Published in BMC Public Health
Background Epidemiological data from Mexico have documented an increase in heroin use in the last decade. However, there is no comprehensive care strategy for heroin users, especially those who have been accused of a crime. The objective of this study was to describe the heroin and methadone use of intravenous heroin users of both sexes who have be...
Published in Journal of religion and health
Millions of pilgrims visit Lourdes each year, often seeking revitalisation rather than miraculous cures. We sought to understand the phenomenon of transcendent experiences. We spoke with 67 pilgrims including assisted pilgrims, young volunteers and medical staff. About two in five reported a transcendent experience: some felt they had communicated ...
Published in Journal of Religion and Health
Lourdes, France, is a major site of pilgrimage, particularly for Roman Catholics with illness. The direct impact of pilgrimage on pilgrim quality of life (QOL) has not previously been measured. The present study aimed to measure the impact of pilgrimage to Lourdes on QOL in self-defined “sick pilgrims”. The standardised EuroQol EQ-5D-5L questionnai...
Published in Der Islam
This article presents the edition of three unpublished 16th-century scrolls preserved in the Palau Ribes Collection (Barcelona) that contain diagrammatic representations of the holy places of Mecca and Medina. One of them certifies the fulfillment of the major (ḥajj) and minor (ʿumra) pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca on behalf of a little girl,...
Based on two field studies on the micro level of items which place-makers and merchants display at holy sites, an argument about the supply side of the political economy of pilgrimage is proposed. Place-makers and merchants rely on the established pilgrims’ traditions but differ concerning innovations. Place-makers are the principals of the sites a...
Going on pilgrimage is a vivid tradition in India and its masterpiece, the Kumbh Mela, is probably the biggest mega-event of its kind in the world. The identification of holy places at established places of pilgrimage is an ongoing process even in our times, contributing to the diffusion-mechanisms of certain pilgrimages. In contradiction to this, ...
Published in Current tropical medicine reports
We discuss the risk of COVID-19 in religious mass gathering events including Hajj and Umrah pilgrimages. The risk of transmission of respiratory viruses including COVID-19 is particularly high due to the overcrowding conditions at the Hajj and Umrah. The profile of the Hajj pilgrims who tend to be older and with multiple comorbidities corresponds t...
Published in Social science & medicine (1982)
Increased attention to links between walking, health and wellbeing have contributed to a growth in the number of walking groups meeting on a regular basis to offer short, social walks. Walking group interventions are known to increase physical activity and to have wide-ranging health benefits, and there is evidence that drop out is generally low. T...
River Ganga flows through one of the most sacred pilgrimage spots in the city of Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh where it meets its largest tributary Yamuna. The site at the confluence of these rivers hosts the Hindu festival – “Kumbh Mela” where myriads of pilgrims’ bathe in river Ganga.
The festival acts as an external force of human disturbance which r...
Nature is unique on earth. Civilizations over time have defined various landscapes, some of which have been changed and some are in the process. Sacredscapes are one among those that have sustained over many centuries. The urbanization is in the process of transforming this sacred identity of many cities. But what is forgotten is beyond religion, t...
