Masked Muslim pilgrims accumulated on Thursday near the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia for the climax of the annual Hajj pilgrimage, which has been drastically reduced this year due to COVID-19.
A few thousand people participate, a fraction of the 2.5 million people who gather each year in Mecca for Islam’s largest collection.
This is the first time that Saudi Arabia has had to drastically restrict the number of Hajj pilgrims in fashion history.
But the scenario may be almost the same in many centers of worship and recreation areas in parts of Nigeria, in the state of Oyo, where the government has given the green touch to Eid’s opening so that Muslim faithful can gather today.
The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) recreation centers will be animators and entertainers, as the government ordered its closure.
On Thursday in Saudi Arabia, pilgrims, dressed in classic snow-white robes, wore masks and observed distances as they prayed at the al-Namirah mosque in the Mount Arafat region, about 20 kilometres east of Mecca.
Granite hill is the place where the Prophet Muhammad is said to have uttered his last sermon, about 14 centuries ago.
A high-ranking Saudi cleric suggested to Muslims patience during the “tribulation” of the pandemic.
“One of the characteristics of the faithful is to be patient in the face of painful fates,” abdullah al-Manea, a member of the Council of Experienced Investigators, Saudi Arabia’s Islamic agency, said in a televised sermon at the Hajj summit.
“Life in this world has no disasters. [But] tribulations, no matter how great, will last forever. God’s mercy is greater,” he added in the sermon delivered at the al-Namirah mosque.
The live transmission of the ritual sermon showed pilgrims dressed in masks listening and praying with private rugs as part of strict sanitary precautions.
The Saudi government has also set up sterilized tents to house pilgrims in Arafat, Saudi state television al-Ekhbariya reported.
The pilgrims stayed in Arafat until dusk to pray and recite the Holy Qur’an.
They sing ritually so that God may forgive their sins.
Pilgrims moved from there to the vicinity of Muzdalifah, where they collected sanitized stones from a bag for a symbolic stoning of the devil’s ritual in the desert valley of Mina, about seven kilometers northeast of Mecca.
Today, marking the beginning of the Muslim Eid al-Adha, pilgrims will gather in Mina for the stoning ritual.
In Abuja, CTF Minister Muhammad Bello suggested citizens attend the festivities from the comfort of their homes, as all recreational parks and other recreational spaces remained closed.
Bello, who said this as part of his message from Sallah, congratulated the Muslim faithful of the CTF and suggested that they take the opportunity to offer a plea to Allah Almighty for a quick end to the COVID-19 pandemic.
He reminded the Muslim Ummah that Eid-el-Kabir’s birthday party is vital because it is a festival of sharing and caring for less fortunate members of society.
A press secretary of its leader, Anthony Ogunleye, also quoted him, reminding citizens that “protocols for covering their faces, physically straying and washing their hands normally have been put in a position to protect themselves against the contraction of the virus.”
But it turns out to be the opposite in the state of Oyo, where Governor Seyi Makinde has ordered prayers to be opened so that the Muslim faithful can practice Eid-el-Kabir’s prayers.
Each of the prayer posts deserves not to accommodate more than 25% of its capacity, said a spokesman for Makinde, Taiwo Adisa.
The direction of the prayer position is to ensure the availability of hand washing issues and the necessary mask costume through the faithful.
The text reads in part: “As the Muslim Ummah prepares to begin this year’s Eid-el-Kabir prayers, the Government of the State of Oyo wishes to inform devout and Islamic leaders of the desire to strictly comply with COVID-19 protocols, in particular the rule of social estrangement.
“His Excellency believes that prayers are to succeed over the difficult situations we faced lately, especially the COVID-19 pandemic.
“To further ensure the protection and ownership of Covid-19’s preventive measures, the Emergency Operations Center (EOC), of the COVID-19 executing organization in Oyo State, has sent notices to primary markets and grocery shopping centers in the desire strictly comply with COVID-19 Preventive Protocols in this festive era and beyond.
“In addition to these measures, however, all clerics and leaders deserve to assume a duty to guide our other people to pay attention to the smallest main points on how to prevent them from spreading COVID-19 this holiday.
“The government of the state of Oyo, the Muslim Ummah, a nonviolent Eid-el-Kabir, full of the blessings and benevolence of Allaah the Almighty.
Hajj, one of the five pillars of Islam, is a mandatory duty to all Muslims once in their lives if they have sufficient monetary resources and are physically to adopt the journey.
During the Hajj, male pilgrims wear seamless white fabric pieces, while women wear loose clothing without makeup or jewelry.
His attire symbolizes the abandonment of the world’s wealth and the popularity of equality.
The pilgrimage takes place every year from the 8th to the 12th of Dhu al-Hijjah, the last month of the Islamic lunar calendar.