Throughout the world, Muslims turn to Makkah to pray. This ancient sanctuary, House of God, is draped in the Kiswah-a huge expanse of black cloth, embroidered in gold with verses from the Quran. Close by, in a gilded glass cage, is the stone on which the Prophet Ibrahim (AS) stood in order to complete the building of the Kabah which he erected with his son, the Prophet Ismail (AS).

This book is a new version of the original Personal Narrative of a Pilgrimage to Al-Madinah and Makkah by Captain Sir Richard F. Burton, published in 1983. Under the most trying circumstances, the author in the garb of a dervish made the Hajj pilgrimage in the year 1853, which he describes in an enthralling way.