To Mecca and back by ship and Hejaz railway: a Hajji's account for young readers

Hamza Allam, Muhammad. Dalil al-Haaj.

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Excessively rare Egyptian-printed "Guide for the Pilgrim". At a time of significant political and societal change - the book was produced immediately after Egypt's independence from the UK, following the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire, and during the short-lived Kingdom of Hejaz, when the holy cities were briefly under Hashemite suzerainity - the annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca provided a centuries-old anchor of cultural stability.

As the author writes in the preface, this book is intended as a "simple guide to the Hajj", illustrated and narrated as a story so as to be easily understood by both young and older readers. In an introductory chapter ("The pilgrim before his journey"), the traveller explains to his son Husain and his daughter Fatimah the special time of the Hajj and the rules that govern it. This is followed by five letters from the father to his children, written from Jeddah, Mecca, Mina, again Mecca, and Medina, each discussing details of his journey and the various rites of Hajj. One map (p. 11) shows the last leg of the Hejaz railway as it reaches Medina, and on the last page of his account, the pilgrim writes from that holy city: "Tomorrow we will travel by the Hejaz railway, passing Dera'a all the way to Damascus. From there we will head to Beirut and then continue by sea to Port Said and then take the train to Cairo. Others have taken a different route from Yanbu to El Tor, then crossing Cairo via Suez".

The original upper cover, preserved within the pretty modern binding, is fairly stained and worn with the outer edge professionally repaired. The remainder is well preserved, showing only light browning and occasional discolouration. No copy recorded in library catalogues internationally; not in OCLC.