Annual Pilgrimage Research Articles

Detection of Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) Among Ruminant Animals.

HEV is endemic in several Middle Eastern countries including Saudi Arabia, which hosts the annual pilgrimage for Muslims from around the world. One of the Hajj rituals is the sacrifice of animals, including camels, cows, goats, and sheep. HEV Zoonosis is established in swine and other suspected species, including deer, rabbits, dromedary, and Bactrian camels. HEV was identified in small, domesticized animals like goats, cows, sheep, and horses. We previously investigated HEV seroprevalence in Camels. This study aimed to evaluate HEV seroprevalence in other highly consumed ruminants in Saudi Arabia, namely cows, sheep, and goats. Sera from cows (n = 47), goats (n = 56), and sheep (n = 67) were analyzed for the presence of HEV-IgG by using in-house developed ELISA assays. The highest seroprevalence was found in sheep (62.7%), followed by cows (38.3%), and then goats (14.3%), with a p-value of < 0.001. No other demographic characteristics of the animals were significantly correlated with the HEV seroprevalence. This study provides baseline data as the first study on the seroprevalence of HEV in ruminant animals in Saudi Arabia. The high seroprevalence found in sheep and cows must be further investigated for the potential zoonotic HEV transmission to humans. Further studies are needed to investigate the active viremia in these animal species through nucleic acid detection and sequencing to provide data on the circulating HEV genotypes among the targeted animal species. The detection of HEV in different animal products, such as milk, liver, and others, also remains an important study area to consider.

The allure of the east (Coast of Malaysia)

Every year, from 1955 until the late 1960s, the photographers from the Photographic Society of Singapore would make annual pilgrimages to the towns on the East Coast of Malaysia, to take images of its ‘picturesque inhabitants’. As a result, hundreds of prints of Malay women, children and fishermen in kampong villages and on the beach circulated widely in exhibitions locally as well as internationally, all depicting the East Coast as a rural and bucolic destination. The photographers were largely male and Chinese. In this essay, I present close readings of selected photographs and the language used to describe the visits to discuss a racial and gendered gaze on a community in Malaysia. I argue that while the perception of the Malays as rural and simple folk might have begun as a hangover from colonial stereotyping, subsequent photographic representation manifested different desires. Rather than control and containment, the images made by the Singaporean photographers reflected a nostalgia for kampong life amidst the anxiety of rapid modernisation and the shifting roles of women in society. The influence of photographic pictorialism, with its emphasis on highly stylised photographs, further promoted the production of simplistic, emblematic images.

Effectiveness of Establishing Seasonal Medical Centers Designated to Meet the Health Needs of Pilgrims and Umrah Performers (Prince Sultan Armed Forces Hospital Initiative in Medina as a Model)

This study aims to investigate the feasibility and effectiveness of establishing a dedicated healthcare facility to address the health needs of pilgrims during the pilgrimage seasons. The research employs a mixed-methods approach, combining qualitative and quantitative data collection methods. The qualitative phase involves interviews with healthcare professionals, religious authorities, and pilgrimage organizers to gather insights into the specific healthcare requirements of pilgrims. Additionally, focus group discussions with pilgrims provide valuable perspectives on their healthcare experiences and expectations. Based on the qualitative findings, a comprehensive framework for a Seasonal Medical Center is developed, encompassing key components such as infrastructure, staffing, medical services, logistics, and collaboration with local healthcare providers and authorities. The survey data provides insights into pilgrims' perceptions (6247) of the healthcare services available during their pilgrimage, including accessibility, quality, and satisfaction levels. It also investigates the impact of the proposed Seasonal Medical Center on pilgrims' overall health and well-being, as well as the effectiveness of preventative measures implemented. The research findings highlight the significance of establishing a Seasonal Medical Center, emphasizing the potential benefits of improved healthcare access, enhanced disease surveillance, and timely emergency response. The study also underscores the importance of collaboration between healthcare providers, religious authorities, and local stakeholders to implement and manage the Seasonal Medical Center effectively. The research contributes to the existing body of knowledge by offering insights into the design and implementation of a dedicated healthcare facility for Hajj and Umrah pilgrims. The findings can inform policymakers, healthcare professionals, and pilgrimage organizers in developing strategies to address the unique healthcare challenges associated with these annual pilgrimages.

