November 15, 2023
Sanhedrin Sermo

Pagan Origins of the Haj

Multiple Authors

It seems that the pilgrimage to Mecca, and the practices therein as followed by the Islamic religion, are all rooted in the pagan past.

Escribe:

It seems that the pilgrimage to Mecca, and the practices therein as followed by the Islamic religion, are all rooted in the pagan past.

Pharisee:

As far as I can see, all the major practices of the Haj as they seem to have been instituted by Mohamed himself are rooted in the ancient past, even much earlier as they were arguably present in the Petra as proven by archeology. Even the place of the original Ka’ba had been discovered as it was destroyed by boulders from the catapult brought during the Umayyad-Abbasid war. Historically speaking Petra which former name was Becca or Bacca was an important historical place for Muslims because it lies in the ancient trade route of the Hejaz and because the earlier Nabateans constructed it to have temples and tombs which were once revered and which the Umayyads later used for their own purposes. It is a logical conclusion that the Umayyad rulers who preferred priority profits to prophets will take advantage of the already recognized features of the Nabatean culture. Unlike us Pharisees, the Muslims especially the Abbasids, did not foresee what the science of archeology can do, which is digging out the truth from remnants of the past. Did we not use the history of the so-called messiahs in gauging the truth about the Christ, for he was just like them, promising liberty for Israel but not fulfilling it. During that civil war in fact, the black stone regarded as the holiest object in Petra was broken. What Ibn Zoybr, the Abbasid field marshal, did was to bring the biggest piece available and still recognizable from the original relic to Mecca where Mohamed was thought to have lived. Then, of course all worshippers of the black stone all shifted in the direction of Mecca because the Becca Ka’ba which formerly housed it had been destroyed. Where the black stone went, its worshippers went. Don’t be surprised that one of these days some clever guy will have the conversation between Jesus and St. Peter transferred to Petra, Jordan so that they will claim afterwards that Christ established His church upon the Rock there! The Greeks are responsible for calling it Petra (rock) because of its rosy carved stone structures sculpted right on the mountain rock.

Saducee:

It’s sad to see that the Pharisee had grown so enamored to the prostituted science of archeology which is actually mainly guesswork. Perhaps the Pharisee deserved to be really taken as the ‘separated ones’ for they believe in these inventions. It is just that they are ignorant of the fact that about 300 patriarchs and prophets are buried in Mecca attesting to the fact of its holiness. Even Adam and Eve who have literally fallen from the atmospheric Eden were only reunited in the slope of Mt. Arafah which overlooks Mecca. In fact, they are still there praying in their tombs. This is why those who are responsible in the great construction in mecca right now should be careful not to disturb them as some 77-300 of these notable prophets may be still be in prayer. We just don’t understand why they are still not in Janna yet. This is why pilgrims of the Haj assemble here and affirm the greatness of Allah. Even Abraham and Ishmael were buried here and they were the ones who originally built the Ka’ba! How could it be Petra therefore? And even Noah settled here after the deluge so that mankind could continue. Christians are ignorant of the fact that even the Queen of Sheba was buried here. Now, here are the true facts: the mountains Marwan and Safah are both in Mecca as pilgrims until today still run between them seven times commemorating Hagar’s run to find water between two mountains for her child Ismael. And also take note that that the three jumaraats where Shaitan stood to tempt Abraham into breaking his vow of sacrificing Ishmael are also here with the pilgrims stoning them to recall Abraham’s stoning Shaitan seven times. And lastly, it is obvious that the miraculous Zamzam well sprang here inexhaustible for all time to quench the thirst of millions of pilgrims. Poor Pharisee, what can you say now?

