‘Umrah and Hajj’

Introduction of Umrah

In Arabic word Umrah is derived from al-itmar which means a visit. Here it means paying a visit to
Kabah.The word ‘Umrah’ is usually described as minor pilgrimage or Hajj Asghar.
Umrah occurs twice in the Holy Quran,” And complete the Hajj or Umrah in the service of
Allah.” (Al-Baqarah 2:196).
Umrah is an act of worship. It does not free a person from the obligation of performing Hajj. One
of the virtues of Umrah as mentioned by the Prophet ‫ ﷺ‬is: “One Umrah to another Umrah is
expiation for [the sins] between them.” (Bukhari & Muslim).
There is great reward for Umrah during the month of Ramadan. The Prophet (SAW) said, “An
Umrah in the month of Ramadan is equal (IN REWARD) to performing a Hajj.” (Musnad
Ahmed)
Method and observances to perform Umrah
In umrah the pilgrim puts on the ihram at meeqat, recites the talbiya, then goes for tawaf of the
Ka’ba, then performs two rakah at the station of Ibrahim, then performs sa’y, after which men
shave their head or cut their hair while the women cut a lock of their hair.

The details of Umrah are:

Intention & Ghusl (Bath)

➢ The Muslim makes an intention to perform Umrah, and follows the Sunnah of the Prophet ‫ﷺ‬
by performing ghusl (bath) prior to entering the state of Ihram.

Ihram

➢ Muslims put on Ihraam clothes at Meeqat area and declare their intention to perform Umrah.
The prescribed du’aa for making your intention clear is:
‫لبّيك اللهم بعمرة‬
Lab’baika Allahumma Bi’Umrah
“O Allah I hear Your call and I am coming for ‘Umrah”
 ➢ While in the state of Ihram, the pilgrim is prohibited to cut his hair or nails, using perfume,
engaging in marital relations, hunting animals, proposing or marrying, wearing stitched
clothes and covering the head for men. Women are prohibited from wearing niqab, and
gloves, and they can cover their faces with some other method.
➢ If a pilgrim commits any of the abovementioned acts, he is required to offer fidyah, which he
can do by opting one of the following: Fasting 3 days, OR feeding 6 poor people, or
sacrificing animals.

Talbiyah
➢ As soon as one enters the state of Ihraam, he starts reciting the Talbiyah in a loud voice
from Meeqat area while female recites Talbiyah in a low voice, which is only audible to her.

Wudhu (ablution)
➢ The pilgrim performs wudhu before entering the Haram or the Grand Mosque.

Tawaf
➢ A pilgrim stops reciting the Talbiyah when starting to make the Tawaaf of Ka’bah.
➢ Before the start of Tawaaf, a male pilgrim should uncover his right shoulder by putting
middle of his Rida (upper body cover) under his right arm-pit and casting its edge over his
left shoulder.
➢ Tawaaf starts by kissing the black stone. If one cannot kiss it, he may touch it with his right
hand and kiss his hand or due to crowd, he may simply raise his hand and wave towards the
Black Stone while standing at a distance from it saying the “Bismillaahi Allaahu Akbar”.
Each round will end at the point of start, which is at the Black Stone.
➢ In the first three rounds of Ka’bah, walk at fast pace (Ramal) in the remaining four rounds,
walk at normal pace.
➢ It is sunnah to kiss the black stone and touch the Yemeni corner in every round during
Tawaaf.
➢ While making Tawaaf of Ka’bah, pilgrims praise Allah and make lots of du’aa, supplications,
to Allah in any language and words they like. It is recommended to end each circle with the
words, that is to say these words when they are between Yemeni corner and the Black
Stone:
‫ربنا آتنا في الدُّنيا حسنةً وفي اْلخرة حسنةً وقنا عذاب النار‬
“Our Lord! Give us good in this world and good in Hereafter, and
save us from the torment of Hellfire.” (Surah al Baqarah 2: 201)

Offering two rak’ahs at the station of Ibrahim

➢ After completion of Tawaaf, pilgrims should pray 2 Rak’ah behind Maqam Ibraheem, if it is
possible, otherwise they can pray at any place within the Sacred Mosque. It is preferred to
recite Surah Al Kafirun in the first Rak’ah and Surah al Ikhlaas in the second Rak’ah.