Pilgrimage in Pre-Islamic Arabia: Continuity and Rupture from Epigraphic Texts to the Qur’an

Abstract References to the pilgrimage in the Qur’an, called ḥajj and ʿumra, are often very brief, but recent studies have shown that most of what is gleaned from the Qur’an about the practice can find parallels in pilgrimages to other sites in Arabia. In this article, I read the Qur’anic data on ḥajj and ʿumra in the light of Arabian inscriptions that mention pilgrimage rituals. In particular, the annual pilgrimage to the Awām Temple in Ma’rib in South Arabia, about which we know a great deal, can shed light on the larger context of the ritual in pre-Islamic Arabia. I argue based on a discussion of Qur’anic and epigraphic materials that the ḥajj and ʿumra of the Qur’an share many elements with other Arabian pilgrimages, but the Qur’an clearly expresses discontent with certain practices of pre-Islamic pilgrimage such as ritual hunt while endorsing or approving others such as the procession between the hills of al-Ṣafā and al-Marwa. Most importantly, I contend that the Qur’an attempts to decouple pilgrimage and animal sacrifice especially due to the latter’s strong association with physical objects of veneration called awthān and nuṣub in the Qur’an.

Digitalization and Smartification of Urban Services to Enhance Urban Resilience in the Post-Pandemic Era: The Case of the Pilgrimage City of Makkah

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly disrupted human socioeconomic activities, leaving an everlasting impact on urban systems. As a result, there is a growing scholarly focus on exploring how urban planning strategies and tools can help create resilient cities. In Saudi Arabia, the pilgrimage city of Makkah, which has always faced the challenge of managing crowds during the annual pilgrimage, was left deserted due to lockdowns and social distancing measures. To quickly revive socioeconomic and pilgrimage activities in the city, a set of digital tools and communication technologies were deployed to manage crowds and enforce social distancing to minimize the spread of the COVID-19 virus. This study examines the role of digitalization and smartification in reviving the city and the importance of context in building urban resilience. This study used desktop research and case study analysis to highlight the transformation to the new normal and the development of future smart technologies for the city. Smart solutions provided valuable support in reducing the impacts of the pandemic and restarting Makkah’s economy. Although most activities have been restored, some facilities and services are still operating below capacity. Digitalization and smartification of urban services could play a major role in improving service delivery and urban resilience.

A mathematical interpretation for outbreaks of bacterial meningitis under the effect of time-dependent transmission parameters.

We consider a SIR-type compartmental model divided into two age classes to explain the seasonal exacerbations of bacterial meningitis, especially among children outside of the meningitis belt. We describe the seasonal forcing through time-dependent transmission parameters that may represent the outbreak of the meningitis cases after the annual pilgrimage period (Hajj) or uncontrolled inflows of irregular immigrants. We present and analyse a mathematical model with time-dependent transmission. We consider not only periodic functions in the analysis but also general non-periodic transmission processes. We show that the long-time average values of transmission functions can be used as a stability marker of the equilibrium. Furthermore, we interpret the basic reproduction number in case of time-dependent transmission functions. Numerical simulations support and help visualize the theoretical results.

Saudis Perceived Severity of Middle East Respiratory Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) and Preventive Measures

While the world is struggling with a Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in 2020, one country, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, has been tackling a different strain of the Coronavirus, the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV), since 2012. The Ministry of Health (MOH) has been working to ensure the safety and health of Saudi residents, particularly during the annual pilgrimage season. This study examined information-seeking behaviours among Saudi people regarding MERS-CoV and the level of adherence to health preventive measures during the Hajj season. The study used the Health Belief Model (HBM) to assess perceived severity among Saudis. The study aimed to measure Saudi’s levels of fear from being infected with MERS-CoV. Snowball sampling and simple random probability sampling methods were utilized. A total of 1,206 participated in the study. Mann–Whitney U test, Kruskal-Wallis test, Chi-Square test of independence, Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient tests were conducted. The study found that the MOH needed to be more effective in sharing MERS-CoV information and that most Saudis had high perceived severity of MERS-CoV but did not fear contracting MERS-CoV, nor did it impact decisions to attend Hajj. Further results found that respondents with high perceived severity of contracting MERS-CoV were less likely to seek Coronavirus information than those with lower scores.

