Search

We investigated respiratory pathogens among ill Hajj pilgrims from Marseille. We also discuss the potential role of point-of-care (POC) rapid molecular diagnostic tools for this purpose. Clinical data were collected using a standardised questionnaire. Influenza A and B viruses, human rhinovirus and human coronaviruses, Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae and Klebsiella pneumoniae were investigated using real-time PCR in respiratory samples obtained during travel, at the onset of symptoms. 207 participants were included. A cough, expectoration, rhinitis and a sore throat were the most frequent respiratory symptoms, followed by loss of voice and dyspnoea. 38.7% and 25.1% of pilgrims reported a fever and influenza-like symptoms, respectively. 59.4% pilgrims received antibiotics. Rhinovirus (40.6%) was the most frequent pathogen, followed by S. aureus (35.8%) and H. influenzae (30.4%). Virus and bacteria co-infections were identified in 28.5% of participants. 25.1% pilgrims who were positive for respiratory bacteria did not receive antibiotic treatment. In the context of the Hajj pilgrimage, it is important to detect infections that can be easily managed with appropriate treatment, and those that can affect prognosis, requiring hospitalisation. POC rapid molecular diagnostic tools could be used for patient management at small Hajj medical missions and to rationalise antibiotic consumption among Hajj pilgrims.

The memorials of Gallipoli have not lost their power to move, confront and often even inspire their visitors. Their meanings are re-visited, even re-invented by each successive generation of Anzac pilgrim and, contrary to the simplistic mono-dimensional readings of some historians, the Peninsula’s commemorative landscape remains a site of fierce contestation. Pacifist and patriot, back packer and bereaved all interpret it differently. Moreover, the memorials of Gallipoli continue to alert us to different cultures of commemoration; Christian, secular and Islamic, Turkish, British, French and Australian.

Two major features characterized the religious revival of the eleventh century: a growth in pilgrimage to holy places and a new emphasis on apostolic and evangelical activity. The combination of the two lead to the creation of one of the most original religious institutions in the East: The Hospital of St. John, established some time before 1071 as a hospice for poor and sick pilgrims coming to Jerusalem. This paper analyses its origins and it activities as an international order established for the service of pilgrims and the poor in the Latin East from the XIth to the XIIIth centuries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses about lower and upper respiratory tract information during the Hajj pilgrimage and their effect on the health of pilgrims. Topics discussed include the epidemiology and statistics of upper respiratory tract infection (ARI) during Hajj, diagnosis and treatment of pneumonia, and the outbreak of pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) during Hajj.

A discussion, through a literature review, on the use of photographic documents and Documentary Analysis (DA) for the preservation, description and retrieval of images of pilgrimages in northeastern Brazil, which are archived at the Laboratory of Information Science and Memory (LACIM). The photograph acts as an expression of faith and devotion; it is a witnesses and documents, through images, the records of the dayto- day folk religion in its multiple meanings and situations, linked to the sacred. The DA -as a set of procedures performed after the reading of documents- facilitates the analysed collection location or query through the documentary language. This paper tries to show that the particular form of the information contained in a photographic archive echoes submerged memories of the pilgrims, authenticating a social fact in the country, capturing the sacredness from specific moments of celebration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: While there exists a considerable body of literature on pilgrimages and religious tourism, research on Buddhist pilgrimage sites remains scant. In particular, little has been published about how tourism is perceived by the monks and nuns living at the Buddhist sites that receive visitors. This article examines the Buddhist monks’ and nuns’ perceptions towards tourism at Pu-Tuo-Shan, one of the Four Sacred Mountains of China, that during the last decades has become the destination of increasing numbers of pilgrims and tourists. Interviews with monks and nuns reveal how they perceive the presence of visitors in their sacred land. The study also finds that the Buddhist worldview plays a significant role in shaping their attitudes. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This study estimates the point prevalence of symptomatic respiratory tract infections (RTIs) among returned Hajj pilgrims and their contacts in 2021. Using the computer-assisted telephone interview (CATI) technique, domestic pilgrims were invited to participate in this cross-sectional survey two weeks after their home return from Hajj. Of 600 pilgrims approached, 79.3% agreed to participate and completed the survey. Syndromic definitions were used to clinically diagnose possible influenza-like illnesses (ILI) and COVID-19. Median with range was applied to summarise the continuous data, and frequencies and proportions were used to present the categorical variables. Simple logistic regression was carried out to assess the correlations of potential factors with the prevalence of RTIs. The majority of pilgrims (88.7%) reported receiving at least two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine before Hajj. Eleven (2.3%) pilgrims reported respiratory symptoms with the estimated prevalence of possible ILI being 0.2%, and of possible COVID-19 being 0.4%. Among those who were symptomatic, five (45.5%) reported that one or more of their close contacts had developed similar RTI symptoms after the pilgrims' home return. The prevalence of RTIs among pilgrims who returned home after attending the Hajj 2021 was lower compared with those reported in the pre-pandemic studies; however, the risk of spread of infection among contacts following Hajj is still a concern.

