More than two million Muslims offered Eid-ul-Azha prayers at Masjid al-Haram, the Grand Mosque in Makkah, and Masjid an-Nabawi, also called the Prophet’s Mosque, in Madina early Tuesday morning.
The pilgrims, after completing their prayers, will move to Mina next, where they will perform the ritual of ‘stoning the devil’ before sacrificing animals.
A sea of pilgrims ascended Mount Arafat in Saudi Arabia on Monday to pray and repent, the pinnacle of the annual Hajj. Mount Arafat is where Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) delivered his final sermon.
The imam of Prophet's Mosque, Sheikh Hussein bin Abdelaziz Al al-Sheikh, delivered the sermon yesterday, in which he emphasised respectful behaviour and good character as being the most important lessons of Islam.
“All prophets of God invited humanity to tauheed, and believing in it will be path of success,” he said. “Give respect and importance to your parents and teachers. Strengthen your relation with the Holy Quran."
Saudi Arabia's interior ministry said the number of pilgrims arriving in Makkah had already surpassed the two million mark, mostly from abroad including large contingents from Egypt, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
Every Muslim is required to complete the Hajj journey to Islam's holiest sites at least once in their lifetime if they are healthy enough and have the means to do so.
