Mina, Oct. 28
Long before the first group of pilgrims began moving into the tent city of Mina five days ago, there was the caravan of foreign and local media people.
They were everywhere — near the Jamrat complex talking to the first arrivals, on bridges taking pictures and sending images to their viewers of the picturesque Mina valley. Some of the media people spoke to the illegal pilgrims who had made themselves comfortable under the many bridges that crisscross the valley. Others were listening to comments from local traders who had set up shop in the tent city.
“The moment we got here, we were on the job because we have deadlines to meet,” said one Saudi journalist working for a local newspaper. “Covering the Haj is something special for all journalists. It is no doubt the highlight of our careers. I think the most important thing is not the story itself but the tortuous process that one has to go through to get it into print.”
The story that earned him accolades was about a Saudi cook who was busy serving dishes to the pilgrims in Mina.
“Some 30 years ago, his father used to take him to the Holy Mosque for schooling. In those days, the Holy Mosque was the best and the only place for teaching in Makkah. But this guy would slip out of the Grand Mosque and spend time in a nearby restaurant. He eventually learned how to cook and took that up as a profession,” he said. “I got a lot of e-mails and calls from our readers about that story,” he said with a twinkle in his eye.
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There were two kinds of journalists at the Haj. There was one group that actually went out and rushed from site to site gathering news first hand. Then there was a second group that attended press conferences and sat in the comfort of their tent, telephoning acquaintances and taking reports from them about the action in progress. Interestingly, the editors handling the journalists in the second group were unaware of their shenanigans. The lazy journalists were on the phone assuring their head offices that they were out there in the thick of things, when in actuality they were spending their time drinking tea.
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Despite the babble of so many languages one stands out — Arabic. In other places English has become the global tongue, but at Haj, Arabic prevails. Some of the pilgrims have been in the Kingdom for weeks and they picked up useful Arabic words, which they used with delight in Mina. “Shoyya, Shoyya” and “Tareek Ya Haaj” were just a few of the Arabic phrases that the pilgrims said to each other and all seemed to understand. These phrases were used in a very lighthearted manner and seemed to dispel tension, especially in crowds.
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In one of his many interesting articles, Dr. Ahmad ibn Saifuddin Turkistani, of the United States, eloquently explained the Haj in the modern era. “With all this modernization, some wonder whether the Haj has become less spiritual.
“It is true that pilgrims nowadays are not aware of the difficulties that their predecessors encountered in the past: The burning heat of the desert on one’s feet isn’t familiar to people who travel in air-conditioned buses. However, unanimously, those who make the pilgrimage find that words are inadequate to describe the depth of their experience,” writes Dr. Turkistani.
“While the facilities may have changed, the rites and the bonds of common humanity among the pilgrims have remained the same. Where else on Earth can you find more than 3 million men and women, from nearly every country in the world, speaking more than 100 languages, all united in faith and purpose, acting with complete cooperation, good will, self-discipline and generosity?” Who can disagree with that?
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As we wind up this year’s Haj coverage, it worth recalling this interesting Haj nugget: It seems that one of the most spectacular pilgrimages ever made was that of Mansa Musa, the King of Mali. In 1324, he set off across the Sahara with 500 assistants, each carrying a golden staff weighing six pounds. He was followed by 100 camels, each carrying a load of gold weighing 300 pounds.
Mansa Musa was truly pious and very generous — so much so that 12 years after his stay in Cairo, the price of gold had still not recovered. He distributed the bulk of his fortune to charity in Makkah and Madinah, returning home practically a pauper, but having assured himself of the praises of posterity. Haj Mabroor to all.
Haj Diary — Day 5 (Last Day)