Herodian:

We Herodians are loyal to you Romans ergo you should hear me out. Our constructivist viewpoint is keen on this, Roman and I say that this Mecca holiness is just made up. According to their account, Abraham already destroyed the idols of the Ka’ba during his time and yet we see him building the Ka’ba again with Ishmael! I thought they were the original builders then, or did they allow the replacing of those idols but there would they be that negligent? Besides, there is a massive construction being made there right now; aren’t those construction diggers going to find any of the 300 or so sacred bones buried there? Sad to say, the Sadducee mentioned Marwan and Safah as in Mecca but we rather rename them as Martwo or Safah, Jr. because the original mountains are in Petra, with idols even on top of them to signify their importance. Those mentioned as jebels in Mecca are nothing more than mounds or if we are too be lenient just hillocks. The original jumaraat in Petra is only one but this may account for the lessening of the Marwah and Safah which are located in Mecca because there are three jumaraats in the present Mecca because perhaps the two mountains were quarried stone for stone to supply the Shaitan stoners. By the way are there three Shaitans in Islam for why are there now three jumaraats? I thought the Muslims don’t believe in the trinity. By the way, we, Herodians believe in three Herods; the great, Archelao and Antiphas. Please believe in them, too. Then let’s talk about the Zamzam well, that’s the only body of water in Mecca. And yet, Islamic tradition speaks of a lush valley where there are even figs and olives as the natural terrain of Mecca which therefore assumes the presence of wells and waterways. But Mecca definitely is a dry place and assuming Zamzam is really inexhaustible, it can just quench only around a million people because it’s just a well. Well, right now, during the pilgrimage days there are around four million people around the Ka’ba where it is nearly located. However, according to Herodian calculations, to which Freemasons are very much acquainted, this is only possible if the saltwater-converting facilities of which Saudi Arabia have in numerous spots near Mecca. And o course, this is not even a Mohammedan miracle but a prodigy caused by Saudi dinars.

Imperial Roman:

But it’s just incredible. Aren’t we romancing the stones here? Because in our history as world conquerors, we have never acknowledged the presence of Mecca as an important city, say something like a trading center or a kingdom’s capital but even Josephus, your compatriot which we have made into a general for our siege of Jerusalem and our adopted and credible historian is silent about Mecca’s greatness. We wouldn’t be surprised if the Muslim scholars find that many of our emperors are buried in Mecca especially Nero. Are we not just confabulating things about Mecca. What say you, you Sadducee?

Zealot:

The reason perhaps that you do not understand Islam is because you do not understand revolutions. One well-versed in Islamic history should understand that during the Abbasid reforms especially the ones influenced by Wahab included the destruction of Toms or markers glorifying mere men. As Wahab is the ultimate Islamic reformist he wanted to follow Mohamed’s disgust over the idolatrous practice of people praying in tombs of people, even if they are prophets or patriarchs. Wahab, the reformist, who followed a strict monotheistic stance wanted to end all forms of idolatry and therefore, you can not blame him for destroying the tomb markers. Hence, none can be found now in Mecca. In fact, the last mints of coinage during the time of Adam Malik did not contain anymore his picture which in the earlier mint showed him with a drawn sword symbolic of his willingness to make war with the Christian Byzantine empire. What’s wrong with you people, you would like Roman and Hellenic idolatry to penetrate Islam so that you can complete your histories? We Zealots gave up our lives for the true cause but we didn’t ask for tombs or memorials!

Well, good for you, Zealots for your humble restraint but we, the brotherhood rather say that the destruction of ancient artifacts and memorials are invaluable as evidences in our search for truth. For even now, because of the so many loopholes and inconsistencies concerning the life of Mohammed, it is fortunate that his remains are still intact in Medina. What is this, a double standard that one can’t keep tombs, no matter how holy the person is, in Mecca which you can do in Medina. Another reason for the Hijra, perhaps.

Now, please consider this; how is it possible that pertinent historic records or literature of the Islamic faith came only during the time of Malik and why did these documents only appear only in places near Baghdad where the historically, and usually the caliphate resided? Aren’t these times and places too distant for credibility of Islam to be established. As far as records show, Uthman was the first to attempt standardizing the Quran with his first “five copies” although this could hardly be called a standard as it was a collect, select and burn or compile method of standardization. Even this had to rely much on memorization and the copy which belonged to Aisha rightfully kept in bed and at least a page consumed by an intrusive ruminant. The hadith, the standard Quran and its versions, the tafsirs and the other documents of interest have all to be compiled originally under the care of Malik. Perhaps, he is Islam’s second Adam as why should everything fall upon his shoulders; poor khalifa!