Cultural, Creative, and Religious Senior Travel: Evidence and Research on the City of Iași

Abstract The tourism industry is one of the most successful and offering industries considering the variations it has, and that is universally addressed to everyone, regardless of age, nationality, or gender. In this century, tourism for seniors has expanded at a significantly accelerated pace globally. Services for senior tourists are increasingly diversified globally, as well as in Romania, where this research is developed. Travel agencies are creating packages and special offers tailored to domestic and international seniors for circuits or pilgrimages. Nowadays, being a senior is no longer a shortcoming. They benefit from increased attention from travel agencies that provide more advantageous prices. This article deals with three tourism segments: cultural tourism, creative tourism, and religious tourism focusing on seniors. The purpose of the article is to find out, through the questionnaire method, the type of tourism practiced by senior Romanian tourists and the attraction factors in choosing the city of Iași as a tourist destination. The results of the study are relevant in that the tourism practiced by the senior respondents is pilgrimage tourism. Almost half of them chose religious tourist attractions as motivating factors to travel to Iași, and a notable event in this regard is the annual pilgrimage to Saint Parascheva. According to the questionnaire results, cultural tourism is practiced harmoniously with religious tourism. Therefore, the study contributes to the tourism field by extending our current knowledge of senior tourism and has implications for better organizing their travel.

Proust du côté juif par Antoine Compagnon

Reviewed by: Proust du côté juif par Antoine Compagnon James P. Gilroy Compagnon, Antoine. Proust du côté juif. Gallimard, 2022. ISBN 978-2-07-295907-3. Pp. 424. Compagnon studies the analyses of Jewish themes in Proust's novels made in the 1920s and 30s by mostly Jewish literary critics. Compagnon also provides a large amount of documentary information about the lives and careers of these critics, as well as of Proust's Jewish classmates, friends, and correspondents. He also provides facts and dates about Proust's Jewish forebears and relatives, including his great uncle Godchaux Weil, who was a prominent author in the nineteenth century. The reader also learns much about Jewish journalistic publications in France between the two World Wars. In his explorations of the articles and books written about Proust in the period following the publication of his novel, Compagnon shows how opinions as to the influence of the novelist's maternal Judaic background fell into two groups. Some critics found in Proust's work a glorification of his Jewish heritage, especially in his characterization of Swann. They pointed out the latter's courage and perseverance during the Dreyfus Affair and his final illness as outstandingly Jewish traits lauded by his creator. Several critics discerned a parallel in the thought and writing styles of Proust and Montaigne, both of whom had Jewish mothers. The run-on prose of both, with their long, complex sentence structures, parentheses, digressions, and qualifications were thought to reveal the influence of the Talmudic commentaries on Scripture. Some critics likened Proust and Montaigne to Bergson for their mobility of spirit. Yet others thought that the Kabbalistic tradition recorded in the Book of Zohar, with its doctrine of the transmigration of souls from male to female bodies and back, influenced Proust's concept of homosexuality. Such interpretations were found in journals that were organs of the Zionist movement. The more official publications of the French Jewish Consistory played down the Jewish influence on Proust and tended to dismiss him as an example of the assimilated Jews in France who had forgotten their ancestral heritage. Although Compagnon does not include more recent studies of Jewish themes in Proust within the purview of his book, he refers intermittently to Proustian scholars who consider his work anti-Semitic. These critics find Proust's portrayal of Bloch, Rachel, and Gilberte Swann to be critical and condemnatory. They are also offended by Proust's comparison of Jews and homosexuals as outcasts who are forced by society to disguise their true selves. Much discussion is devoted by Compagnon to a statement made by Proust in a letter of condolence to a Jewish friend. In it, Proust reminisces about accompanying his maternal grandfather to the cemetery of Père-Lachaise where the family tomb of the Weil's was located. The grandfather would make an annual pilgrimage to place a stone on the monument to his ancestors, but Proust suggests that his grandfather had long since forgotten the significance of this gesture. Compagnon did extensive literary detective work to trace the actual source of this much quoted passage, and he analyzes all the possible pro- or anti-Jewish implications of Proust's remark. [End Page 271] James P. Gilroy University of Denver (CO) Copyright © 2023 American Association of Teachers of French

