More than a million worshippers were set to join Islam's most important rite under a beating sun as the hajj pilgrimage kicked off Wednesday, with authorities scrambling to avoid last year's 1,000-plus deaths in sweltering heat.

In temperatures that are expected to climb to more than 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit), robed pilgrims will slowly circle the Kaaba, Islam's holiest site -- the black cubic structure at the centre of Mecca's Grand Mosque.

About 1.4 million pilgrims arrived in Saudi Arabia ahead of the multi-day hajj, one of the five pillars of Islam that must be performed at least once by all Muslims with the means.

Authorities have ratcheted up anti-heat measures such as extra shade to avoid a repeat of last year, when 1,301 people died as temperatures hit 51.8C (1

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