One million Muslims are gathering in the Islam's holiest city Mecca, Saudi Arabia, Wednesday, for the yearly religious visit called hajj. The COVID pandemic severely restricted the hajj in the past two years, including a ban on foreign travelers.
周三，有100万名穆斯林聚集在伊斯兰教最神圣的城市沙特麦加，参加一年一度的朝觐活动。在过去两年里，新冠疫情严重限制了朝觐活动，包括禁止外国游客。
This year, the Saudi government is permitting about 850,000 Muslims from outside the country to make the pilgrimage.
今年，沙特政府批准85万名来自国外的穆斯林前往朝圣。
It begins Thursday.
它从周四开始。
The hajj is usually one of the world's largest gatherings. Two-and-one-half-million Muslims took part in 2019.
朝觐通常是全球最大的聚集活动之一。2019年有250万穆斯林参加。
Those gathering this year are required to be under 65 years old and vaccinated against COVID-19. They also must test negative for the virus within 72 hours of travel. The pilgrims are chosen from millions of requests through an online lottery system.
今年的朝圣者必须年龄在65岁以下，并接种过新冠疫苗。他们还必须持有72小时内的病毒阴性证明。朝圣者是通过在线摇号系统从数百万个申请中挑选出来的。
Saudi officials inspected the holy site on Wednesday and said they were ready to receive pilgrims.
沙特官员周三视察了该圣地，并表示他们已经准备好接待朝圣者。
After COVID-19 first began spreading in 2020, Saudi officials permitted just 1,000 pilgrims already living in the country to attend. Last year, the hajj was similarly restricted to 60,000 fully vaccinated Muslims living in Saudi Arabia. The restrictions shocked many in the Muslim world.
在新冠肺炎于2020年首次开始传播之后，沙特官员只允许1000名已经居住在该国的朝圣者参加。去年，朝觐同样仅限于居住在沙特的6万名接种过疫苗的穆斯林。这些限制令穆斯林世界的许多人感到震惊。
Religious pilgrimages raised $12 billion yearly in the country before the pandemic. The pilgrimages account for the largest percentage of Saudi Arabia's total economic activity after oil.
在大流行之前，宗教朝圣者每年为该国带来120亿美元收入。朝圣在沙特全部经济活动中占据仅次于石油的最大比例。
Saudi Arabia is currently seeing about 500 new cases of COVID a day. About 70 percent of the country has been vaccinated against the virus. Last month, the government ended indoor mask requirements and some other prevention measures.
沙特目前每天约有500例新冠肺炎新增病例。该国大约70%的人口已经接种了新冠疫苗。上个月，政府取消了室内口罩要求和其它一些预防措施。
Pilgrims in Mecca are not required to wear face coverings or be socially distanced, as they were during the past two years. However, people are still barred from touching the Kaaba, the Islamic holy building that pilgrims walk around as they complete the hajj.
麦加的朝圣者不需要像过去两年那样戴着口罩或是保持社交距离。然而，人们仍然被禁止触摸天房，这是朝圣者在朝觐时围绕走动的伊斯兰圣殿。
The Quran, Islam's holy book, says that all Islam's followers who are physically and financially able should make the pilgrimage once in their lifetime. It takes place over five days.
伊斯兰教圣书《古兰经》说，所有身体和经济条件允许的伊斯兰信徒一生都应该去朝圣一次。朝圣活动为期5天。
The hajj follows a path that Muslims believe their prophet Muhammad walked almost 1,400 years ago. It is believed to follow the footsteps of earlier prophets named in the Bible.
朝觐沿着一条穆斯林认为他们的先知穆罕默德在将近1400年前走过的道路。它被认为是追随圣书中提到的早期先知的脚步。
I'm Caty Weaver.
我是凯蒂·韦弗。(51VOA.COM原创翻译，请勿转载，违者必究！)