The Key to the Labyrinth: Boundaries and Spaces in Raǧāʾ ʿĀlim’s Novel The Dove’s Necklace

Abstract As an urban structure, Mecca is inscribed with several layers of meaning. It is the place where the Divine revelation of Islam took place; it is the setting of the life and preaching of the prophet Muhammad; and it is the location of the hajj, the annual pilgrimage, with its sacred and ritual sites. These complex domains of signification are related/separated by various kinds of boundaries, which are made even more intricate by the strict Wahhabi regime of religiosity and social segregation and Saudi policies of urban reconstruction. All these influences result in a fragmented spatial structure, and, concomitantly, in a fragmented social structure, which are both to some extent hidden in the folds of the urban landscape. In this contribution, the boundaries between the various domains will be discussed as they are portrayed, and contested, in the novel Ṭawq al-ḥamām (The Dove’s Necklace) by the Saudi author Raǧāʾ ʿĀlim. It will be explained how several characters are described as either upholding, breaking, preserving, and challenging the diverse boundaries vested in Mecca as a container of a profound religious heritage.

Adoption of E-Kanikka in Kerala

Kanikka means something in Hinduism, Sanskrit, the history of ancient India, Jainism, Prakrit. So many as 22 QR codes have been displayed at various locations in the temple complex and nearby areas through which the devotees can offer the kannikka. As the annual pilgrimage is progressing at the famed Lord Ayyappa temple in Kerala, the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB), the apex temple body, has made arrangements for devotees to offer 'e-kanikka' at the electronic hundi collection in the temple complex and nearby areas. As in the previous years, the arrangements for the digital payment was made in association with the Dhanlaxmi Bank, who are the official bankers of the TDB this year as well.

A Technology Survey on IoT Applications Serving Umrah and Hajj

Emerging technologies provide a highly compatible platform for analyzing substantial data volumes relating to crowd management. These technologies are not only effective in providing remedial solutions but they are also cutting-edge, saving both time and money, and user-friendly. About twenty percent of the world’s Muslims are granted the ability to take part in religious observances on an annual basis. An in-depth analysis of the technologies and applications used in the Hajj and Umrah systems is required given the importance of utilizing and adapting technology to assist pilgrims performing the Hajj and Umrah. Both of these pilgrimages are considered acts of worship by Muslims. As a result, the services provided during Umrah and Hajj will be significantly enhanced if the numerous technological advancements that are evaluated in this paper are implemented. The majority of previous research is shown to revolve around artificial intelligence and embedded Internet of Things technologies in the paper, highlighting a gap in the research that should be filled by investigating the necessity of discussing and introducing immersive technologies. During the annual pilgrimage to Makkah, Saudi Arabia, several different technologies are utilized with the goal of enhancing the quality of services provided to pilgrims performing the Umrah and Hajj. This paper provides an analysis of these technologies. The findings of this paper point to new research directions as well as a more realistic and practical approach to improving services during Umrah and Hajj.

Gold Coast Colony’s Northern Territories Protectorate Muslims on Haj: Passports and Repatriation Deposits, 1897-1950

Ghana had a census for the Muslim population in 2017 and 2021, a national census including Muslims. Two international airports were being constructed to render three international airports for Muslims to embark on planes at Accra, Cape Coast and Tamale for the annual haj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia. This paper is situated in the north, where the Gold Coast colonial government wrote diplomatic letters for the dispersed Islamic people in the Northern Territories Protectorate who travelled on haj. In 1910, British colonial officers and the Gold Coast colonial government made policies that met the Saudi monarch’s requirement that Muslim pilgrims had to travel with British passports. During the colonial era, the Gold Coast colonial government allotted passports to Muslim pilgrims in the Northern Territories Protectorate from the Gold Coast and Nigeria and controlled the finances they deposited for repatriation during haj.

