PERFORMING AL UMRAH

There are three Pillars of Umrah:

1) Ihram – the Hajj clothes.

2) Tawaf – circumambulation of the kaaba.

3) Sa’ee – going between Safaa and Marwah.

Any other action, such as praying two rakah behind Maqam Al-Ibrahim, drinking Zamzam water and trimming the hair are recommended (mandoub).

AL UMRAH

NIYYAH (INTENTION)

The best niyah is the one in the heart; however on Hajj we openly proclaim our intention which can be said as follows: “Labbaik Allahumma Umrah wal Hajj”.

TALBIYAH

It is the Sunnah to recite the Talbiyyah loudly (for men) from the point of the Miqat until you reach Mecca (Makkah al-Mukarramah).

The Talbiyyah is as follows: “Labbaik Allahumma labbaik, labbaika la shareeka laka labbaik, innal hamda wanne’matah laka wal mulk, la shareeka laka” (“Here I am, O Allah! Here I am; Here I am, there is no partner unto You, Here I am; all praise and favors and sovereignty belong to You, there is no partner unto You”).

ENTERING MASJID AL HARAM

1) Recite the Talbiyyah until you enter Masjid al-Haram. You can enter the Masjid from any gate available and leave by any gate.

2) Enter with right foot first. The Sunnah is to say the following when entering: “Allahhummaaftah li abwaba rahmatik” (“O Allah the doors to your mercy”)

3) Once you have entered Masjidul Haram make Al Idtibaa’, which is to uncover the right shoulder and cover the left with the ridaa’ (upper towel).

TAWAF AL QADOUM (CIRCUMBULATION OF ARRIVING)

1) Go straight to Al Hajr Al Aswad (The Black Stone) and start your tawaf from there. There is no need to make salutations of the masjid (i.e. pray tahyahtul masjid), as tawaf is salah.

2) Touch the black stone with right hand and say Allahu Akbar. It is worth noting that Prophet Muhammad () used to kiss it and then say Allahu Akbar.

a. Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said when approaching the Black Stone: “I know you cannot harm nor benefit, but because I saw the Messenger () kiss you, I do it” (Muslim).

b. You can put your walking stick on it as Umar al Khattab did.

c. If you can not touch the black stone, raise your right hand and point towards it and say Allahu Akbar. To point the hand is called ‘Istilam’. Don’t raise your left hand.

d. Then make tawaf around the kaaba anti-clockwise seven times.

Dua (ءاعد) supplication during Tawaf

1) You may recite the following Dua whilst making tawaf: “Subhanallah, walhamdulillah, wala ilaha illallah, wallahu akbar, wala hawla wala quwwata illa billah” “Glory be to Allah, All praise is to Allah, there is no god but Allah. There is no power and no strength except in Allah.”

2) Towards the end of each tawaf (round) when passing Yemeni Corner recite the following dua

“Rabbana aatina fidduniya hasanah wa fil aakhirati hasanah wa qina azaban nar.”

(“O Allah, our Lord, give us good in this world, and good in the Hereafter, and save us from the punishment of fire”).

3) It is acceptable to recite the Quran during tawaf since it is dhikr (remembrance).

4) You may make dua in any language you while performing tawaf. However, it is recommended in Arabic since it is part of the Sunnah.

5) Study the dua of Prophet Muhammad ().

Raml (walking quickly with short steps)

1) The Sunnah is to hurry in the first three tawaf (recommended for men not women). This is known as Raml.

2) The last four should be done at ease. Thus, it’s better if the women meet their men at a meeting point after making the tawaf.

Taharah (Purity)

1) You must have purity for tawaf the minimum being wudu.

2) If you forget how many tawaf you made, then build on yakeen (certainty) and continue counting from the last tawaf.

3) If you break your wudu during tawaf, you must go back and make wudu and start the count from the last full tawaf, i.e. starting again at the Hajr Al-Aswad (The Black Stone).

PRAYING BEHIND MAQAM AL-IBRAHIM

1) When you have completed your seventh Tawaf, cover right shoulder with the ridaa’ (towel).

2) Go to Maqam Al-Ibrahim and pray two rakats of voluntary salah (nafilah).

3) You need to pray behind Maqam Al-Ibrahim. However, you can pray anywhere in the masjid as a divine permit if you are unable to pray directly behind the Maqam Al-Ibrahim.

5) Don’t pray in Jama’ah (congregation).

6) Prophet Muhammad () used to recite the following surahs:

A. Surah Al-Kafiroun – “Say O you Disbelievers” [EMQ 109] in the first rakah.

B. Surah Al-Ikhlas – “Say He Allah is One” [EMQ 112] in the second rakah.

DRINKING ZAMZAM WATER

1) After praying 2 rakat at Maqam Al-Ibrahim, touch or kiss the black stone and say Allahu Akbar (recommended).

2) Then drink Zamzam water.

3) Perform Sa’ee.

SA’EE (BETWEEN SAFAA AND MARWAH)

Dua’ (supplication) between Safaa and Marwah

Firstly go to Mount Safaa, any step of it, and face the qibla. Raise your hands, and say the following verse: “Innas-Safaa wal marwata min sha’aairillah” (“Verily! Safaa and Al Marwah (two mountains in Mecca (Makkah al-Mukarramah)) are of the Symbols of Allah”).

Then say the following dua three times. “Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar, Laa ilaha ilallah wahdahu lashareeka lahu, lahul mulku wa lahul hamd, wa huwa ala kulli shayyin qadir, laa ilaha ilallah wahdahu, anjaza wadahu, wanasara abdahu, wahazamal ahzaab wahadau” (Allah is Great! Allah is Great! Allah is Great! There is none worthy of worship except Allah alone, no partner has He, for Him is the sovereignty and the praise, and He is able to do all things. There is none worthy of worship except Allah alone, He helps his servants, He dealt with the confederate alone).

Key Points to Remember:

1. Start the Sa’ee at Mount Safah.

2. Always focus on the kaaba when making dua’.

3. It is recommended to make dua three times whenever you reach Mount Safaa and Marwah.

4. It is not necessary to go right to the top of Mount Safah or Marwah rather any point of it.

5. During the Sa’ee there is bit in the middle where to hurry is recommended which is called Raml, this for both men and women (women should take care not to expose themselves).

6. You may continue to perform Sa’ee if you have lost your wudu since the Sahabah (may Allah be pleased with them) were giving the permission to do so. However, you must be on wudu at the start of Sa’ee.

7. If the time for Salah enters while performing Sa’ee, then break away to pray Salah and then continue from the last full cycle that you stopped at.

8. The last Sa’ee (i.e. the 7th one) should finish on Mount Marwah.

Note: On Hajj Tamattu you need only to do Sa’ee once which is done with the Umrah, there is no need to do it again. However, you will have to do the Sa’ee again if you stay in Mecca (Makkah al-Mukarramah) after Hajj.