Background
Pilgrimages frequently involve a journey or search ofBahá'í Faith
Bahá'u'lláh decreed pilgrimage to two places in theBuddhism
InChristianity
Christian pilgrimage was first made to sites connected with the birth, life, crucifixion and resurrection ofHinduism
According to Karel Werner's ''Popular Dictionary of Hinduism'', "mostIslam
The ''Hajj, Ḥajj'' ( ar, حَـجّ, main pilgrimage to Mecca) is one of the five pillars of Islam and a Fard, mandatory religious duty for Muslims that must be carried out at least once in their lifetime by all adult Muslims who are physically and financially capable of undertaking the journey, and can support their family during their absence. The gathering during the Hajj is considered the largest annual gathering of people in the world. Since 2014, two or three million people have participated the ''Hajj'' annually. The mosques in Mecca and Medina were closed in February 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic in Saudi Arabia, COVID-19 pandemic and the ''hajj'' was permitted for only a very limited number of Saudi nationals and foreigners living in Saudi Arabia starting on 29 July. Another important place for Muslims is the city of Medina, the second holiest site in Islam, in Saudi Arabia, the final resting place of Muhammad in Al-Masjid an-Nabawi (The Mosque of the Prophet). The ''Ihram'' (white robe of pilgrimage) is meant to show equality of all Muslim pilgrims in the eyes of Allah. 'A white has no superiority over a black, nor a black over a white. Nor does an Arab have superiority over a non-Arab, nor a non-Arab over an Arab - except through piety' - statement of the Prophet Muhammad. About four million pilgrims participate in the Grand Magal of Touba, east of Dakar, Senegal. The pilgrimage celebrates the life and teachings of Cheikh Amadou Bamba, who founded the Mouride brotherhood in 1883 and begins on the 18th of Safar.Shia
''Al-Arba‘īn'' ( ar, ٱلْأَرْبَـعِـيْـن, "The Forty"), ''Chehelom'' ( fa, , ur, , "the fortieth [day]") or ''Qirkhī'', ''Imāmīn Qirkhī'' ( az, İmamın qırxı ( ar, إمامین قیرخی), "the fortieth of Imam") is a Shia Muslim religious observance that occurs 40 (number), forty days after the Day of Ashura. It commemorates the martyrdom of Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of Muhammad, which falls on the 20th or 21st day of the month of Safar. Imam Husayn ibn Ali and 72 companions were killed by Yazid I's army in the Battle of Karbala in 61 AH (680 Common Era, CE). Arba'een or forty days is also the usual length of mourning after the death of a family member or loved one in many Muslim traditions. Arba'een is one of the largest pilgrimage gatherings on Earth, in which up to 31 million people go to the city of Karbala in Iraq. The second largest holy city in the world, Mashhad, Iran, attracts more than 20 million tourists and pilgrims every year, many of whom come to pay homage to Imam Reza (the eighth Shi'ite Imam). It has been a magnet for travelers since medieval times.Judaism
While Solomon's Temple stood, Jerusalem was the centre of the Jewish religious life and the site of the Three Pilgrimage Festivals of Passover, Shavuot and Sukkot, and all adult men who were able were required to visit and offer sacrifices (''korbanot'') at the Temple. After the destruction of the Temple, the obligation to visit Jerusalem and to make sacrifices no longer applied. The obligation was restored with the Second Temple, rebuilding of the Temple, but following its destruction in 70 CE, the obligation to make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem and offer sacrifices again went into abeyance. The western retaining wall of the Temple Mount, known as the Western Wall or "Wailing" Wall, is the remaining part of Second Jewish Temple in the Old City (Jerusalem), Old City of Jerusalem is the most sacred and visited site for Jews. Pilgrimage to this area was off-limits to Jews from 1948 to 1967, when East Jerusalem was under Jordanian control. There are numerous lesser Jewish pilgrimage destinations, mainly tombs of ''tzadikim'', throughout Palestine (region), Palestine and all over the world, including: Hebron; Bethlehem; Mount Meron; Netivot; Uman, Ukraine; Silistra, Bulgaria; Damanhur, Egypt; and many others. Many rabbis claim that even today, after the destruction of the Temple, there is a mitzvah to make a pilgrimage on holidays.Sikhism
