Every Muslim has a dream. That dream is to visit Makkah and have the chance to pray in the Grand Mosque, circumambulate the Ka’aba, or perform Haj or Umrah and earn God’s blessings.

Despite the importance of Makkah and the Grand Mosque to the heart of every Muslim in the world, Islam is a merciful religion and has not made pilgrimage to the Holy City obligatory for those who cannot afford the trip. That is stated clearly in Islam. “Pilgrimage to Makkah — to those who can afford the journey,” is the fifth Islamic pillar.

Last week I had the opportunity to pray and ask God for forgiveness and mercy in the Grand Mosque. However, the peace of mind I found praying inside suddenly turned into disgust as I was about to leave.

As I began walking on the white marble floors just outside the gates, I noticed something that to put it mildly was shameful. Throngs of people, in their hundreds, were sitting, eating, and sleeping on the grounds surrounding the Grand Mosque. These crowds were littering the holy place and throwing the remains of their foods all over the place, not even thinking for a second that they were actually littering the same holy place they had striven to visit to earn God’s blessings.

I found myself trying to avoid stepping on the filth these people had thrown behind them on the ground as I zigzagged my way out. I could even see some of these pilgrims peeling apples, oranges and throwing the peels on the floor right next to where they sat. In the end, I found myself trying to avoid stepping on date seeds, tissue papers, empty milk cartons, and even aluminum foil for roast chicken, all thrown on the floor.

“What kind of Muslim would litter the Grand Mosque in Makkah?” I asked myself in anger. “Are these people true Muslims to litter Islam’s holiest place?”

Cleaners in the Grand Mosque were asking people on the floors to move so that they could clean. Janitors working for the company responsible for cleaning the Grand Mosque were busy picking up garbage from the floors and putting it in garbage bags. And some were wiping the floors with detergent.

It’s amazing how the areas surrounding the Grand Mosque could be filled with so much rubbish in a matter of minutes between the call for sunset prayer and the prayer itself.

Every year during Ramadan the scene repeats itself. Crowds who cannot afford to stay in hotels use the grounds surrounding the Grand Mosque for their accommodation. During one Ramadan, I even saw some people washing their clothes in the lavatories outside of the Grand Mosque and hanging them up to dry near the place where they sat.

What was supposed to be a place of worship turned out to be a ground-floor rooftop for drying clothes, similar to the familiar sight on the balconies in some parts of Cairo.

Some of the blame should be put on the Ministries of Islamic Affairs in Muslim countries whose pilgrims visit the Grand Mosque every year. They should do more to create awareness among their citizens how to respect the holy place. But I think that our authorities should take certain additional measures as well.

Several countries in the world do not grant visas to visitors unless the applicant first provides a bank statement that he or she has a certain amount of money in the bank. The reason for that is so the country guarantees that the visitor does not indulge in crime, illicit activities, or apply for work in the host country. Our authorities should apply the same procedure to visitors who want to perform Haj or Umrah.

That way we could guarantee that people will not come to the holy places to beg. It would also guarantee that the visitor will be financially capable of staying in a hotel in the holy cities.

Umrah agencies can also play a role in stopping this annual spectacle near the Grand Mosque from taking place. The government can provide visas through Umrah agencies. The agencies could provide accommodation in the holy places and thus visas could be issued to each agency depending on the number of applicants. Visitors from outside Saudi Arabia should not be allowed to come to Makkah unless they book through an agency, similar to what is being done in Haj.