Illustration depicting Moslem pilgrims at the Kabbah in Mecca. by Nasreddine Dinet (Alphonse-?tienne Dinet). 1861  1929. a French orientalist painter. 1918. Mecca is the most sacred site in Islam. It is considered by Muslims to be the bayt All?h. the "House of God". Muslims are expected to face the Kaaba when performing salat (prayer). One of the Five Pillars of Islam requires every Muslim who is able to do so to perform the hajj pilgrimage at least once in their lifetime. Multiple parts of the hajj require pilgrims to make tawaf. the circumambulation seven times around the Kaaba in a counter-clockwise direction.