Sikhism does not consider pilgrimage as an act of spiritual merit. Guru Nanak went to places of pilgrimage to reclaim the fallen people, who had turned ritualists. He told them of the need to visit that temple of God, deep in the inner being of themselves. According to him: "He performs a pilgrimage who controls the Five Thieves, five vices." Eventually, however, Amritsar and Harmandir Sahib, Harmandir Sahib (the Golden Temple) became the spiritual and cultural centre of the Sikh faith, and if a Sikh goes on pilgrimage it is usually to this place. The Panj Takht (Punjabi: ਪੰਜ ਤਖ਼ਤ) are the five revered gurdwaras in India that are considered the thrones or seats of authority of Sikhism and are traditionally considered a pilgrimage.Taoism
Mazu, also spelled as Matsu, is the most famous sea goddess in the Chinese southeastern sea area,Zoroastrianism
In Iran, there are pilgrimage destinations called ''Pir (Zoroastrianism), pirs'' in several provinces, although the most familiar ones are in the province of Yazd. In addition to the traditional Yazdi shrines, new sites may be in the process of becoming pilgrimage destinations. The ruins are the ruins of ancient fire temples. One such site is the ruin of the Sassanian era Azargoshnasp fire temple in Iran's Azarbaijan Province. Other sites are the ruins of Bahram fire temple, fire temples at Rey, south of the capital Tehran, and the Firouzabad ruins sixty kilometres south of Shiraz in the province of Fārs Province, Pars. Atash Behram ("Fire of victory") is the highest grade of fire temple in Zoroastrianism. It has 16 different "kinds of fire", that is, fires gathered from 16 different sources. Currently there are 9 Atash Behram, one in Yazd, Iran and the rest in WesternOther
Meher Baba
The main pilgrimage sites associated with the spiritual teacher Meher Baba are Meherabad, India, where Baba completed the "major portion" of his work and where his tomb is now located, and Meherazad, India, where Baba resided later in his life.Ancient Greece
The Eleusinian Mysteries, Eleusinian mysteries included a pilgrimage. The procession to Eleusis began at the Athens, Athenian cemetery Kerameikos and from there the participants walked to Eleusis, along the Sacred Way (Ἱερὰ Ὁδός, ''Hierá Hodós'').See also
* Burial places of founders of world religions * HCPT – The Pilgrimage Trust * Hiking * Journey of self-discovery * Junrei * List of shrines * List of significant religious sites * Monastery * New Age travellers * Pardon (ceremony) * * Romeria * Sacred travel * World Youth DayReferences
Further reading
* Coleman, Simon. Powers of Pilgrimage: Religion in a World of Movement. United States, NYU Press, 2022. * al-Naqar, Umar. 1972. ''The Pilgrimage Tradition in West Africa.'' Khartoum: Khartoum University Press. [includes a map 'African Pilgrimage Routes to Mecca, ca. 1300–1900'] * Coleman, Simon and John Elsner (1995), ''Pilgrimage: Past and Present in the World Religions.'' Cambridge: Harvard University Press. * Coleman, Simon & John Eade (eds) (2005), ''Reframing Pilgrimage. Cultures in Motion.'' London: Routledge. * Davidson, Linda Kay and David M. Gitlitz (2002), ''Pilgrimage: From the Ganges to Graceland: An Encyclopedia.'' Santa Barbara, Ca.: ABC-CLIO. * Gitlitz, David M. and Linda Kay Davidson (2006). ''Pilgrimage and the Jews.'' Westport, CT: Praeger. * Jackowski, Antoni. 1998. ''Pielgrzymowanie'' [Pilgrimage]. Wroclaw: Wydawnictwo Dolnoslaskie. * Kerschbaum & Gattinger, Via Francigena – DVD – Documentation, of a modern pilgrimage to Rome, , Verlag EUROVIA, Vienna 2005 * Margry, Peter Jan (ed.) (2008), ''Shrines and Pilgrimage in the Modern World. New Itineraries into the Sacred.'' Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press. * * Sumption, Jonathan. 2002. ''Pilgrimage: An Image of Mediaeval Religion.'' London: Faber and Faber Ltd. * Wolfe, Michael (ed.). 1997. ''One Thousands Roads to Mecca.'' New York: Grove Press. * George Zarnecki, Zarnecki, George (1985), The Monastic World: The Contributions of The Orders. pp. 36–66, in Evans, Joan (ed.). 1985. ''The Flowering of the Middle Ages.'' London: Thames and Hudson Ltd. *External links
* {{Authority control Pilgrimage, Religious tourism