Travel to religious sites has increased in the past few decades. In the eyes of some scholars, this increased visitation adds to the already prevalent view of religious sites as contested spaces and places. This paper adds to the literature on religious tourism and contested places by looking at the ways in which religious sites act as a nexus for modernist/post-modernist tensions surrounding personal and group identity formation. After briefly discussing travel as an identity-building exercise, the case study of Temple Square in Salt Lake City, UT, is used to examine the ways in which religious site managers at Temple Square negotiate these modernist/post-modernist identity tensions. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Despite significant scholarship in anthropology and tourism studies related respectively to gifts and souvenirs, little is known about why and to whom people give souvenir gifts. Using an American case study, this article shows how Holy Land pilgrimage and its attendant gift-giving are a crucial way that older women navigate tensions specific to the consumer culture and religious patterns of the 21st-century US. By giving souvenirs, pilgrims uphold the importance of individuality (as consumers and as believers), while also fulfilling what they believe is their special responsibility to bolster collective faith, particularly amongst networks of female friends and family. Crucial in this endeavor is how pilgrims negotiate the fluid line between commodity and religious object. Sometimes they imbue these commercial objects with divine presence, thereby creating powerful tools for asserting ‘soft’ authority at home. At other times, they present religious souvenirs as commodities, downplaying their spiritual value in order to circumvent rejection. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The Krabi Provincial Administrative Organization, in co-operation with the Krabi provincial government (southern Thailand), has since 2006 organized a conjoint street procession of the Chinese shrines in the province, in the course of their Vegetarian Festival, to a prayer at the Krabi City Pillar. Two heretofore unrelated rituals, one a popular Chinese custom, the other a cult of Thai civic religion, with roots in Indian Brahmanism, were thus amalgamated. The conspicuous conjoint procession, bringing together the discrete processions of numerous shrines dispersed throughout the province, transformed the character of the shrines' processions, and superimposed an encompassing Thai cosmography upon the localized cosmic images engendered by the festival rituals in the individual shrines. The spectacular event, featuring pierced or otherwise self-mutilating spirit mediums of the various shrines, made Krabi a potential competitor with the established centers of the festival, Phuket and Trang, for the patronage of domestic and Chinese diasporic devotees; but the ‘gruesome’ and repetitive character of the mediums' performances seems to impair the chances of the conjoint procession of becoming a major attraction for Western tourists. This article relates the context, process and consequences of this appropriation of a popular Chinese custom for a Thai civic cult and discusses it in terms of a comparative framework for the study of change in tourism-related festivals. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Abstract: Over two million pilgrims perform annual rituals in Makkah region, which when coincides with summer months, exposes them to outdoor temperatures exceeding 45°C and humidity approaching 80%. Accordingly, heat illnesses are common including explicit heat strokes and heat exhaustion. No previous studies elaborated on electrocardiographic changes among this unique cohort. Objective: To compare electrocardiographic changes in three groups exposed to high outdoor temperatures, namely, patients with heat stroke compared to patients with heat exhaustion and a control group exposed to the same outdoor temperatures without clinical manifestations. Subjects and methods: Through case control design, two case groups of patients were selected. The first group (G1) was 34 patients admitted to the cooling units with clinical picture of heat stroke and the second group (G2) comprised 28 patients admitted with heat exhaustion. The control group (G3) included 31 patients selected from relatives of patients and outdoor workers. The outcome for comparison was 12-lead electrocardiographic changes done for all selected individuals. For (G1), the ECG was done while they were prepared for cooling or immediately when cooling was started. Results: In G1, 18 were females and 16 males with ages of 20–76years (59±11years). Their heart rates ranged from 64 to 160 beats per minute (mean 120±24 per minute). Only 5/34 ECGs were completely normal. Sinus tachycardia was present in 27/34 patients (79%), with ischemic changes in 9/34 ECGs. In G2, 24 were males and four females with ages of 25–80 (mean 47±15years), the heart rate ranged from 64 to 170 per minute (mean 97±16 per minute). Seven out of 28 ECGs were normal (25%) while 21/28 had some abnormalities. None had ischemic changes. Control group (G3), was five females and 26 males ages 18–80years (mean 38±15years), 22/31 had normal ECGs (71%). All had normal sinus rhythm, 56–98 beats per minute (74±11). Nine patients had some electrocardiographic abnormalities but none had ischemic changes. Conclusion: We conclude that electrocardiographic abnormalities occur with a high frequency in patients with heat stroke and heat exhaustion, with sinus tachycardia and ischemic changes occurring more frequently in patients with heat stroke. