Pilgrims head to Saudi Arabia’s Mina to ‘stone the devil’ in one of final Hajj rites
July 9, 2022, 8:34 am

Pilgrims head to Saudi Arabia’s Mina to ‘stone the devil’ in one of final Hajj rites

A handout picture provided by Saudi Ministry of Media on July 31, 2020 shows pilgrims circumambulating around the Kaaba, the holiest shrine in the Grand mosque in the holy Saudi city of Mecca. (AFP)

Hajj pilgrims will make way back to Saudi Arabia’s Mina on Saturday (July 9) to perform several duties, one of which is the symbolic ‘stoning of the devil’ ritual, the Alarabiya English reported.

Stoning of the Devil is part of the annual Islamic Hajj pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia.

The pilgrims head to Mina and the Grand Mosque to perform the final Hajj rites and rituals on the third day of their pilgrimage, which is also the first day of Eid al-Adha.

On the first day of Eid al-Adha, pilgrims throw small pebbles or stones, which they gathered the night before in Muzdalifah, at the “Great Aqaba” column, the Alarabiya English said.

During the ritual, Muslim pilgrims throw pebbles at three walls in the city of Mina, east of Mecca.

Pilgrims will be walking in crowds through a multi-level structure housing three pillars symbolizing the devil.

Hajj and Umrah in Mecca (File photo: Pixabay)

The ritual is a symbolic reenactment of Ibrahim's hajj, where he stoned three pillars representing the temptation to disobey God.

Hajj is considered the world’s largest religious gathering, with about 2.5 million people performing the ritual in 2019.

Foreign Hajj pilgrims rejoice in Saudi Arabia after two-year COVID-19 absence

However, due to COVID-19, the Kingdom had sharply decreased the number of pilgrims allowed to perform the ritual.

This year, the Kingdom allowed one million pilgrims from inside and outside the country to participate.

Saudi authorities have fully equipped 93 healthcare centers across the holy sites in Mecca to provide pilgrims participating in the annual Hajj pilgrimage with quick and direct health services.

Muslim pilgrims ascend Mt. Arafat for climax of largest Hajj since COVID-19

On Friday, the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported that the number of beneficiaries of the health services provided in all health facilities in the Holy Sites exceeded 65,000, including 108 cardiac catheterization operations, 313 dialysis sessions, 177 surgeries and 10 endoscopic operations. A further 1831 pilgrims benefited from the services of the virtual hospital.

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