ভূমিকা

Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Hajj The Islamic Pilgrimage According to The Five Schools of Islamic Law The Hajj The Acts of the Hajj At the beginning, in order to make it easier for the reader to follow the opinions of the five schools of fiqh about various aspects of Hajj, we shall briefly outline their sequence as ordained by the Shari'ah.

The Hajj pilgrim coming from a place distant from Mecca assumes ihram [^1] from the miqat [^2] on his way, or from a point parallel to the closest miqat, and starts reciting the talbiyah .[^3] In this there is no difference between one performing `Umrah mufradah or any of the three types of Hajj (i.e. tamattu, ifrad, qiran ) . However, those who live within the haram[^4] of Mecca assume ihram from their houses.'[^5] On sighting the Holy Ka'bah, he recites takbir اللَّهِ أَكْبَر (i.e.

`God is the greatest') and tahlil لا إله إلا الله (i.e. `There is no god except Allah') which is mustahabb [^6] (desirable, though not obligatory). On entering Mecca, he takes a bath, which is again mustahabb.

After entering al‑Masjid al‑Haram, first he greets the Black Stone ( al‑Hajar al‑'Aswad ) ‑ if possible kisses it, otherwise makes a gesture with his hand - then makes the tawaf (seven fold circumambulation of the Ka'bah) of the first entry, which is mustahabb for one performing Hajj al‑'ifrad or Hajj al-qiran. Then he offers the two raka'at of the tawaf, again greets the Black Stone if he can, and leaves al‑Masjid al‑Haram. After this, he remains in the state of ihram in Mecca.

On the day of tarwiyah, i.e. the eighth day of the month of Dhu al‑Hijjah, or if he wants a day earlier, he goes forth towards `Arafat. If the pilgrim has come for `Umrah mufradah or Hajj al-tamattu; he performs the tawaf of the entry, which is obligatory ( wajib ) for him, and prays the two raka'at of the tawaf. Then he performs the sa’y between Safa and Marwah, and, following it, the halq (complete head shave) or taqsir [^7] (partial shortening of the hair of the head).

Then he is relieved of the state of ihram and its related restrictions, and things prohibited in ihram become permissible for him, including sexual intercourse. [^8] Then he proceeds from Mecca after assuming ihram for a second time, early enough to be present at the wuquf (halt) at `Arafat (referred to as `mawqif, ; i .e. the place of halting) at noontime on the ninth of Dhu al‑Hijjah. Assumption of ihram on the day of tarwiyah, i.e. eighth Dhu al‑Hijjah, is preferable.