Holy selfies: Performing pilgrimage in the age of social media

Abstract

In this article, we examine the selfie-taking and sharing practices of Muslim pilgrims in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. We introduce the concept of the “holy selfie” (a selfie taken during either theHajj or the Umrah pilgrimages) and report on a visual content analysis of a sample of 100 holy selfies publicly available on social networking platforms. We seek to reach an understanding of the work that holy selfies do in the context of the expressions of spiritual and religious identity of those producing them. Our findings suggest that the embodied experience of pilgrims at the holy sites finds an expressive release through holy selfies, with many pilgrims viewing selfie-taking as an important part of their journey. The selfies (and associated features) capture and document pilgrims’ experiences, contribute to their meaning-making, enable the sharing of memories with loved ones, and attract online followers. Our study provides a picture of how holy selfies blur the gender line (as many males as females take them), emerge despite the opposition of Saudi authorities, and serve as a means of engaging with a multiplicity of audiences. We seek to start a conceptual and methodological conversation about this emerging phenomenon of identity construction involving the use of new media along with the construction of affiliative identities among geographically dispersed communities of Muslim pilgrims. The taking of holy selfies can thus be read as a tactic used by 21st-century Muslims to create opportunities for self-representation and community building in a context of increasing Islamophobia.

Pilgrimage, material objects and spontaneous communitas

“…These documentary practices not only have private but also public meanings. This is evidenced in Caidi, Beazley and Marquez's (2018) study of holy selfies. The authors suggest that holy selfies facilitate interactions between Muslims and non-Muslims in a manner close to communitas.…”

The Wrong Way: An alternative critique of the Camino de Santiago

“…In the extant literature, it is suggested that pilgrims experience various forms of social pressures (Caidi et al, 2018). These include pressures from their responsibilities back home, pressures surrounding the tension between consumerism and spirituality (Caidi et al, 2018), and pressures from other pilgrims on how one should behave.…”

Social Media Representations of the Pilgrimage to Mecca

“…While on the spur of the moment he obviously felt justified in addressing malpractice, it cannot be excluded that in hindsight he might feel somewhat uncomfortable about his appearance in this video; the anger he showed does not match the expectations that people have of someone who has performed the pilgrimage and who is supposed to have been transformed by the spiritual experience. Moreover, although self-presentation does play a role in many postings of pilgrims on social media (see, e.g., Caidi, Beazley, and Colomer Marquez, 2018), it was most probably not this pilgrim's main concern when he addressed a wider Moroccan audience in the video. In fact, his contribution to a narrative that counters Morocco's mainstream national representation of the hajj was the outcome of unintended disclosure.…”