Sa’iy
➢ After offering two rak’as, the pilgrim proceeds to As-Safa to perform Sa’iy between Safa and
Marwah.
➢ Sa’y starts from As-Safa. While ascending as-Safa, the pilgrim recites the following ayah of
the glorious Qur’an:
» ‫« إن الصفا والمروة من شعائر هللا‬
“Indeed, as-Safa and al-Marwah are among the symbols of Allah.”
(Surah al Baqarah 2: 158)
 ➢ After this, while on As-Safa, the pilgrim faces the Ka’bah and praises and glorifies Allah. He
raises his hands like in dua, says ‘Allahu Akbar’ three times, and then recites the following
supplication three times:

‫ال إله إال َّللا وحده ال شريك له له الملك وله الحمد وهو على ك ّل شيء قدير‬
‫األحزاب َوحْ َد ُه‬
َ َ ‫َّللاُ َوحْ َد ُه أَ ْنج ََز َو ْع َد ُه َونَص ََر‬
‫ع ْب َد ُه َو َه َز َم‬ ‫ال ِإلَهَ ِإال ه‬
“There is none worthy of worship and obedience except Allah alone, the One, He has
no partner. His is the sovereignty to Him praise is due, and He has power over all
things. There is none worthy of worship and obedience except Allah alone, the One,
Who fulfilled His promise and confirmed the truthfulness of His slave and defeated the
opponents Himself”.

➢ The pilgrim makes dua for himself between the recitations of the above mentioned
supplication. So the dhikr will be recited thrice, and the dua will be made twice between the
supplications.
➢ The pilgrim then descends from As-Safa and starts walking towards al Marwah. While
going to Al Marwah, he comes across an area where it is Sunnah to jog for men.
➢ This area is marked by green lights in our times. Between these two lights, men should jog,
but walk at normal pace before and after them.
➢ Women are not required to jog in this area, according to the Ijma’ of the scholars.

Shaving/Trimming of Hair
➢ After ending Sa’y, by finishing the seven rounds at Al Marwah, the pilgrim completes his
Umrah by shaving his head or trimming the hair. The women are only required to cut a lock
of their hair, the amount of a fingertip.
➢ Upon the completion of the abovementioned rites, the Umrah is complete, and the pilgrim
can now take off his Ihraam and put on normal dress. All the prohibitions related to Ihraam
are lifted now.
Difference between Hajj and Umrah
Many acts of Umrah are similar to Hajj, but there are some fundamental differences:
• Hajj is obligatory while Umrah is not.
• Hajj can only be performed during prescribed month and dates, while Umrah can be
performed at any time of the year.
• Wuquf Arafah is one of the most important components of Hajj without which Hajj is void;
there is no Wuquf Arafah in Umrah.
• Similarly there is no Wuquf Muzdalifah (spending the night at Muzdalifah) or combining the
prayers or Maghrib and Isha for Umrah.
• Talibiyah is stopped on arriving the Haram in Umrah, while in Hajj Talbiyah is said till the
Rami of Jamrat-ul-Aqabah on 10th Dhul-Hajj.
• Pilgrims stay in Mina in Hajj, perform Rami at Jamarat, while no stay is required at Mina or
Rami in Umrah.
• Pilgrims gives sacrifice in Hajj, while sacrifice is not required in Umrah.
• Umrah is not a pillar but Hajj is a pillar.
• Umrah can be performed in one day or within few hours but the method of Hajj is a long
process.
 Importance and Benefits of Pilgrimage’

Benefits of Pilgrimage
Introduction of Pilgrimage (Hajj)

Hajj is the fifth pillar of Islam. It became obligatory in the 9th year of hijrah. Hajj is an act of
Ibadah which is obligatory on every Muslims who can afford it once in his lifetime. Hajj literally
means the intention of going on pilgrimage. It is an act of worship in which Muslims visit the
kaabah at Makkah in prescribed days of the month of Dhul- Hajj and performs the prescribed
rites. . Allah says, “Pilgrimage there to is a duty men owe to Allah, those who can afford
the journey.”(Al- Imran 3:97). Hajj is a form of Ibadah, which covers all aspects of human life. It
trains a Muslims to sacrifice his wealth, his time, his physical and mental energies and his
comforts in the way of Allah. Allah forgives sins of those who perform pilgrimage and does not
care for those who die without performing it. Supplications of those who perform hajj are
accepted and Allah showers His mercy and Forgiveness on them.
Benefits of Hajj for Individual
• Hajj is a great spiritual experience. It brings pilgrim closer to Allah and he feels that all the
barriers between him and his creator are removed.

