The answer is «yes» someone who says she possesses earned the hajj in foreign countries tells RFE/RL’s Turkmen tool.
«Inside this country we have famous places you can check where terrific everyone is hidden — above you could count,» she says. «If in Saudi Arabia folks drop by Mecca, then here in all of our region we have the ‘360 internet site,'» exactly where 360 defenders of northern Turkmenistan were destroyed by Mongol intruders.
The woman offers that even pilgrims deciding to make the hajj reveal big surprise that Turkmen would «spend-all those funds» while making the visit to Mecca when there is loads of pilgrimage internet in Turkmenistan.
«The [Turkmen] individuals who decided to go to Mecca expended lots of money and failed to have to invest that a lot, the [Turkmen] condition doesn’t need to pay a considerable amount of money,» she says. «it’s a good idea to really make the pilgrimage within the place. We can easily develop these sites and other people from away from the country would appear in this article to help pilgrimage.»
The girl says that this broad many family took a trip to Iran once to check out pilgrimage websites and located the Iranian internet to become crowded to the point where «one couldn’t actually need one step.»
She concedes, however, that Iranian internet sites had been very popular for pilgrims and put in about the internet sites in Turkmenistan happened to be certainly not «on identical levels» as Mecca.
Conserving Hawaii Cash
In some instances, the Turkmen pilgrimage seems intended to offer the us government’s passion with techniques that go beyond their reported goal.
The Turkmen say announcements institution, one example is, claimed easy sex in announcing the government-led plan that while «using a pilgrimage within the holy locations the loyal will discover the grandiose improvement with taken place inside long lost Turkmen secure into the epoch of brand new resurgence.
«They will certainly witness and inform about these to their particular man villagers, next-door neighbors, family relations and partners. New manufacturing plants, highway and connections, schooling and healthcare facilities, social locations, and stadiums — all these vivid icons of the epoch of New rebirth, the result of President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov’s plan geared towards increasing the benefit regarding the Turkmen someone.»
Considering that the Turkmen status frequently will pay to deliver several pilgrims to Saudi Arabia, the inner pilgrimage could possibly help the wellbeing associated with the condition spending plan too.
Every single year after Ramadan the Turkmen authorities pays for some 200 pilgrims to make the hajj, the number of places on a single airline. In 2012, those picked to visit Mecca will alternatively become participating in the Turkmen pilgrimage, trying to keep anything these people spend within the country.
Saudi Arabia provides every a country a quota for pilgrims looking to make hajj (1,000 everyone for million of a nation’s Muslim public), and 200 to 300 of Turkmenistan’s Muslims frequently get the day at Mecca using their own funds.
In 2012, however, the worry of experience of swine influenza features brought the federal government to advise residents against having to pay their very own method to bypass the bar and considering a visit to Mecca.
Per the state on Saudi Embassy in Turkmenistan exactly who spoke to RFE/RL’s Turkmen program on issue of anonymity, it appears Turkmen Muslims tend to be abiding from country’s wishes.
«In 2012 the audience is very, very depressing because our embassy has given visas exclusively for people from other countries living in Ashgabat — Turkish, Iranian, for example — but no body from Turkmenistan,» the state mentioned.
Turkmen copywriter Amanmyrat Bugaev likewise laments the increased loss of a chance for Turkmen to help make the hajj.
As stunning as the pilgrimage internet in Turkmenistan may be, Bugaev claims, they can’t replace the hajj, one of many Five Pillars of Islam which is incumbent on every Muslim.
«It’s my opinion in Lord, and tremendously admire practices of Islam and that I cannot realize why the hajj is substituted for the pilgrimage to your holy and historical web sites today,» according to him.
RFE/RL Turkmen Service manager Oguljamal Yazliyeva added to this report
Bruce Pannier
Bruce Pannier composes the Qishloq Ovozi weblog and sounds routinely regarding the Majlis podcast for RFE/RL.