Document Type : Research Paper
Authors
1
Ph.D. Student of Sociology, Shiraz University
2
Professor of Sociology, Shiraz University
3
Assistant Professor of Sociology, Shiraz University
Abstract
Introduction
In Religious tourism, on the one hand, play role religious beliefs, and on the other hand, when tourists simply spend visiting religious places. Another aspect is the fact that these tourists have religious incentives to travel before they can travel. Pilgrimage is one of the examples of religious practice that has been emphasized in various religions and religions. Despite the importance of the ritual of pilgrimage and its extensive social effects in Iran, ethnography research has been very limited in this regard. Therefore, the necessity of conducting an ethnographic research on the activity of pilgrimage and providing a rich description of ritual on the one hand, and studying tourists as activists who, in addition to pilgrims, are searching for holy and blessed places, on the other hand, the necessity of doing such Explains research. Since they are the cornerstones of any society of the women of that society and play the most important roles as spouses and mothers in society, it is clear that if the community honors these roles and provides the necessary grounds for growth, prosperity and excellence It will provide them with the ultimate moral, social, and social prosperity. Therefore, this study, considering the qualitative approach, describes what is the nature of religious tourism through the phenomenon of pilgrimage to female tourists in Shiraz, and seeks to answer the general question that "the perception of religious tourists from how the pilgrimage works Is?".
Material and Methods
The theoretical approach of this qualitative study was carried out using the method of ethnographic study. Direct qualitative observation, participatory observation and semi-structured interviews were used to collect qualitative data. Sampling method in qualitative research is purposeful and the sample size depends on the level of theoretical saturation of the information collected. in this research, sample selection is done on two levels. One is to select the field of study as a "case" and another to sample from within the field. In the first stage, among the most famous visitors of the city of Shiraz, with regard to the characteristics of the most influential tourists, the shrines of Hazrat Ahmad ibn Musa, Hazrat Sayyid Alaeddin Hussein, and Imam Ali Ben Hamza was chosen. The second stage of sampling was related to entering the selected field for research, which was used in this stage of theoretical sampling. However, it is said that in qualitative studies, the sample size should not be less than 20 people. Based on this, 30 people were interviewed to collect information needed for people who had experienced travel experiences and were able to provide rich descriptions. The collected data were analyzed by thematic analysis method. After applying the appropriate code to all the text fields, the main themes, organizer themes and general themes were organized. In the subject analysis, the researcher delivers a series of basic semantic concepts and patterns with the classification and categorization of data. In order to evaluate the validity of the findings, the audit and evaluation techniques were used by the members.
Discussion and Results
The age range of the participants was from 18 to 57 years old and their education was from the diploma to the doctorate. All the conversations were recorded during the interview, and then all of them were discharged. Dialogues were categorized into two levels after being deployed. The findings suggest that pilgrimage is made up of categories of beliefs, ritual life, desire for servitude, sense of sacred space, relaxation, change, and learning. On the one hand, the pilgrimage of women tourists is a rational and purposeful activity, which is both rational to achieve both the goal and the goal itself. On the other hand, it is an emotional action that results from their conscientiousness and inner life which ultimately leads to mental relaxation, proximity to God, and the presence of their hearts, and it is possible to make changes in women's insights and methods after pilgrimage, Conclusion: which other Aspects also affect their lifestyle.
Keywords: Pilgrimage, Ethnography, Religious Tourists, Holy Shrines, Thematic Analysis.
Reference
Amin, M.M. (2013). Religious Tourism in Egypt: A Case Study Analysis, the American University in Cairo, School of Global Affairs and Public Policy.
Andriotis, K. (2008). Sacred Site Experience, A phenomenological Study, Annals of Tourism Research, 20(4): 64-84.
Colmen, S. (2002). Do you believe in pilgrimage? Anthropological Theory, Annals of Tourism Research, 2(3):355-368.
Collins, N. and Kreiner, N. (2010). Researching Pilgrimage, Continunity and Transformation, Annals of Tourism Research, 37(2): 440-456.
Dallan, J., T. and Daniel H.O. (2003). Tourism, Religion and Spiritual Journeys, Rutledge, USA.
Drule, M., Chis, A., Bacila, M. and Ciornea, R. (2012). A new perspective of non-religious motivations of visitors to sacred sites: evidence from Romania, Social and Behavioral Sciences, 5(6): 431-435.
Keywords