Weird Beliefs

Author(s): Barry Wilson
Publisher: Barry Wilson

Page 5

been less affected by outside influences than most other native peoples of that region. However, recent reports indicate that they no longer practice head-hunting and head-shrinking. Most of the shrunken heads sold in regional tourist shops are either replicas or fakes.
The Black Stone of Mecca According to Islamic traditions, the Black Stone of Mecca fell directly from heaven thousands of years ago. The traditions also say that the stone has the power to cleanse a person of his sins by absorbing them into itself. In fact, some Muslims believe that the stone was originally a pure white color, but that it has gradually turned black because of all the sins it has absorbed since it fell.
The stone is roughly oval in shape with an average thickness of about 10 inches [25 centimeters]. It is probably either a meteorite, a piece of volcanic lava, a chunk of agate, or a fragment of glass created by the impact of a meteorite. It was broken into a number of pieces at some point in the past, perhaps accidentally, or possibly during an attempt to destroy it. What survives now is an assemblage of pieces held together by an external frame. This assemblage is embedded in a corner of an ancient structure called the Kaaba, which is located in the courtyard of the Sacred Mosque of Mecca.
The exposed surface of the stone has been polished smooth by the hands of millions of Muslim pilgrims, who try to touch it, or even kiss it, during their visits to Mecca. All Muslims hope to make at least one pilgrimage to the city, and during a visit they are supposed to walk around the Kaaba seven times and touch or kiss the stone each time they pass it. But usually the crowd around the Kaaba is so dense that most pilgrims can't get near the stone, and they have to be satisfied with merely pointing toward it.
According to the traditions about the stone, it fell from heaven to show Adam and Eve, who had left the Garden of Eden, where they should build an altar. The location of this altar was submerged during Noah's flood, but