Pilgrimage in Islam Traditional and Modern Practices

It is not only the holy cities of Mecca and Karbala to which Muslim pilgrims travel, but a wide variety of sacred sites around the world. Journeys are undertaken to visit graves of important historical and religious individuals, the tombs of saints, and natural sites such as mountaintops and springs.

Exploring the richness and diversity of traditions practiced by the 1.5 billion Muslims across the world, Sophia Rose Arjana provides a rigorous theoretical discussion of pilgrimage, ritual practice and the nature of sacred space in Islam, both historically and in the present day. This all-encompassing survey covers issues such as time, space, tourism, virtual pilgrimages and the use of computers and smartphone apps. Lucidly written, informative and accessible, it is perfectly suited to students, scholars and the general reader seeking a comprehensive picture of the defining ritual of religious pilgrimage in Islam.

Sophia Rose Arjana was a visiting assistant professor of Islamic studies for five years at the University of Denver's Iliff School of Theology. She has traveled extensively in Muslim-majority countries, visiting pilgrimage sites in Iran, Turkey, Syria and elsewhere. She lives in Boulder, Colorado.

List of Illustrations

Foreword by Omid Safi

Introduction: Beyond Hajj

1 Reconsidering Islamic Pilgrimage: Theoretical and Sectarian Debates

2 Nascent Pilgrimage Centers: Jerusalem, Mecca, and Medina

3 Shi‘i Pilgrimage: The Prophet’s Household

4 Sufi and Shared Pilgrimages: Contestations of Identity

5 Modern Muslim Pilgrims: Tourism, Space, and Technology



Afterword: Presuppositions and Possibilities in the Study of Islamic Pilgrimage

Acknowledgments

Glossary

Bibliography

Notes

Index