Muslim pilgrims gather at the top of the rocky hill known as the Mountain of Mercy, on the Plain of Arafat, during the annual Hajj pilgrimage, near the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, on June 15.
| Photo Credit: AP

The story so far: Hajj, a gathering of nearly two million Muslim pilgrims, which falls in the last month of the Islamic calendar, has been in news again. More than 1,300 casualties were reported due to extreme heat in Saudi Arabia at this time of the year. Most casualties were reported from Arafat, where the pilgrims pause on their way to Muzdalfa. Arafat is the place where the Prophet Muhammad delivered his farewell sermon to 1,44,000 pilgrims in 632 A.D. This vigil at Arafat is an essential part of the pilgrimage without which the Hajj is considered invalid. Many casualties took place as the pilgrims moved from Arafat to Mina in the scorching heat.

What is Hajj?

Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam. This pilgrimage to Mecca is an essential part of the faith and any person who is economically and physically sound has to undertake the trip once in their lifetime. Prophet Muhammad is said to have undertaken this pilgrimage shortly before breathing his last in 632 AD. The Hajj journey follows the lunar calendar. Accordingly, it falls about 11 days earlier every year. This year’s pilgrimage started at the conclusion of the second week of June. For the upcoming couple of years, the pilgrimage will be undertaken in harsh weather with temperature exceeding 50 degrees Celsius.

What happened this year?

The Saudi authorities reserve a fixed quota for all major countries, depending on the Muslim population, for issue of Hajj visas. It helps to plan the stay and movement of pilgrims in the desert state. The authorities issued Hajj visas to a little more than 18 lakh people but the Hajj was undertaken by over two million pilgrims. This means that around 2 lakh people were unauthorised entrants.

The Saudi authorities insisted that most pilgrims with valid Hajj visas were able to complete the Hajj rituals with the best possible facilities, and there were few deaths beyond natural causes of old age or illness. According to Saudi Health Minister Fahad bin Abdurrahman Al-Jalajel, some 83% of the 1,301 fatalities were unauthorised pilgrims who undertook the journey without requisite precautions at this time of extreme summer temperatures.

Who are ‘unauthorised’ pilgrims?

The unauthorised, non-documented pilgrims often come over from neighbouring countries of Jordan, Egypt and Iraq on a visit visa a little before the Hajj season begins. Some are also blue collar workers from India and Pakistan who while having a valid work visa, are not entitled to undertake the pilgrimage without proper permission and documentation. The non-documented visitors are usually economically too weak to bear the cost of the pilgrimage through the official route which takes at least 3,000 dollars. Hence, they often take recourse to agents who offer them the journey for half the cost. The agents take the money in advance and often disappear after these men and women land in Saudi Arabia, leaving them in the lurch. The visit visa holders are not allowed entry into Mecca at the time of Hajj. So, these visitors/pilgrims often undertake arduous routes through the desert to circumvent officials.

Also read: Climate change has made the haj pilgrimage more risky 

While those who take the approved route are provided with all possible facilities by the host country, including transportation on air-conditioned vehicles with constant supply of water and medical facilities, illegal entrants are left under the blazing sun with temperatures often crossing 50 degrees Celsius. Many walk on their own from Arafat to Mina, a distance of around 15 kilometres. Unlike others, they have no healthcare facilities to fall back on. Also, most pilgrims in this category are old, having saved every penny for years for this journey.

Hajj has always been a high-risk journey. Besides the spread of communicable diseases due to the intermingling of millions, there were major tragedies in 1990, 1994, 1998 and 2003. Many of these were avoidable incidents as they resulted from stampede caused by pilgrims taking a non-specified route or going in the opposite direction, in ignorance of Hajj rituals. Since then, Saudi authorities have widened the pathways, adding new floors to the Haram in Mecca to enable the pilgrims to complete the journey peacefully.

While authorities have yet to carry out a death sentence for blasphemy, just the accusation can provoke riots. Image used for representative purpose only.
| Photo Credit: REUTERS

A Pakistani court sentenced a 22-year-old student to death and gave a teenager a life sentence in two separate cases after finding them guilty of insulting Islam’s Prophet Muhammad, a defence lawyer and officials said on Monday.

Both had denied the charges and have the right to appeal.

Aslam Gujar, a lawyer who represented student Junaid Munir said that the judge in the city of Gujranwala in Punjab province announced the death penalty for his client last week. The trial stemmed from charges brought in 2022 that Mr. Munir shared blasphemous content via WhatsApp.

Also last week, 17-year-old Abdul Hanan was convicted and sentenced to life in prison in a separate case in the same court, according to court documents. Hanan’s lawyer and family were not immediately available for comment.

Munir’s father, Munir Hussain, denied the charge against his son, saying he was in contact with his legal team to file an appeal, as “my son is innocent and he was implicated in a false case.”

Mr. Hussain said by phone that he was living in hiding along with other members of his family.

“I cannot give you any information about my exact location, as some people in our village believe that I should also be killed as I am the father of a boy who allegedly insulted Islam’s prophet,” he said. “We are Muslims. We love our prophet. No Muslim can even imagine to insult our beloved prophet and my son is innocent,” he said.

Under Pakistan’s blasphemy laws, anyone found guilty of insulting the religion or religious figures can be sentenced to death. While authorities have yet to carry out a death sentence for blasphemy, just the accusation can provoke riots.

Domestic and international human rights groups say blasphemy allegations have often been used to intimidate religious minorities and to settle personal scores. In August 2023, Muslims attacked churches and homes of Christians in the city of Jaranwala, in the eastern Punjab province, over allegations that a Christian man had desecrated Islam’s holy book, the Quran. The mob demolished the man’s house, burned churches and damaged dozens of other homes, drawing condemnation from the government and rights groups.

In December 2021, hundreds of people descended on a sports equipment factory in the Sialkot district, killing a Sri Lankan man and burning his body publicly over allegations of blasphemy.

Muslims across the world will celebrate the anniversary of Prophet Muhammad as Eid-e-Milad, Nabi Day or Mawlid this month. It is the Islamic observation of the day when the Prophet Muhammad was born. The festival is commemorated in Rabi’ al-Awwal, or the third month in the Islamic calendar. The day is celebrated as public holiday in many countries. The celebrations include vibrant processions gathering at mosques and recitation of Muhammad’s teachings in public. Eid Milad-un-Nabi 2023 or Eid-e-Milad 2023 will be a holiday in India too.

When is Eid Milad-un-Nabi in 2023?

The date is decided based on the positioning of the moon. This year, Milad-un-Nabi will begin on the evening of September 27 and end on the evening of September 28.

In India, the public holiday has been declared on September 28 for Eid Milad-un-Nabi. It is one of the 16 holidays in the month of September.

Eid Milad-un-Nabi is marked on the 12th Rabi’ ul-awwal, which is the third month of the Islamic calendar. The day is celebrated on different days by the Shia and the Sunni sects. The Sunni scholars have chosen 12th Rabi’ ul-awwal to celebrate Eid Milad-un-Nabi. Whereas, the Shia scholars mark the festivities on the 17th Rabi’ al-awwal.

Significance of Mawlid

The word ‘Mawlid’ means birth in English. Eid Milad-un-Nabi serves as an opportunity for people of the Muslim community to remember and honour Prophet Muhammad’s life and what he stood for.

The celebrations believed to have started in the early days of Islam when people used to gather and read verses in honour of the Prophet.

The teachings of the Prophet, the founder of Islam, as reflected in the Hadith, have influenced many across the world. He is also believed to be a messenger of God by Muslims.