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| Arabia |
| Thunderstorm During Final Rite of Hajj |
| 2005-01-25 |
| Does this count as a sign or a portent? As rains lashed the Saudi desert, tens of thousands of drenched Muslim pilgrims welcomed the deluge yesterday as a blessing from God while they circled the cubic Kaaba shrine in this holy city's Grand Mosque, the final rite in the annual hajj pilgrimage. A record estimated 2.56 million people attended this year's hajj snip While lightning cracked overhead, thousands of the faithful in Mina, about 4 miles from Mecca, opened umbrellas to shield them from the rain while hurling rocks at rectangular, billboard-sized stone blocks symbolizing the devil. "Rain is always a blessing, and for it to fall so hard at the end of our hajj rituals means our sins are washed away and God has accepted our prayers," said a soaked Mohammed Jamal Khan, 42, from the Pakistani city of Peshawar, before a gust of wind blew away the plastic bag he had tied to his head. snip |
| Posted by:trailing wife |