with the greatest praise and veneration, and a successfully accomplished visit to the holy places of Arabia makes a Mohammedan respected not only in his community but also in the outlying districts of his country. On his return journey from Mekka and Medina the Hajee gets an official reception all along his route. He is met by young and old, by rich and poor, everybody tries to rub his eyes or his cheeks to the dress of the man, in order to catch an atom of the dust coming from the Kaaba or from the grave of the Prophet, and if the Hajee is the bearer of some Khaki-Mubarak (i.e., blessed earth from the grave of Mohammed), or if he is in possession of a small bottle of “Zemzem” (the holy fountain in the precinct of the Kaaba), there is no end and limit to the pressing throng around him. I have seen people kissing the footsteps of such a pilgrim, embracing and petting him, and what struck me most was the scene where Kirghis or Turkoman nomads cried like children on seeing one of these Hajees, and when they began to quarrel, nay, to fight, for the opportunity to bestow hospitality on a returning Hajee, be he even an Uzbeg or a Tajik, whom they otherwise dislike.