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Copyright of Zbornik Odsjeka za Povijesne Znanosti. Zavoda za Povijesne i Društvene Znanosti is the property of Hrvatska Akademija Znanosti i Umjetnosti, Zavod za Povijesne i Drustvene Znanosti and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This essay examines the phenomenon of group pilgrimage in early twentieth-century Russia. Made possible by modern advances in technology and transportation, parish pilgrimages represented a new form of spiritual travel at the end of the imperial era, allowing greater numbers of Orthodox men and women to visit and venerate sacred sites across the length and breadth of the Russian empire. Undertaken with the blessing of Orthodox bishops and often underwritten by local merchants and entrepreneurs, organized parish pilgrimages also afforded new pedagogical opportunities for the Orthodox clergy to instruct their flock in the articles of faith, to supervise and give structure to lay devotional practices, and to assert the continued meaningfulness of the Orthodox faith against the rival claims of sectarians, secularists, and socialists alike. In adapting an age-old practice for present-day purposes, the clerical organizers of parish pilgrimages sought a spiritual solution to the crises engendered by Russia's passage into modernity. Just as mass pilgrimages by rail and steam could accommodate greater numbers of participants, so too did they invite a wide range of multiple meanings from the Orthodox men and women who took part in them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper offers a reading of recent accounts of journeys on one of the great Christian pilgrimage routes, to Santiago de Compostela in north-west Spain. It focuses on the common narrative strategy of a disrupted sense of time expressed by the pilgrim-authors, and argues that this trope is intrinsic to texts that suggest that time has been 'crossed' and that the author has undertaken a 'medieval' experience. It is argued that this trope of crossing time is closely linked to two central themes of contemporary Santiago texts: the construction of the author as an authentic pilgrim, and the experience of forms of community that are outside the norm in the pilgrim's everyday life. These common themes in Santiago pilgrim narratives are said to be reflective of the authors' distrust of modernity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The announcement of his high school class' fiftieth year reunion prompted the author to read a short story and an essay he had written in high school. He discovered considerable continuity between the themes with which the boy was preoccupied (especially hope but also wisdom and love) and his adult vocational interests and writings. Invoking John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress (1956) the author concludes that the high school boy who lives inside of him has been his faithful companion throughout the years. He also observes that the short story has proven prophetic because it tells about an old man in search of a young boy who appears to have found what both are searching for. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study unit Spirituality for Health Carers was part of the BSc(Hons) nursing/midwifery programme which aimed at providing an innovative clinical placement for students. This placement promoted the delivery of spiritual care to clients in Lourdes. This paper discusses the experiential learning of students based on Gibbs (1988) Framework of Reflection. The scarce research demonstrates that caring for clients in Lourdes enabled students to develop meaningful relationships due to increased carer to clients' ratio, more time available and the presence of role models who were dedicated and compassionate with clients. Qualitative data were collected by a reflective diary, a written reflective assignment and a focus group discussion. The four themes which emerged from the data are team building, holistic care, trustful nurse-client relationship and strengthening personal spirituality. Recommendations were proposed to enhance the delivery of spiritual care and holistic care by further exposure of students to care for the pilgrims in Lourdes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Res Antiquitatis: Journal of Ancient