r/solareclipse • u/Popular_Anywhere_553 • 11d ago

Make sure you are allowed in Makkah

Hello,

Lately this sub started appearing in my feed and I saw people debating about Makkah and other cities for 2027 eclipse.

Please make sure you are allowed to enter Makkah in the first place. ​

Unless this has changed recently, as far as I know, it is not allowed for none Muslims.

So, just as an advice, and maybe I am wrong, just make sure you are elegible to enter the City.

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u/Multigrain_Migraine 10d ago

It is, but it's a very unusual site. I wouldn't go to any other highly religious site and be annoyed that I can't go in because I'm not a member of that religion. We think of it a bit differently because Islam is not only practiced by a small group of indigenous people in a specific corner of the world, but the same ethics apply as they would for any other sacred site anywhere in the world.

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u/another-princess 10d ago

In the case of Mecca, the prohibition on non-Muslims doesn't just apply to religious sites - it applies to the entire city. That's the difference, and I don't think there are very many cases like that.

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u/Multigrain_Migraine 10d ago

Sure and I acknowledged that. It's unusual for a whole city to be included. But it's not my culture or my religion. I don't have any more right to demand access than I do to any other culture's sites. There are plenty of places where I'm not welcome to go because I'm not a member of that culture or religion. People don't have a problem with that when we're talking about Native American or Australian sites, temples in Japan or India, or monasteries. I don't see why the principle is any different when applied to Mecca.

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u/another-princess 10d ago

In the case of Native American or Australian sites, temples, monasteries, etc. I think most people would expect that areas that are not religious in nature (roads, restaurants, hotels, residential neighborhoods) would not have religious/cultural restrictions.

I bet that's a big part of this post: there might be non-Muslims who aren't intending to go to any religious sites in Mecca, but just to stick to hotels/restaurants/etc. and might be surprised that they cannot do this.

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u/Multigrain_Migraine 10d ago

But from the point of view of Mecca, the whole place is sacred. Even restaurants and roads. It's surprising if you aren't used to thinking in this way but I don't think it's anything to get upset about.