Hajj Pilgrims Perform Farewell Tawaf, Robot With Automatic Navigation Shares Copy Of Qur'an

JAKARTA - A robot is distributing copies of the Koran to worshipers who make their final hajj procession before leaving Mecca, the General Presidency for the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques reported on Monday.

Tawaf Al-Wada or Farewell Tawaf is carried out before the congregation departs from Mecca and is a mandatory ritual, as a closing of the annual pilgrimage series.

Sheikh Badr bin Abdullah Al-Furaih, the presidential vice president for guidance affairs explained, the robot uses a dual automatic navigation system and has three-dimensional sensors to avoid collisions with obstacles and people.

This robot weighs 59 kg and can carry loads up to 40 kg. Its speed, which can be controlled, varies between 0.5-1.2/s, and its dimensions are 565 x 537 x 1290 mm.

Al-Furaih said the use of technology, modern applications, and artificial intelligence was one of the priorities of the head of the presidency, Dr. Sheikh Abdurrahman As-Sudais.

One part of improving services for technology-based congregations is the translation of the Arafah sermon, which this year was translated into 14 different languages.

Sheikh Abdurrahman As-Sudais said the Kingdom's leadership offered unlimited support for the development of the services of the Prophet's Mosque and the Grand Mosque.

As the direct translation of Arafat's sermons enters its fifth year, the move has been expanded to cover 14 languages, he said. The direct translation of Arafat's Day sermons is a vast undertaking for the world, and particularly for visitors to holy sites, enabling non-Arabic speakers to listen in their native language, he explained.

The translation will benefit 1 million people in the first year, 11 million in the second year, 50 million in the third year, 100 million in the fourth year and will reach 200 million people worldwide by 2022, he added.

He said that the sermon was originally translated into two languages. This was increased to five and, later, 10 languages. The leadership then approved translations in English, French, Malay, Urdu, Persian, Russian, Chinese, Bengali, Turkish and Hausa, with Spanish, Indian, Swahili and Tamil added to this year's list.