History is the property of Centro de Historia de Alem-Mar and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Summary Objective To identify commonly reported community-acquired organisms and antimicrobial resistance patterns exhibited by Gram-positive and Gram-negative pathogens among pilgrims visiting emergency care departments in Makkah. Method The study was designed as a retrospective audit of all patients (pilgrims) admitted to two hospitals and residing in the city of Makkah, Saudi Arabia. Results Among 374 isolates, Gram-negative pathogens accounted for 280 (75%), while the remaining 94 (25%) were Gram-positive organisms. Among all isolated pathogens, the highest resistance was observed for amoxicillin–clavulanic acid. Klebsiella pneumoniae had the highest resistance to amoxicillin–clavulanic acid and ampicillin. Most of the organisms were sensitive to tobramycin except Acinetobacter baumannii ( n = 3, 50%), Escherichia coli ( n = 4, 57%), and K. pneumoniae ( n = 6, 46%). Conclusion Overall, a high resistance was observed for beta-lactam antibiotics. In addition, a high resistance was noted for ceftazidime with A. baumannii species ( n = 16, 77%). However, for quinolones, the highest resistance to ciprofloxacin was observed for E. coli , A. baumannii , methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus , and K. pneumoniae . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For the sustainable development of tourism in destination areas, it is important to have responsible visitors with high pro-environmental orientation and a critical minimum knowledge of ecotourism. Most of the pilgrimage, adventurous, and leisure destinations in India are in ecologically sensitive locations with bountiful environmental resources. Thus, understanding tourists' environmental orientation is critical for destination management. In this context, the present study investigates the environmental orientation and ecotourism awareness of tourists visiting some of the key environmental hotspots of northern India. A comparative analysis of the environmental orientations of pilgrims, adventurists, and leisure tourists is presented. The findings generally reveal that there exist significant differences among these categories in terms of environmental orientation and awareness about ecotourism. Pilgrims and adventurists exhibit superior environmental orientation compared to leisure tourists. Yet, when it comes to the awareness of ecotourism, none of the groups under study show great awareness, except that adventurists stand better compared to the other two groups. Thus, the study implies that the transformation of general environmental orientation in to awareness of ecotourism is not linear and is much more problematic than is expected. The paper is concluded with a discussion of the implications for future research and managerial practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article examines the intensity and structure of religiosity and spirituality of German-speaking foot and bicycle pilgrims on the Way of St. James within the framework of a multidimensional model of religiosity. The following nine aspects are distinguished: religious questions, faith, religious and spiritual identity, worship, prayer, meditation, monistic and dualistic religious experiences. Data of N = 425 German-speaking pilgrims of the Way of St. James from the years 2017 and 2018 are analyzed. The data of the Religion Monitor 2017 from Germany, Austria, and Switzerland ( N = 2837 ) serves as a population-representative comparison sample. Descriptive statistics, t-tests, and multiple regression analyses are used to analyze and to compare the two groups. The results show that German-speaking pilgrims in the analyzed sample have substantially higher values on all dimensions of religiosity than the general population in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. This difference is most pronounced in the spiritual self-concept. However, for most pilgrims, the categories religious and spiritual are not mutually exclusive. Rather, spirituality forms a basis shared by almost all pilgrims in the sample, to which religiousness is added for many. Further, results are discussed in the light of the existing foot and bicycle pilgrimage research. Conclusively, it can be said that tourism and church actors should consider the religious character of pilgrims, which remains despite all changes in the religious landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the consequences of a surge in Orthodox pilgrimages in late imperial Russia. It highlights the struggle of the Holy Trinity St. Sergius Monastery and Solovetskii monasteries to control the increasing numbers of pilgrims during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Reasons people undertook pilgrimages to monastic institutions are discussed and include addressing spiritual and physical needs. Challenges faced by monasteries related to the visitation of pilgrims are also explored.

