Yeah, this is intelligent. Let's all go on a hajj, crowd around a stone wall, call it the Devil, and pelt it with rocks. You can read about it here. And don't give me the "it's all symbolic" BS. I'm sure Satan is just terrified of symbolic gestures. OTOH, he might get a kick out of you trampling your fellow pilgrims to death in your rush to get to the stone.
.
Sheesh.
Tuesday, December 09, 2008
Stone The Devil
Yeah, this is intelligent. Let's all go on a hajj, crowd around a stone wall, call it the Devil, and pelt it with rocks. You can read about it here. And don't give me the "it's all symbolic" BS. I'm sure Satan is just terrified of symbolic gestures. OTOH, he might get a kick out of you trampling your fellow pilgrims to death in your rush to get to the stone.
.
Sheesh.
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5 comments:
This is actually supposed to be pretty interesting. In In the Land of Invisible Women, I read about the author's experiences at hajj, including this stoning. She was pretty western, and was a little worried about the energy involved in the event, but even she got into it. It reminds me of hearing about the funeral of Ayatollah Khomeini. I read about it in Reading Lolita in Tehran. There was a massive amount of people who hated him, and yet at the country-wide funeral, they were mourning alongside everyone else. And by mourning, I mean wailing, knashing of teeth, wild crazy hysterics, fainting, undulating in the streets, etc. It was really less about grief and more about the sudden un-damming of emotion/passion. Emotion, especially on the parts of women, was forbidden in public (and oftentimes in private) in that part of the world, so suddenly everyone was allowed to show their passion to the fullest extent possible? Oh yeah, they got into it. And it really did end up being an effusion of grief. The narrator of that memoire was one of the haters, but she was wretchedly sad that he died. It's mob mentality. I'm not saying that's good, but it certainly is interesting, and I can see why people come away from hajj feeling cleansed. You've just siphoned off all the stress and such from the last year (or more) and are born anew. It would be really interesting to experience it. The parts about hajj were my favorite in Invisible Women.
i think a pilgrimage can indeed be a deeply spiritual experience, no matter what religion one is. but throwing stones at a stone?! that's just an emotional release. i can do that at a football game.
It seems a little different than just an emotional release, particularly for a culture that has very little other outlet. They can't just play football, you know? Especially the women, who have to be self-contained all the time. This is the one place they are allowed to be the inner animal that people inherently are. I think the whole thing is dangerous, but at the same time, completely fascinating.
this is an oversimplification, i know, but...
the problem with Islamic culture is that it's about 800 years out-of-date. blind obedience is the norm - men to the Imams, women to men. there is intolerance to anything even remotely resembling free thought.
it's in dire need of an overhaul. alas, the reform needs to come from within, not at the hands of Western occupying forces and/or missionaries.
the country that has done the best at addressing this is Turkey. it is secular, yet Islamic. it has picked the best parts of European civilization and integrated them into the Eastern mindset. it is not an easy merging, but it does show the way.
I was thinking about it last night and realized that I think the stoning of the devil is better than some of our more american forms of stress relief. You know - boxing, fight clubs, dog fighting, etc. At least the stone doesn't get damaged when people throw at it. Then again, I suppose some people get crushed. Like in mosh pits. Or the running of the bulls. Isn't it strange how much we need crushing danger in our lives?
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