Speaker 1: Hia Allon says, have you then considered a let in
Speaker 1: Aloza and Manette the other third? Deep within the sands
Speaker 1: of Arabia, whispers of a bygone era still linger. Let Usa,
Speaker 1: two goddesses who once held sway over the peninsula, stand
Speaker 1: as potent symbols of a time before Islam. Their faded
Speaker 1: statues and crumbling shrines hold a peculiar fascination in the
Speaker 1: modern world, particularly in light of Islamic prophecies hinting a
Speaker 1: return to idle worship in the end times. As the
Speaker 1: prophets of a Laho AliOS Selim said, the system of
Speaker 1: night and day would not end until the people have
Speaker 1: taken to the worship of a Let and Uzza. A
Speaker 1: wave of apparent Saudi social media accounts have been promoting
Speaker 1: and calling for the return of ancient Arabian deities as
Speaker 1: part of the kingdom's national heritage, amid the Countri's push
Speaker 1: to replace its religious identity with a more nationalist one.
Speaker 1: One user on Acts posted pictures of the ancient Arabian
Speaker 1: goddess Aluza, showing imitated rituals surrounding the statue and existing
Speaker 1: figures of it displayed in Saudi museums. According to that user,
Speaker 1: from the past to the future, Alusa is always there
Speaker 1: as Saudi Arabians, the user wrote, citizens are deeply connected
Speaker 1: with our past and it doesn't matter if we are
Speaker 1: Muslims or not. The user also cited the three main
Speaker 1: goddesses of the pre Islamic polytheistic pantheon, a Let, Manat,
Speaker 1: and Aluza as our ancient history and symbols of female empowerment.
Speaker 1: Since ancient times, Arabs have sanctified the female entity. The
Speaker 1: user says, we should be proud of our history in
Speaker 1: abolish the stereotypical and distorted image of female infanid, claiming
Speaker 1: that in Arabian culture, women were the ideal integrated entity
Speaker 1: among the Arabs, allowing belief in goddesses to flourish. The
Speaker 1: user in its affiliated or friendly accounts, even justified the
Speaker 1: pre Islamic practice of being one's newborn or young daughters,
Speaker 1: saying that female infanied was not due to shame, as
Speaker 1: some claim, but instead to offer girls as saces to
Speaker 1: the feminine trinity. Let in Usa were no mere figments
Speaker 1: of imagination. Archaeological evidence paints a vivid picture of their prominence.
Speaker 1: Statues depicting let the lioness goddess and Uzza, associated with
Speaker 1: power and protection, dotted the Arabian landscape by itself housed
Speaker 1: idols dedicated to them, a testament to their deeply ingrained
Speaker 1: place in pre Islamic society. However, the rise of Islam
Speaker 1: in the seventh century CE marked a dramatic shift. The
Speaker 1: Quran challenged the worship of idols, advocating for the worship
Speaker 1: of one God Allah. The prophet Muhammed, Peace be upon him,
Speaker 1: led the destruction of idols in Mecca, effectively dismantling the
Speaker 1: pantheon of Arabian gods. There is a crucial distinction to
Speaker 1: be made between historical interest and religious revival. While some
Speaker 1: may be intrigued by let in Uzza, their open worship
Speaker 1: in contemporary Saudi Arabia, a strictly Islamic theocracy remains highly unlikely.
Speaker 1: The Saudi government enforces strict religious laws, and public displays
Speaker 1: of idolatry would be met with swift action. However, the
Speaker 1: issue goes beyond mere legislation. Islam emphasizes the oneness of God,
Speaker 1: and the vast majority of Muslims find the concept of
Speaker 1: idle worship abhorrent. The history of a let in Alza.
Speaker 1: A let was a white stone with inscriptions on There
Speaker 1: was a house built around a let in a thief
Speaker 1: with curtains, servants and his sacred courtyard around it. The
Speaker 1: people of a thief, the tribe of Thakif and their allies,
Speaker 1: worshiped Alet. They would boast to Arabs except the that
Speaker 1: they had a let. Ibinjaridri said they derived a Lat's
Speaker 1: name from a LA's name and made it feminine. A
Speaker 1: Lot is far removed from what they ascribed to him.
Speaker 1: It was reported that Alt is pronounced Alet because, according
Speaker 1: to Abdullah bin Abbas, Alat was a man who used
Speaker 1: to mix soil a kind of barley mash with water
Speaker 1: for the pilgrims during the time of Jahiliyah. When he died,
Speaker 1: they remained next to his grave and worshiped him. Ibinjari
Speaker 1: said they also derived the name for their idol, Aluza,
Speaker 1: from Allah's name. A Laaziz Aluza was a tree on
Speaker 1: which the idolators placed a monument in curtains in the
Speaker 1: area of Nachla between Macca and a Thief. The Koraish
Speaker 1: revered Uzza during the battle of Oha, Abusufiyan said, we
Speaker 1: have al Uzza, but you do not have Aluzza. Allah's
Speaker 1: messenger Salaalaha Alioa Seldom replied, say, Allah is our supporter,
Speaker 1: but you have no support. Manette was another idol in
Speaker 1: the area of mushell Lel near Podeide, between Maka and Almadina.
