Forms of Georgian Traditional Pilgrimage and Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Georgia of Today

The purpose of our paper is to show, on the example of Tbilisi, how places become sacred and the sights of pilgrimage; what are the modern and traditional forms of pilgrimage in Georgia. The study showed that the graves of the prominent people for their pure life and miraculous deeds, who lived during the Soviet and post-Soviet periods until now are the places of veneration. These people before official canonization became saints for people and as I call them, they became “folk Saints”, as the forms of their veneration are the same as canonized ones. After post-Soviet revival of religiousness in the late 1970es, one form of pilgrimage became especially popular in the Orthodox Church of Georgia. On the memorial days of Saints or just after Sunday liturgy priest and congregation visit graves of these Saints or prominent churches dedicated to them, where they pray and have small services. The study showed that this form was not traditional Georgian form of pilgrimage, but Russian one. I also argue that there might have been five forms of traditional pilgrimage in Georgia. The study was based on historical sources, published scientific works and the personal field ethnographic materials.

Acrobatic Drama Pilgrimage to the West Winning Wenhua Award

The 8th China Arts Festival was held in Wuhan from 5th to 20th of November.Guangzhou Acrobatic Troupe's acrobatic drama-"Pilgrimage to the West"competed for the Wenhua Award, which is the most prestigious prize for performance art given by the Chinese government.

Large Acrobatic Play Pilgrimage to the West

Hosted by Ministry of Culture and Guangzhou Municipal People's Government,Guangzhou Bureau of Culture organized a list of first-class singing and dancing and acrobatic plays in Guangzhou in September 2006. Among these plays, large original acrobatic play Pilgrimage to the West of Guangzhou Acrobatic Troupe went on the stage during October 12th and November 5th.

When Technology Encounters Culture: A Closer Watch on Dajia Mazu Patrol and Pilgrimage in Taiwan

Mazu, a protective sea God, has been worshipped by residents of Taiwan and southeast coast of China's Mainland as well as overseas Chinese around the globe for hundreds of years. The number of people around the world under her influence of religious belief and moral culture can reach up hundreds of million. Every year in lunar March, the over- one-week long Mazu patrol and pilgrimage held by Jenn Lann Temple in Dajia County of Taiwan attracts millions of pilgrims and tourists around the world to participate in one of the biggest religious events in the world. To keep track of the entire patrol and pilgrimage, Jenn Lann Temple has been cooperating with GIS Research Center, Feng-Chia University since 2008, setting up a GPS receiver, a digital camera, and 4 video recorders on Mazu’s palanquin. Both real-time position of the palanquin and live videos on the scene along the way of pilgrimage were published on the Internet, providing pilgrims, tourists and viewers around the world with an open access to observe the entire event. This paper details this initiative of introducing spatial technology to large cultural events. The study collects the historic tracks of Mazu’s palanquin during the pilgrimage from 2008 to 2010, analyzes their spatial-temporal attributes, and elicits several interesting facts behind the figures and maps. It also explores how spatial technologies can help organize large-scale events and even accelerate the dissemination of culture.

A STRATEGIC MODEL FOR SAFETY DURING THE HAJJ PILGRIMAGE:AN ANP APPLICATION

Saudi Arabia every year receives more than two million Muslims from all over the world to perform the Hajj, the Muslim pilgrimage to Makkah. It must take place during a specific period of the year in a specific and limited space. In spite of the effort government agencies devote to this event, a variety of disasters usually take place each year. As the number of pilgrims is increasing every year the problem is becoming an alarming one. More and more resources are allocated to eliminate the occurrence of such disasters. More than one strategy has been proposed to make the Hajj as safe as possible. Knowing that the problem is very complex as it involves numerous actors, and many entangled criteria and elements, the question is which strategy is best. This paper presents the Analytic Network Process as a sound methodology for structuring the Hajj problem by designing an analytical model to find which strategy to focus on to make the pilgrimage as safe as possible.

Poor Knowledge of Tuberculosis among the Population of Jeddah and Makkah Saudi Arabia, a High-Risk Area

SETTING: Millions of pilgrims visit Makkah (Mecca), Saudi Arabia, from regions of endemic tuberculosis. Little consideration has been given to the potential impact of this disease on the local population. OBJECTIVES: To assess knowledge about TB among residents of Makkah and Jeddah (Makkah’s principal travel gateway). METHODS: A cross-sectional survey of 1004 residents. Data were analyzed by gender. RESULTS: Spread of TB by coughing was a transmission route known by 44.2% of males and 59.6% of females (P < 0.001);20.0% of participants knew that TB is caused by bacteria;71.6% of females and 52.3% of males knew TB is infectious (P < 0.001). Regarding approaches to TB prevention, 48.0% of respondents answered patient isolation and 15.2% vaccination. Overall, 50.6% of males and 38.3% of females (P < 0.001) would seek modern medical treatment if hemoptysis occurred. With a persistent cough, 65.4% of respondents would do nothing or wait before consulting a healthcare provider. High numbers of “don’t know” responses were recorded throughout the survey. CONCLUSIONS: Within the population across pilgrimage areas in Saudi Arabia, knowledge is lacking concerning TB transmission, the cause of the disease, means of prevention and the success of treatment, highlighting an urge need for better public education.

Understanding the Dynamics Location of Very Large Populations Interacted with Service Points

This paper offers preliminary work on system dynamics and Data mining tools. It tries to understand the dynamics of carrying out large-scale events, such as Hajj. The study looks at a large, recurring problem as a variable to consider, such as how the flow of people changes over time as well as how location interacts with placement. The predicted data is analyzed using Vensim PLE 32 modeling software, GIS Arc Map 10.2.1, and AnyLogic 7.3.1 software regarding the potential placement of temporal service points, taking into consideration the three dynamic constraints and behavioral aspects: a large population, limitation in time, and space. This research proposes appropriate data analyses to ensure the optimal positioning of the service points with limited time and space for large-scale events. The conceptual framework would be the output of this study. Knowledge may be added to the insights based on the technique.

西夏晚期瓜州石窟群中的《玄奘取经图》

引言玄奘(602?-664),唐代高僧,洛州缑氏县(在今河南偃师县东)人,俗姓陈,名祎,世称唐三藏,为我国杰出佛经翻译家,法相宗创始人。唐太宗贞观三年(629),玄奘西行印度求法,经秦凉瓜沙高昌等地,历经磨难,终于在贞观五年,至中印度之摩揭陀国,入那烂陀寺修习佛法。后于印度游学十二年,至贞观十七年东归回国,经于阗、楼兰而回国,往返共历十七年,行程五万里,于贞观十九年正月还抵长安,受到文武百官盛大欢迎。