With the start of the hajj, pilgrims enter the stage of ihram – a state of purity in which they must not wear perfume, cut their nails, or trim their hair or beards. He wrote, “The Saudi government has not only expended billions of dollars in expanding the Grand Mosque to accommodate the ever-increasing number of pilgrims, it has also implemented many measures to ensure that the risk of past tragedies like stampedes and fires, which have resulted in significant loss of life, is greatly reduced”.
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The first day of the hajj is known as Tarwiah Day, when pilgrims traditionally watered their animals and stocked water for their trip to Mount Arafat, about 10 kilometres (six miles) southeast of Mina.
Men dressed in simple white terry cloth garments and women in modest attire and unadorned by makeup wept in joy after making it to the site before dawn. The Hajj is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, and a mandatory religious duty for Muslims that must be carried out at least once in their lifetime by all adult Muslims who are physically and financially capable of undertaking the journey, and can support their family during their absence. While following a route the Prophet Muhammad once walked, the rites are believed to ultimately trace the footsteps of the prophets Ibrahim and Ismail, or Abraham and Ishmael as they are named in the Bible. They spent the night at Mina under the open sky before moving to Arafat today (Wednesday) morning for performance of the main ritual of Hajj, called Waqoof.
The annual hajj pilgrimage has officially begun.
Since arriving to Mecca over the past several weeks, hundreds of thousands have chanted, ‘Labayk Allahuma Labayk, ‘ or ‘Here I am, God, answering your call. “Here I am”.
The clothing emphasises their unity, regardless of whether they spend the hajj season in Mecca’s five-star hotels or shabby highrise hostels.
“Transport is bad, our residence is bad, and food is really bad… even though we paid around $4,000 (3,603 euros) to come”, said Tunisian pilgrim Abu Salim, 58.
“Her dream was to perform the hajj”.
He said that Nigerian government was surprised with the kind gesture of King Salman bin Abdulazeez, who donated the money. But this one is especially challenging for the 38-year-old artist because he lost his 2-year-old son, Abdullah, to illness this year.
In another development the Commander of the media and awareness wing at the Public Security, Col. Sami Al-Shuwairekh said 35,990 vehicles were either seized or sent back while transporting pilgrims without hajj permits.
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This year’s five-day hajj pilgrimage began Tuesday. Saudi Arabia has strict quotas for each country to manage crowd safety.
