Eid Mubarak! You may recall that back on Eid-ul-Fitr we pointed you toward the annual series of fantastic photographs of Ramadan and Eid-ul-Fitr events on The Boston Globe site. The Globe has also, for the last two years, run a series of photos for the Hajj and Eid-ul-Adha, which are equally worth perusing:
The Hajj seems to get bigger every year, and more layers of complexity are added by technology and other factors of globalization. It's fascinating to contrast the photo series above with something like these photos of Hajj from a 1953 issue of National Geographic, not just in terms of what has changed but also what hasn't. And speaking of change, we found this video of proposed structural changes to the Grand Mosque (in order to accommodate the ever-increasing numbers of pilgrims) quite impressive. There will probably be a lot of resistance to such changes in certain quarters, but the problem of crowd management must be taken quite seriously. The King of Saudi Arabia and his government have a huge responsibility to both the past and future in developing the area around the Ka'aba (not one we'd personally be eager to shoulder).
And if you go through all these images, and are still hungry for a little more on the Hajj, check out CBC reporter Muhammad Lila's Hajj blog that he's keeping on The Toronto Star website.
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