Now, the link with the past that we will tell you instead is how historical Eid’l Fitr is.
This feast began when the last king of Babylon, Nabonidus (556-539 BC), an eccentric king decided to become an itinerant preacher instead of just ruling Babylon. With his self-imposed exile, something like what Gautama did in Sakya-Muni, he left the kingdom under the care of Belshazzar, his eldest son; for spiritual reasons. In fact, cuneiform legal documents from the period, 6 B.C. showed that only those of Nabonidus and Belshazzar uniquely did not include an oath top god and king which signified a religious reform. Consequently, he went on proselytizing in Northern Arabia and established a religious base in Teima (Teyma). This he did for the god, Sin (otherwise known as Ur ) for whom a sanctuary was established at Sumater Harabesi, close to Edessa at Harran, dated to 300 B.C. which survived into Islamic times. The same cult was taken up conspicuously by the Arabs.

Some historians are confused on the fact that during those times, Babylon seemed to have two kings ruling at the same time. Well, this is what actually happened; Nabonidus decided to become a religious leader and left Belshazzar regent. Belshazzar was in fact, the one king mentioned in Daniel 5:1 who gave a banquet with a thousand of his nobles and drank with them in the great feast. It was then that the mysterious handwriting on the wall appeared: “Mene, mene tekel upharsin (or perez).” The message as interpreted meant ‘God has numbered the days of your kingdom and brought it to the end/ you have been weighed on the scales and found wanting/ your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians’ Therefore, Daniel had foretold as a warning to a tragic end as those feasting were already weighed, measured and now deserving punishment by the end of its sovereignty. The feast was throughout Babylon and it was the same where Nabonidus was in his sanctuary.

To better understand this, one must go back in time some more to the Mesopotamian religion of Shamash, the sun god, and Ishtar, who is also Aphrodite to the Greeks. The moon god, Su-en completes the trinity. The name Su-en is later contracted to Sin who is symbolized by the crescent moon. Each spring Sin visits his father En-lil and these pagans fast in order for him to return once again. This actually is the disappearance of the moon when it joins the star cluster Pleiades when this constellation enters Taurus. The Sabiths of Harran fasted during the month pleading Sin or Nanna to return. At the end of the fasting, and upon the return of the moon, they give out a great feast in thanksgiving much earlier than the time of Mohammed and this is also called “Eid’l Fitr” (Al Fetr and Al Fihrsit are the variants). Tenth century historian Ibn Al Nadir also knew this and in the said feast, the people echo that there is no other god greater than Sin. This is how the crescent moon and the star began being used to decorate minarets and mosques and they do not consider this idolatry. In fact, St. John Damascene, one of our most credible sources links Ishtar or the star to the black stone in Ka’ba.

Now going back to the Babylonian feast story of the king, this was in fact the Babylonian
“Eid’l Fitr”. Many would like to ask perhaps the reason why there are two menes. Well, we believe that Babylon earned two whammies for provoking Yahweh’s anger at that time. First, Nabonidus had taught a heretical feast and idolatrous practice at Deys Kadi by the gate of Harran at that time and Belshazzar had the use of the blessed golden vessels and silver cups from the temple of Jerusalem in his drinking bout. The Babylonian kings asked for it and they got it! Daniel 5:30-31 narrated thus; “That very night, Belshazzar, King of the Babylonians, was slain and Darius, the Mede, took over the kingdom at the age of 62.” It is up for the future scholars to find out what happened to Nabonidus but it does not augur good because there are two menes, too many.

Our last archeological note is on the four stelas found in Harran by Dr. D. S. Rice which were found face down on the foundation of a mosque in Harran. It seemed that they used to stand on an old temple dedicated to Sin (no pun intended) on the same place where the mosque stood. The text of the stelas present Nabonidus and his mother bragging about the king’s exploits to spread the cult of the crescent moon god, Sin.

Now, you would understand why the crescent moon still decorated the flags of some Islamic countries. And now, you would know why some of them dropped the symbols for something more modern. But it’s still easy to find masjids or mosques decorated by the crescent moon and a star but that is not idolatry! Wahab and Malik missed this one or it’s just that they don’t want to miss Sin and Miss Ishtar, too.

Tariq Sulayman
Ibn Said In’Zaid
Daniel Santos

Pagan Origins of the Haj

Multiple Authors

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