& çâÌæÚUæð´ ·¤è ¥ôÚU Îð¹Ùæ ÁæÚUè ÚU¹ð´ ¥ÍæüÌ ¥ÂÙð ÜÿØ ÂÚU ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´Ð ãæÚU Ù ×æÙð´, €UØô´ç·¤ ·¤æ× ·¤ÚUÙð âð ¥æÂ·¤ô ©gðàØ ·¤è Âýæç# ãôÌè ãñ ¥õÚU ÁèßÙ ·¤æ ¹æÜèÂÙ ÎêÚU ãôÌæ ãñÐ ÖÜð ãè ÁèßÙ ×ð´ ç·¤ÌÙè Öè ·¤çÆÙæ§ü €UØô´ Ù ¥æ°, çÁ™ææâæ ¥õÚU ©ˆâæã ÕÙæ° ÚU¹ð´Ð ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´, ÜÿØ ã×ðàææ ¥æÂ·Ô¤ Âæâ ãôÌð ãñ´ çÁ‹ãð´ ÂæÙð ·Ô¤ çÜ° ÂýØæâ ¥æÂ ·¤Öè Öè àæéM¤ ·¤ÚU â·¤Ìð ãñ´Ð

Muslims scale Mt Arafat for peak of hajj

AFP, Mount Arafat
Muslim pilgrims yesterday ascended Mount Arafat in Saudi Arabia for the climax of the annual hajj which brings together more than two million people from around the world.
Carrying brightly coloured umbrellas under the blazing sun, a sea of worshippers scaled the rocky hill southeast of the holy city of Makkah for a day of prayers and repentance.
Arms raised, pilgrims repeated "There is no God but Allah" and "Allahu Akbar".
"The feeling is indescribable," said Umm Ahmad, 61, who made the trip from Egypt.
Some of the pilgrims -men in white seamless garments and women in loose dresses - pushed elderly relatives in wheelchairs on the second day of the hajj, one of the world's largest annual gatherings.
Muslims believe Prophet Mohammed (pbuh) delivered his final sermon on
Mount Arafat, where Muslim pilgrims gather every year from across the globe to atone for their sins.
"It feels great," said 37-year-old Pakistani Jai Saleem.
"I have always seen this area, since my childhood, in photographs and on television," he said, adding that he cried when he and his wife arrived on Mount Arafat.
CLOSER TO ALLAH
Workers were hurriedly picking up empty water bottles near a yellow sign that read "Arafat starts here" in both English and Arabic.
"We know that it's a difficult task," said Amna Khan, a 35-year-old American Muslim pilgrim.
"That's why we are all here. We're doing this to get closer to Allah, to be absolved."
A hot wind blew across the hill, also known as Jabal al-Rahma (Mount of Mercy), and the surrounding plain after a downpour late Sunday. Many faithful could be seen sipping from bottles of water.
"I knew it would be a little hard to
climb Mount Arafat," said Nigerian pilgrim Saidou Boureima.
“So I prepared for this challenge by working out. And Allah willing, we can see it through."
After sunset, the pilgrims left for nearby Muzdalifah where they will gather pebbles to perform the symbolic "stoning of the devil".