Guardian feature on 'Hajj'
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Link
I found this slightly amusing
Saudi officials check one of the three pillars representing the devil, in Mina near Mecca, which pilgrims will stone as part of the annual rituals of hajj.
I sure hope they were careful, devilish pillars are dangerous!
Seriously though, the act of stoning the pillar serves no purpose whatsoever, except to, of course, further pull people into the ruse of ritual and make-believe.
Also, another thought, it is dangerous in a way, and not only because people accidentally stone each other, but because people that get caught up in this affair subconsciously believe 'shaitan' is something exterior to themselves, something physical and tangible, when we should know by now, that shaitan is something that affects us within us; feeds on our weaknesses and seduces us with false promises. Its in the mind, not the stone.
It's not a pillar for one day.
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Peace be upon you
My father is at Mecca at the moment. He as well as most members of my family have been on hajj and umra.
Everyone who has been keeps saying that the most dangerous part is that at Mina with the three pillars and that shaitan can get the best of us. A curious observation made by my father was that at that place no one recognises no relationship with each other, everyone is in a rush to pummel the devil with stones and some with slippers. He said that if you fall, you will die because no one pays heed to anyone else.
I have asked him and others, how can it be a requirement of Allah's that you should face such a potential issue - he answered that it was a trial, and that because the place is so close to God that it shares something of the attitude that we will face on Judgment Day when it will be everyone for themselves.
It is hard talking to someone about rationality when that is their belief - can you believe that my father asked me not to discuss my thoughts with him, he said you do what you have to do, but don't take me off my path, and that I have no right to put doubts into his head. Sad.
I agree with you beatnik - those three pillars ARE dangerous because of what people believe them to represent. They are dangerous to all in that area. 3 million people gathering in such a small area - all with hatred in their eyes for the so-called satanic pillars - yet what they need to do is wipe his influence from their hearts not by exciting such negative energies.
The devilish side in people is certainly dominant only because people are taught to behave and believe in something illogical and absurd. My negative emotions run riot when I think about those 250 people that died for nothing last year, for a ritual that does not make someone a better muslim 'your hajj is incomplete if you do not stone satan' - for a ritual that makes people's hearts darker towards evil rather than towards God.
d
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http//news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4205373.stm
"The storm, which disrupted the last day of the annual Hajj pilgrimage, is believed to have been the worst to hit the desert kingdom in some 20 years."
God's wrath? Who knows...
Darcus, it must be tough to deal with family who believe in something different than you. I have yet to explain to my immediate family my beliefs in God alone, though I have been teaching them slowly in parts (mostly the falsness of hadith), and they have been eager to learn. I'm sure it will be hard for them to ditch the superstitions and myths of sunni way of life, but they've been pretty laid back for as long as I can remember, they've never done the 5 prayer a day thing, maybe deep down they've known the sunni way of life was not for them. Wish me luck for when I explain everything to them!
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Peace.
Frankly I find it utterly disgusting how some Arabs have the shamelessness to keep quiet when they know exactly what is going on.
997
The Arabs are the worst in rejection and hypocrisy, and more likely not to know the limits of what God has sent down upon His messenger. God is Knower, Wise.9101
And from the Arabs around you are hypocrites, as well as from the city people, they persist in hypocrisy. You do not know them, but We know them. We will punish them twice, then they will be returned to a great punishment.My situation with my family is rather funny to be honest. I went up to my dad and tried to put it on the line, (I went through a lot of planning for this moment), and he just asked me 'why do you believe in hadith anyway?' (!)
Basically, he thought that hadith baooks are only for sermons and that, and he doesn't believe in half of the sermons anyway. I am now trying to get him to realise what exactly is left if we reject hadith! Its gonna take a long time, and I he just doesn't have the patience...
The rest of my family exploded in outrage when I told them I have left hadith books and idolatry. What made it even worse for me was that I am the youngest in my family, and they thought I'd gone mad, becuase I'd stay up whole nights reading translations and articles, so during the day I would look a bit drunk and red eyed. So they concluded from this that I was on some kind of drugs and that I stayed up all night because of the drugs. Apparently I also have a non-muslim girlfreind who is misleading me(!). In the end my parents took the Quran off me, (The Alim Software CD), and told me to read it in arabic and be happy!
Its funny what people can do sometimes isn't it.
Peace.
Natu on the line.