Essays Unpack the Evolving Hajj and Umrah Experience

Narrating the Pilgrimage to Mecca reveals how pilgrim stories actively reinvent the Hajj and Umrah, journeys to Makkah, across centuries. Edited by Marjo Buitelaar and Richard van Leeuwen, both experts in Islamic studies, the volume juxtaposes historical first-hand narratives of Hajj and Umrah journeys with oral interviews of contemporary pilgrims to show the transformative power of storytelling. The historical section features a 16th-century Spanish poem, Ottoman records and a historical novel of Tajik journalist Fazliddin Muhammadiev’s extraordinary 1963 Soviet-era journey, among other accounts. These narratives contrast sharply with today’s accounts. The ethnographic examination of Dutch Moroccan vlogs, African American conversion stories and Moroccan women’s smartphone diaries reflect a welcoming exploration of how such narratives thrive on intended audiences, emotional responses and feelings of home. What emerges is a living tradition continually reshaped by its storytellers. Where 16th-century chroniclers framed Hajj as geopolitical theater, today’s digital narratives turn it into intimate spiritual theater. The editor’s thoughtful selection of 16 essays demonstrates this evolution. Muhammadiev’s smuggled manuscript alongside an Indonesian nurse’s text messages, proves pilgrimage survives through reinvention. Both editors’ combined expertise ensures both the 18th-century Moroccan scholar’s ink-and-parchment account and the 2020s social media posts receive equally nuanced readings—reminding us that every media format, from manuscripts to pixels, writes Islam’s living tradition.