CARI Infonet

 Forgot password?
 Register

ADVERTISEMENT

View: 5893|Reply: 5

Mekah Dulu & Kini.

[Copy link]
Post time 23-4-2014 06:32 PM | Show all posts |Read mode
Then-and-Now Photos of Mecca Show What's Happening to Islam's Most Sacred Site By Esther Bergdahl  April 21, 2014

Then-and-Now Photos of Mecca Show What's Happening to Islam's Most Sacred SiteImage Credit: AP
Choose a city and imagine what it would look like if it was 95% razed and rebuilt in the course of 20 years. Think about all the history and culture that would be destroyed.
This dystopian vision isn't hypothetical. Rather, it's happening in Mecca, the Saudi Arabian city to which faithful Muslims embark on an annual pilgrimage. Mecca has lost the vast majority of its historical and religious landmarks to development. Centuries-old cemeteries, the houses of important figures, the sites of battles, the earliest mosques, the birthplace of Mohammed — all are gone or critically endangered as bulldozers destroy the city to build skyscrapers, malls and infrastructure.
Image Credit: AP. View of Mecca in 1951.
Image Credit: AP. What Mecca looks like today.
When the Chinese government destroys religious sites in Tibet on this scale, it's labeledcultural genocide. But no outside forces are responsible for the destruction in Mecca, just the Saudi royal family, whose austere strain of Wahhabi Islam forbids shirq, or idol worship. Under their stringent criteria, most religious landmarks are considered forms of idols, so there is no harm in destroying them. Meanwhile, why bother with millennium-old landmarks when you could be scoring cute handbags in Paris Hilton's store?
You read that right: Shrines aren't welcome in Mecca, but Hilton, Gucci and Dior should feel free to set up shop.
If you visit Mecca today, the Kaaba, the most sacred spot in Islam, stands dwarfed by skyscrapers. Critics lament that the city is turning into little more than a Red Sea Las Vegas; the Atlantic called it "McMecca."





Image Credit: Wikimedia
From time to time, the outcry rises and construction stops, but never for long. The bulldozers and cranes keep coming back. Supporters say this stimulates the economy and gives people confidence. Skeptics claim the cost of making the Hajj pilgrimage is skyrocketing, depriving many of a fundamental religious rite.
Institutions disappoint us every day, but to see this one do so this flagrantly makes it all the worse.





Esther BergdahlEsther has degrees from the University of Chicago and the Medill School of Journalism, which means she has a lot of feelings about both Shakespeare and Studs Terkel. You can find more of her writing at www.magpieandwhale.com.







Reply

Use magic Report


ADVERTISEMENT


Post time 24-4-2014 11:50 PM | Show all posts
mekah sekarang dah jadi mcm dlm gambar movie futuristik.



Reply

Use magic Report

Post time 25-4-2014 01:35 PM | Show all posts
Allahuakhbar..rindunya pada tanah suci makkah dan madinah...
Reply

Use magic Report

Post time 25-4-2014 03:02 PM | Show all posts
baru pulang dari sana last week...

sedey sbb menghadap kaabah sebesar2 shopping mall....
Reply

Use magic Report

Post time 25-4-2014 03:33 PM | Show all posts
Bagus kjn Arab Saudi buat kemajuan dan kemudahan utk umat Islam.

Tempat yg amat berkat.
Reply

Use magic Report

Post time 25-4-2014 03:40 PM | Show all posts
allah..allah rindunya
Reply

Use magic Report

Follow Us
You have to log in before you can reply Login | Register

Points Rules

 

ADVERTISEMENT



 

ADVERTISEMENT


 


ADVERTISEMENT
Follow Us

ADVERTISEMENT


Mobile|Archiver|Mobile*default|About Us|CARI Infonet

29-3-2024 04:44 PM GMT+8 , Processed in 0.102341 second(s), 35 queries .

Powered by Discuz! X3.4

Copyright © 2001-2021, Tencent Cloud.

Quick Reply To Top Return to the list