Amidst bloodshed, millions of Muslims pray for peace - CNN.com
Perhaps if this occurred on a more regular basis from all religions, it would show that the vast majority of members of any religion are anti war and anti violence.
Amidst bloodshed, millions of Muslims pray for peace - CNN.com:
TONGI, Bangladesh (AP) -- Some 3 million Muslims put aside their country's violent struggle with political corruption and Islamic extremists and raised their hands in prayer for global peace at one of the world's largest religious gatherings.
The final prayer Sunday capped a three-day Islamic gathering on the sandy banks of the River Turag in a small industrial town just north of Dhaka, Bangladesh's capital.
Pilgrims, many of whom left work early to join the prayer, streamed into the site stretching 190 acres along both banks of the river. As the crowd overflowed the space, people arrived at the site on packed boats or climbed onto the rooftops of nearby buildings. (Watch a huge crowd gather to pray )
The annual gathering shuns politics, which have become increasingly bloody in Bangladesh, and focuses on reviving the tenets of Islam and promoting peace and harmony.
Participants discuss the Quran, Islam's holy book, pray, and listen to sermons by Islamic scholars from around the world.
Though extra buses and trains were sent to ferry devotees to and from the prayer site, there was standing room only, even atop the train cars, and many passengers hung on to the sides through open windows.
Many others simply walked the 12 miles back to the city.
Kaium Biswas, a local police official, said police estimated the number of pilgrims at 3 million, a significant increase over the 2.5 million thought to have attended last year.
About 20,000 security officials, including troops, have been deployed to the area of the gathering to prevent violence, said Biswas, after months of often violent protests to push for electoral reform.