• All sins of a person are washed away. The Prophet ‫ ﷺ‬said, “"Whoever performs Hajj and
does not engage in vile acts, nor commits sin, then he returns from Hajj as pure and
free from sins as on the day on which his mother gave birth to him.” (Bukhari &
Muslim)
• The reward for an accepted Hajj is Jannah. The Prophet (SAW) said, “An accepted
pilgrimage has got no reward except Paradise.” (Bukhari & Muslim)

• It is a form Jihad for a believer. The observance of hajj is equivalent to Jihad for a believer
for which Allah will greatly reward him. Once Ayesha (RA) asked to the Prophet (SAW) , if
Jihad is obligatory on women and to her query the Prophet (SAW) replied that a Jihad, in
which there is no fighting , is obligatory for women, that is Hajj .

• Ihram brings humility and also it helps to learn self-control. The strict and particular laws
of wearing ihram help the believer to restraint from prohibited activities, creating self-control
in him. Ihram reminds believer that one day he has to die and leave this life of worldly
pleasure and meet his God. This sense of morality allows all believers to be more responsible
towards their obligation.
• It is the life training program to learn how to grow in obedience before Allah. The
sacrificing during hajj prepares one for the true purpose of believer’s life which is the
fulfillment of obligations and gaining pleasure of Allah for the hereafter.
• A huge spiritual uplift is felt after the performance of hajj. The observances of Hajj
provide a chance for believer to bring his best of his intentions into practice in order to attain
the pleasure of Allah. He understands the need to have pure, clear and strong intentions to
seek Allah’s pleasure rather than just the hard work put into performing those prescribed
tasks, hence hajj purifies the soul illuminating the mind with the sparks of faith.
• Stay at Arafat reminds of one’s accountability before Allah. Since Arafat is the ground
where all mankind would be gathered on the Day of Judgment, the stay at Arafat reminds us
all about the day when we all be standing in the court of Allah, being held accountable for all
that we did and said in our life on earth. The thought-provoking practice, makes the believer
more cautions towards all his deeds and actions for he knows that his Allah is watching over
his every act to be questioned on the Final Day. The Prophet (SAW) said: “The promised
day is the Day of Resurrection, the witnessed day is the Day of Arafat, and the
witnessing day is Friday.” (Tirmidhi).

• Hajj and Umrah remove poverty. The Prophet ‫ ﷺ‬said, “Perform Hajj & Umrah often, as
they remove the sins and poverty the same way as the bellows remove impurities from
the metal.”

Benefits of Hajj for Community

• It brings the sense of togetherness. In the Annual pilgrimage all Muslim pilgrimage get
united without any sign of discrimination of status, race or colour which creates equality and
unity amongst them. Their gathering from different parts of the world at one place with an
identical cause to offer their obligation reminds them they all are the creations of Allah.
Moreover, their similar dress Ihram also brings uniformity in them making them feel like
equal members of one Ummah.

• It develops the sense of Equality. Their offering of various observances of Hajj, which are
similar for everyone, with an intention to seek Allah’s forgiveness makes them feel equal in
the sight of Allah regardless of the worldly discrimination of class, race or colour.

• It is a way to check the strength of Muslim community all around the world. Muslims
from all over the world come tighter to perform haj, huge masses gather in Makkah, united
and uniformed, which shows the rest of the world how powerful the Muslims can be if they
stand united.

• It flourishes economy as trade is allowed during hajj. When tradesmen and business
from all over the world come together, and perform hajj together, spending these days of
tireless determination and hard work with same ulterior motive, they get a chance to acquaint
and discuss business with each other. This helps the economy of the Muslim world flourish
and boosts the economic condition.

• It brings the leaders of Muslim world together and helps them to become allies. It
motivates the leaders to solve the problem of Muslim world together. Muslim leaders from all
over the world come together, it raises the possibility for them to sit together to discuss or
may be even eliminate the difficulties or global issues faced by Muslims. These meetings of
leaders abolish enmity and help all Muslim countries to become allies; such alliance can help
strengthen Muslim Ummah on the whole.