Antibiotic resistance, genotype and clinical significance of Acinetobacter Baumannii in Saudi Arabia

Background: In Saudi Arabia, due to its dynamic population and annual hajj pilgrimage, there is influx and efflux of millions of visitors every year, especially to Makkah dan Madinah, providing an international hub for the exchange of microbes. It is rather a common interest to understand the molecular epidemiology and clinical significance of multidrug resistant organisms in this country. Acinetobacter baumannii in particular, is one of the most common Gram negative bacteria isolated in the Kingdom. This organism is responsible for ventilator associated pneumonia, blood stream infections, urinary tract infections and skin infections. Objective: In this manuscript we aim to review the literature available on the antimicrobial resistance, genotypes and clinical significance ofA. baumannii acquisitions in Saudi Arabia. Methodology: The literature was reviewed systematically using PubMed with a combination of the terms ‘Acinetobacter’ AND ‘Saudi Arabia’. Reference lists of relevant articles were searched to identify further material. We only included studies with plausible data. Main observations: In Makkah itself, there are significant increase in carbapenem resistant Acinetobacter from 14% in 2004-2005, 46% in 2005-2006, 63% in 2011 to 90% in 2015. Recent publication from Madinah indicated, beside resistant to carbapenem approaching 90%, an alarming resistant rate to the last resort antibiotic, polymyxin is also observed at 24% of 379 tested strains. In a study in Makkah, the most predominant sequence types being ST 195 and ST557, which in the worldwide clonal complex 2. Conclusion: These resistant rate and sequences type indicated intermingling of the resistant superbugs occurred. With limited treatment option, effective infective control measures and antibiotic stewardship programs are the key element to contain these resistant isolates from spread. Bangladesh Journal of Medical Science Vol. 21 No. 02 April’22 Page : 233-242

The case of “public congregation vs. COVID-19 PPE pollution”: Evidence, lessons, and recommendations from the annual pilgrimage to the Catholic Holy Site in Mexico City, Mexico

Pollution from personal protective equipment (PPE), particularly face masks, has surfaced in the marine and terrestrial environments globally since the COVID-19 outbreak due to improper disposal practices and inadequate waste management, raising widespread alarm and attention. Our understanding of the prevalence and distribution of PPE in highly populated metropolitan areas is still emerging, and studies focusing specifically on developing countries in Latin America remain sparse. This study attempted to “kill two birds with one stone” by (1) addressing this knowledge gap by analyzing the degree of improper dispensing of PPE in Mexico City (Mexico) and (2) investigating the impact of massive public congregations on PPE contamination during the yearly pilgrimage to the Villa de Guadalupe on December 12th. Our survey findings revealed 731 PPE items within a 6-kilometer radius between December 5 and December 12, 2021, with daily densities ranging from 4.1 × 10−3–13.9 × 10−3 PPE items m−2. Face masks were the most disposed type of PPE (94%), with gloves and face shields accounting for just 6% of the total. The PPE disposal more than doubled as the pilgrim day approached, with an estimated disposal rate ranging from 151.52 to 506.06 items day−1, substantiating the surge in the disposal of used PPE to large public congregations that filled the surroundings during the pilgrimage. The observed average PPE density of 7.8 × 10−3 items m−2 was higher than in the metropolitan environments of Canada, Ghana, and Turkey. To our knowledge, this first study describes information showing the need to pay attention to the major impact of public events and mobility on COVID-19 PPE pollution, as well as emphasizes the necessity for adequate management facilities in improving PPE disposal.

Communication Strategy of the Indonesian Ministry of Religion to Leave 20 Countries that Area Prohibited from Entering Saudi Arabia

The Saudi government's decision to close access for Indonesia to be allowed to enter its territory made Indonesia for the second time cancel its annual pilgrimage, namely the pilgrimage. This study aims to identify and describe the communication strategy of the Ministry of Religion (Kemenag) so that Indonesia is not included in the 20 countries that are prohibited from entering Saudi Arabia. Because some countries whose COVID-19 numbers are higher or equal to Indonesia are not included in the 20 banned countries. To what extent is the communication strategy developed by the Ministry of Religion in order to convince Saudi Arabia that the implementation of Indonesian health protocols is very strict. Are the policies of the Ministry of Religion of the Republic of Indonesia in line with the policies of the Government of Saudi Arabia. This study also took samples of several news reports according to media/media framing from Republika.co.id and several news stories from other media that were relevant to answer this research. This study shows that the Ministry of Religion's communication policies and strategies have not optimally involved civil society groups. And the communication strategy developed by the government and organizations does not show good organized interests.

