The Raj and Hajj management

The Hajj and Britain’s Muslim Empire

Author: John Slight

Publisher: Speaking Tiger

Pages: 440

Price:  Rs 699

The Hajj, the fifth pillar of Islam, is the supreme religious obligation for all Muslims who are physically and financially capable of undertaking the journey to Mecca. This annual pilgrimage replicates the various rituals completed by Prophet Mohammed during the only Hajj  by him towards the end of his life.

From the earliest days of Islam, thousands of Muslims journey to Hijaz, the area where Mecca is located, from different parts of the world to fulfil their religious obligation and assure themselves of divine favour. The pilgrims generally complement the completion of their Hajj rituals with a visit to Madinah to offer salutations at the prophet’s grave and see some monuments and locations associated with the early days of Islam.

Given the large number of pilgrims, the long distances they travel, the diverse modes of transport they use, and the total of two to four months involved in the entire enterprise, the Hajj has been an  administrative challenge for organisers at home and in Hijaz. The Hajj also has political ramifications associated with responsibility of rulers at both ends for ensuring the Hajj takes place in an environment of peace and comfort.

Britain became involved with Hajj management because British imperial authority came to be consolidated in diverse Muslim-populated territories from the mid-19th century. After the World War- I, Britain had become “the greatest Moslem power in the world”. It ruled Muslim populations in an “inner empire” of territories in West and East Africa; Egypt, Sudan, West Asia, the Arabian Peninsula; and South Asia and Southeast Asia (Malaya, Brunei and Sarawak).

Between 1921 and 1942, the number of pilgrims performing Hajj averaged 100,000 (with 220,000 in 1927); of these, Indians constituted the largest number— about 15,000, with over 10,000 coming from Egypt, 3,000 each from Malaya and West Africa, and another 1,000 from Sudan.

The British author, John Slight, discusses British Hajj management in 1865-1956 in different parts of the empire within the  framework Britain’s imperial experience — the political interests that Hajj management served, the place of Hajj management in the complex politics of the Hijaz at various periods, and occasional concerns that would flare up in various British offices about possible “conspiracies” against British imperialism fomented during the Hajj.

British involvement with Hajj started in India in 1865 when a cholera epidemic swept across from Hong Kong to South Asia; it was then carried to Hijaz by pilgrims, and finally devastated Europe. This compelled British administrators in Bombay to come up with effective public health initiatives. These included inspections of pilgrims and ships, the issue of vaccination certificates, the setting up of quarantine stations off Aden and Jeddah, and, above all, locating Muslim officials from India in the consulate to work for the welfare of pilgrims in Jeddah, Mecca and Madinah.

These officials, who were able to visit the holy cities that are closed to non-Muslims, were competent and also influential in framing Britain’s Hajj-related policies. One of them, Munshi Ihsanullah, was vice consul from 1927-37 and retired with an MBE and the Khan Bahadur title.

Throughout the book, Dr Slight speaks of the problem of “destitute pilgrims”, hundreds of whom languished in Jeddah after the Hajj due to abject penury. British officials initially denied they had any responsibility to fund their return. They changed their view when they realised that these abandoned wretches presented a poor spectacle of British imperial rule, and hence initiated action to arrange for their departure with public funds, supported by charities from Muslim rulers and affluent figures in India.

The idea of thousands of Muslims from different parts of the empire congregating at the same time at the same place encouraged fears of dark anti-imperialist conspiracies, particularly from Indian “Wahhabis” and even Sufis. Over time, these fears were found to be groundless, given that most pilgrims were focused on fulfilling the supreme divine commandment, with many even experiencing awe and ecstasy.

For students of Saudi affairs, Dr Slight provides an excellent account of British engagements with Sharif Hussain of Mecca, an ally in the First World War against the Ottomans, the disenchant­ment with him for his incompetence in the handling of Hajj matters, and the shift in favour of the Al-Saud of Najd (Central Arabia) taking control of Hijaz and the attendant management of Hajj.

Dr Slight gives details of the deep unhappiness among Indian pilgrims about the enforcement of the rigid tenets of Wahhabi doctrines espoused by the Al-Saud, including the systematic destruction of tombs and shrines of the prophet’s family and companions. Ultimately, pragmatism triumphed and pilgrims came to accept Saudi injunctions, albeit grudgingly.

Drawing on the rich British archives and diverse accounts of pilgrims from across the empire, Dr Slight has provided a lucid and erudite account of British management of the Hajj. This includes internal debates relating to Hajj policies, the political context at home and abroad within which they were shaped, and their implications for imperial interests in different geographical spaces where the Raj held sway. Most of these policies continued unchanged in India and Pakistan over several years after independence.

This is an outstanding contribution to a complex and under-researched aspect of imperialist rule as it was shaped in a specific area of colonial hegemony.

The reviewer is a former Indian ambassador to Saudi Arabia