The amount of solid waste in the vicinity of the river Ganga increased rapidly during the festive days of Ardh-Kumbh. The initial amount of solid waste was 775.0 kg, observed on 30th January 2004 in the Har Ki Pauri area, which increased to 4,550.0 kg on the main bathing day of 4th May 2004, showing nearly a six-fold increase. The total amount of solid waste collected during nine days of observations was 23,865.0 kg. The rate of solid waste generation fell sharply during the following week, after the main bathing day, and was found to be 1,155.0 kg, which is still about 14.90% higher than the initial value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A high incidence of respiratory infection, including influenza, has been reported at the Hajj in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. Reported rates of influenza have been higher among UK than among domestic pilgrims, but this could be explained by methodological differences among studies. Accordingly, the present study compared the frequencies of respiratory viruses among UK and Saudi pilgrims using the same study design. Pilgrims with upper respiratory tract symptoms were recruited from Mecca and the neighbouring valley Mina during the Hajj 2006. Nasal swabs were used for point-of-care influenza testing and real-time RT-PCR (rtRT-PCR) tests for influenza virus, rhinovirus, parainfluenza virus, adenovirus, human metapneumovirus and respiratory syncytial virus. Of 260 pilgrims investigated, 150 were from the UK and 110 were Saudi; of these, 38 (25%) UK pilgrims and 14 (13%) Saudi pilgrims had respiratory infections detectable by rtRT-PCR (p 0.01). In the UK group, there were 19 (13%) cases of rhinovirus infection, 15 (10%) cases of influenza virus infection, two (1%) cases of dual infections with influenza virus and rhinovirus, one (3%) case of parainfluenza virus infection, and one (1%) case of respiratory syncytial virus infection. Fifty-six (37%) UK pilgrims had been vaccinated against influenza virus, with the rates of influenza in the vaccinated and unvaccinated group being 7% and 14%, respectively (p 0.19). In the Saudi group, there were three (3%) cases of rhinovirus infection and 11 (10%) cases of influenza. Only four (4%) Saudi pilgrims had been vaccinated against influenza virus, and none of these was infected with influenza virus. Overall, a significantly higher proportion of the UK pilgrims had detectable respiratory infections (25% vs. 13%, p 0.01). Influenza rates were similar in both groups, but the reported rates of influenza vaccination differed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the migration analysis some aspects have been considered like the place of origin and migrants' destination, the sum of remittance, the impact in the local economy or the demographic composition. However we consider that beside these factors there is a subjective dimension that alludes to the way migrants elaborate cognitive and emotionally the vicissitudes of the migratory experience. In this essay we propose an interpretation from the social imaginary notion of Cornelius Catoriadis, who recognizes the existence of significance chain, of course money, the crossing border, the place of origin and the return are invested with a sacrality cover. In the same we warn that the trip to the United States represents imaginary a pilgrimage looking for the "promised land". [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]