The Impact of Urban Management on Crowd Movement and User Experience through the Pilgrimage of Hajj (Frequent Temporary Mega-Events)

The research looks at the impact of urban management on crowd movement and user experience during the Islamic pilgrimage of Hajj. This study investigates and develops an urban management framework for crowd movement and user experience at frequent temporary mega-events. The thesis uses a mixed-methods approach to address a complex urban context during the annual pilgrimage in Makkah, Saudi Arabia. Hajj is a unique event that hosts millions of pilgrims; nevertheless, it has many constraints and rituals. The current management system of Hajj suffers from a significant overlap of stakeholders' roles and responsibilities and the absence of user-centricity during the planning and operation of the crowd movement. Thus, Hajj needs a new governance system to establish a framework that addresses the users' needs and expectations. This investigation aims to identify the main touchpoints of the crowd movement toward Al-Masjid Al-Haram from the Jamarat Bridge in Mina to address the following aspects: event management, crowd movement, and user experience.

An Intelligent Cluster Verification Model Using WSN to Avoid Close Proximity and Control Outbreak of Pandemic in a Massive Crowd

Assemblage at public places for religious or sports events has become an integral part of our lives. These gatherings pose a challenge at places where fast crowd verification with social distancing (SD) is required, especially during a pandemic. Presently, verification of crowds is carried out in the form of a queue that increases waiting time resulting in congestion, stampede, and the spread of diseases. This article proposes a cluster verification model (CVM) using a wireless sensor network (WSN), single cluster approach (SCA), and split cluster approach (SpCA) to solve the aforementioned problem for pandemic cases. We show that SD, cluster approaches, and verification by WSN can overcome the management issues by optimizing the cluster size and verification time. Hence, our proposed method minimizes the chances of spreading diseases and stampedes in large events such as a pilgrimage. We consider the assembly points in the annual pilgrimage to Makkah Al-Mukarmah and Umrah for verification using Contiki/Cooja tool. We compute results such as verified cluster members (CMs) to define cluster size, success rate to determine the best success rate, and verification time to determine the optimal verification time for various scenarios. We validate our model by comparing the results of each approach with the existing model. Our results show that the SpCA with SD is the best approach with a 96% success rate and optimization of verification time as compared to SCA with SD and the existing model.

The RNA-editing race intensifies

For small biotech companies hoping to strike a deal with larger drug developers, there’s no greater destination than the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference . In early January 2020, leaders from the start-up Shape Therapeutics made the annual pilgrimage to this mecca of biotechnology networking in San Francisco to make a pitch: What if you could edit someone’s genetic code without ever touching their DNA? The biotech industry is awash in companies using tools like CRISPR gene editing to fix or turn off problematic DNA. If gene editing works, it could provide a one-and-done cure. But some researchers are worried that if CRISPR slips up and cuts DNA at the wrong site , the damage could also be permanent. “Targeting DNA has a lot of all-or-nothing consequences,” says David Huss, head of research at Shape. At the conference, Huss explained to potential partners that Shape’s solution was to edit RNA instead

The Making of a Marian Geography of Grace for Greek Catholics in the Polish Crownlands of the 17th–18th Centuries

This article explores the ways in which the newly founded and highly contested Christian confession of the Greek Catholics or Uniates employed strategies of mass mobilization to establish and maintain their position within a contested confessional terrain. The Greek Catholic clerics, above all monks of the Basilian order fostered an active policy of acquiring, founding and promoting Marian places of grace in order to create and invigorate a sense of belonging among their flock. The article argues that folk ideological notions concerning the spatial and physical conditions for the working of miracles were seized upon by the Greek Catholic faithful to establish a mental map of grace of their own. Especially, the Basilian order took particular care to organize mass events (annual pilgrimages, coronation celebrations for miraculous images) and promote Marian devotion through miracle reports and icon songs in an attempt to define what it means to be a Greek Catholic in terms of sacred territoriality.