Speaker 1: The tribes of Rosa Aus and Rasraj used to revere
Speaker 1: Manette during the time of Jahiliya. They used to announce
Speaker 1: hej to the Kabba from next to manant Al Bohati
Speaker 1: collected a statement from Aaysha with this meaning there were
Speaker 1: other idols in the Arabian peninsula that the Arabs revered
Speaker 1: just as they revered the Kabba. And Nessai recorded that
Speaker 1: Abbotkofail said, when the messenger of Allah said a Laha
Speaker 1: Aloa seldom conquered Maca, he sent Halidnilualid to the air
Speaker 1: of Nahla, where the idol of Aluza was erected on
Speaker 1: three trees of a forest. Halid cut the three trees
Speaker 1: and approached the house built around it and destroyed it.
Speaker 1: When he went back to the prophet and informed him
Speaker 1: of the story, the prophet said to him go back
Speaker 1: and finish your mission, for you have not finished it.
Speaker 1: Halid went back, and when the custodians, who were also
Speaker 1: its servant of Aluza, saw him, they started invoking by
Speaker 1: calling Aluza. When Halid approached it, he found a naked
Speaker 1: woman whose hair was untidy and who was throwing sand
Speaker 1: on her head. Halid slew her with a sword and
Speaker 1: went back to the messenger of Allah, who said to
Speaker 1: him that was Aluza. Muhammad Ib in his hap narrated
Speaker 1: Alet belonged to the tribe of Tharkif in the area
Speaker 1: of a thief badamu Atteb were the custodians of Alet
Speaker 1: and its servants. The prophet sent a Murira, Bincherba and
Speaker 1: Abusufiyan to destroy Alat. They carried out the prophet's command
Speaker 1: and built a mesgid in its place in the city
Speaker 1: of Ataif. Manat was near the coast, close to the
Speaker 1: area of Mushell, Lel and Kodaid. The prophets sent Abusufiyan
Speaker 1: or ali I bin Abipalib to demolish it. Ibinis Hack
Speaker 1: said that dull Halasa was the idol of the tribes
Speaker 1: of those Ratham and Bajilla and the Arabs who resided
Speaker 1: in the area of Tabeala I say that dullu Klasa
Speaker 1: was called the southern Kabba, and the Kabba in Maka
Speaker 1: was called the northern Kababa. The messenger of Alasa Lallah
Speaker 1: Ali was Seldam sent Jariir bin Abdullah al Bajeli to
Speaker 1: dul Jalasa, and he destroyed it. Ibinis Hack said that
Speaker 1: Fels was the idol of Tai and the neighboring tribes
Speaker 1: in the mouths of Tight such as Selma and aja I.
Speaker 1: Bin Hasham said that some scholars of knowledge told him
Speaker 1: that the messenger of allas A La Llaho Aliuo Sellem
Speaker 1: sent Ali binh Abipaleb to Fealis, and he destroyed it
Speaker 1: and found two swords in its treasure, which the prophet
Speaker 1: then gave to Ali as war spoils. Muhammad Binishp also
Speaker 1: said that the tribes of Himir and Yemen in general
Speaker 1: had a house of worship in Senna Caldriem. He mentioned
Speaker 1: that there was a black dog in it and that
Speaker 1: the religious men who went with Tuba removed it and
Speaker 1: demolished the building. Doctor Glenn Kurbey from the American Center
Speaker 1: for Oriental Research in Jordan, said the Nabataeans themselves who
Speaker 1: lived in Petra, seemed to have worshiped, in particular, the
Speaker 1: goddess Aluza, who is simply termed the mightiest. The narrator
Speaker 1: noted that Aluza was worshiped longbe for the rise of
Speaker 1: Islam across the Arabian Peninsula. Aluza's image has been found
Speaker 1: throughout Petra, carved on small blocks of stone, which for
Speaker 1: centuries the Nabatians used to represent their deities. On some
Speaker 1: of these blocks, they carved basic features like eyes and noses,
Speaker 1: known today as iye idols. Doctor Kerbey explained, based on
Speaker 1: inscriptions we have around Petra and other Nabataan sites, this
Speaker 1: type of figurine is typically associated with Aluza. She was
Speaker 1: directly linked with Petra's ever present need for water. In
Speaker 1: the center of Petra stands the Temple of the Winged
Speaker 1: Lion Stands, named after the carved winged lions that one
Speaker 1: adorned the columns. A dazzling eye idol was discovered within it,
Speaker 1: a uniquely carved striking image of a goddess. Because it
Speaker 1: was found amid the rubble of the temple archaeologists believe
Speaker 1: that the grand structure was dedicated to be the goddess.
Speaker 1: Everything about the temple suggests that it was a place
Speaker 1: of mysterious ritual with a cult surrounding Aluza. The rituals
Speaker 1: would have involved burning incense enchanting. The sacred podium inside
Speaker 1: was specifically designed so that the image of the goddess
Speaker 1: could be kept hidden from sight until the moment of climax.
Speaker 1: Doctor Kurbey said, in a very dramatic way, pulling the
Speaker 1: curtains away, suddenly you come face to face with a
Speaker 1: visual image of the goddess Aluza sitting atop the cultic podium.
Speaker 1: Priestesses would have played an important part in the rituals,
Speaker 1: As the narrator noted, Eluza's great status suggests that Nabtaean
Speaker 1: women too were important in the society. Certainly, they had
Speaker 1: far greater rights and freedoms than the women of Europe
Speaker 1: or the Roman world. The Navitaeans did not leave many
Speaker 1: written documents behind, but the records that do survive provide
Speaker 1: amazing evidence of the power and status of women, and
Speaker 1: the narrators said they hint at something astonishing. For a time,
Speaker 1: women were in control here