Pilgrimage

All Muslims who are physically and financially able are required to make the pilgrimage--Hajj in Arabic--to the city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia at least once in their lives. Mecca is the home of the holiest site in Islam--a shrine to God that Muslims believe was built by Abraham and his son Ishmael--and the pilgrimage to this site and others in the surrounding area coincides with Eid al-Adha, the Festival of Sacrifice mentioned in the previous post. This pilgrimage is obviously an essential aspect of the Islamic faith, and many Muslims take the title Hajji--one who has performed the Hajj--after completing it. Also, the household of those making the pilgrimage will decorate the front of their home to welcome them back from their journey, and also to announce to the neighborhood that someone in that particular home has completed this important duty. The above picture shows this decoration, which was recently put up by the family that lives below us in our building.