Hi All,
This Friday I will not be in class, but I will be there in spirit! I have a mock trial tournament all weekend, but first I have to write a cool post for everyone! This week I had no idea what to do. My friend was giving me some options, and they sounded promising. Ultimately I chose to do some research on Mecca. Many of you have probably heard of Mecca before in a history class or somewhere else.
I am going to delve into a little background information first, then talk about the historical and religious context for the city.
Religion:
Like I mentioned before, Mecca is an essential sacred city that is centric to the Muslim religion. Five times a day Muslims direct their prayers towards Mecca. At least once in their life, Muslims will attempt a pilgrimmage to Mecca. Because Mecca is sacred, only Muslims are allowed to enter the city.
In the recent past the city has undergone crucial changes. For example, city sanitation was improved. Religious shrines were cleared in the surrounding area as well. All of these changes were designed to compensate for the growing population of Muslims pilgrimmaging to Mecca. The city centers are the Haram Mosque, also known as the Great Mosque. While the city was undergoing the changes they expanded the mosque. At any point in time, the mosque can support up to one million worshipers.
The importance stems back to the year 570. Muhammad is the founder of Islam. In 622, he was forced to flee Mecca until his return eight years later. Upon his return he took over the city. Under his rule he declared Mecca a sacred city devoted to God.
Background:
Mecca is considered a holy city. It is actually the holy city for Muslims. It is located in western Saudi Arabia. The city has a high population density, especially during the pilgrimmage month. At that time, there can be around one to two million people in the city.
As for resources in the city, they are scarce. Water and land are very hard to find, and all the food must be imported. Wildlife and plants, too, are not very diverse. The only animals that can survive are ones that tolerate the hot, arid environment. Somehow the coolest animals can survive though! They have foxes, hyenas, and even kangaroo rats.
Transportation mainly centers around the hajj. The hajj is just another way to describe the pilgrimmage. Most of the facilities work around the Muslims visiting the holy city. However, there is no airport to get to Mecca, nor is there access by water or train (rail). That seems difficult… Thankfully there was a bus system set up and paved roads make it similar to get to Mecca from Saudi Arabia and other countries.
Overall Mecca is a beautiful city with rich religious history that you all should study further since I did not do a full history lesson. I hope some of the information I share was interesting, and that the pictures are as unique to me as they are to you.
Enjoy your weekend!
Sources:
https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2018/01/the-mecca-stampede-that-made-history-hajj
https://www.britannica.com/place/Mecca
I really liked your piece. I’m a muslim and Mecca is just one of the place I’ve always loved to go because of the religious ties(Muslims going at least once in a lifetime).Also, it’s a beautiful city and keeps on growing every time.It’s also very exciting that Muslims from all over the world regardless of their race and color come together to practice their beliefs.