Devotee

Question

If you visit a church, mosque or temple for its very purpose, you are a devotee.
Therefore I would write the following:

All visitors to our mosque are by definition devotees.

All visitors to our moque are devotees.

Would you agree with me?

I am sure the dictionary definition of the word devotee is inconsistent with the above sentences.

People who go to Mecca are not devotees. They are pilgrims.

All visitors to Mecca are by definition pilgrims.

CalifJim · Accepted Answer

"devotee": an ardent follower, supporter, or enthusiast (as of a religion, art form, or sport).

I'm not familiar with "devotee" used in the manner you suggest, Andrei.

Re: "All visitors to Mecca are by definition pilgrims"

I don't think the truck driver who brings in the gas for gas stations in Mecca would be a pilgrim, but he could easily be thought of as a visitor.

"pilgrims" sounds awfully Western to me. Can we really apply it within Islam? Isn't there a term for that in Arabic that we might have borrowed for the purpose? Something more congruent culturally?

Maybe someone else can contribute on that point.

CJ

Andrei · Answer

CalifJim

The truck drivers or the denizens of Mecca are exceptions. Here I strictly means the people who come to worship.

You could go to Jerusalam because you are an ardent Christian. However, the people of Jerusalem and truck drivers, taxi drivers, bus drivers, restaurant and shop workers, etc. are not the visitors to the Holy City.

Pilgrims sound very western to you. I guess it is the Americn vantage point. In other cultures, people visit thousands of miles to other cities to visit sacred mosques, temples and churches.

Those visitors are pilgrims by any standard.

If they visit to see a famous museum or a mountan which is famous for volcanic eruptions, the person is a mere visitor or a tourist.

CalifJim · Answer

Yes, I see. So, in your view, all visitors to Mecca who go there for purposes of worshiping are by definition pilgrims. What about the length or difficulty of the trip to Mecca? Doesn't that enter into the definition of "pilgrim"? Suppose a family lives in a nearby town, some twenty minutes away by car, and the head of the family says, "Let's drive to Mecca and worship there". Does the twenty-minute drive to Mecca make them pilgrims?

(I meant a truck driver who lives in another city, but only visits Mecca in the course of his work as a delivery man.)

My main point is that we must be careful with the phrase "by definition"! Nothing more profound than that!

Andrei · Answer

CalifJim

If you told me never to use the words 'by definition', I would accept it. The way I write or rather define things are not 100% perfect. I want you to rectify what I write here.

It is a good point you made about a person who lives close to the city of Mecca want to worship the Holy City. Usually pilgrims are long distance travellers.

When visiting Mecca, Bodh Gaya or Jerusalem for the purpose of worshipping, I would consider as pilgrims irrespective of the proximity to the site.

You might think otherwise.

Nona the brit · Answer

I think the problem with the sentences arrises from the use of the phrase 'all visitors'.  You then have to include everyone who visits for any purpose, and many will not be devotees/pilgrims/whatever.  You cannot say 'all' unless you mean 100%.  You cannot say 'all' when you  mean only the people going to worship.  This is the part of your sentences you will have to re-phrase, otherwise it is like saying 'All people who visit London are tourists', which is obviously untrue.

Andrei · Answer

I would agree with you, Nona.

Devotee

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