The Types of Hajj Rites

The Fifth Topic

The Types of Hajj Rites

The types of Hajj performance are three:

The first type: tamattu‘: It means performing ‘Umrah and then remaining out of ihram until Hajj: one enters ihram during the months of Hajj for ‘Umrah alone, then completes it with tawaf, sa‘i, and cutting the hair, exits his ihram, and enjoys whatever Allah has made lawful for him—none of the restrictions of ihram apply to him because he has exited his ‘Umrah. He does not return to his country; rather, he enters ihram for Hajj when its time comes in that same year. But if he enters ihram for ‘Umrah before the month of Shawwal begins, remains in Makkah, and then performs Hajj in that year, he is not a tamattu‘ performer, because his ihram for ‘Umrah was before the Hajj months began. And if he enters ihram for ‘Umrah after Shawwal begins and performs Hajj in the following year, he is not a tamattu‘ performer, because the ‘Umrah is in one year and the Hajj in another.

And if he enters ihram for ‘Umrah in the months of Hajj, exits it, then returns to his country and comes back in ihram for Hajj alone, he is not a tamattu‘ performer, because he performed the Hajj on an independent journey.

The second type: qiran: It means combining Hajj and ‘Umrah together: one enters ihram for ‘Umrah and Hajj together, or enters ihram for ‘Umrah first and then adds Hajj to it before starting its tawaf. When he reaches Makkah, he performs the tawaf of arrival—which is a Sunnah—and performs sa‘i between al-Safa and al-Marwah for both ‘Umrah and Hajj in a single sa‘i—which is a pillar—then remains in his ihram until he exits it on the Day of Eid. He may delay the sa‘i after the tawaf of arrival until after the tawaf of Hajj, especially if his arrival in Makkah is late and he fears missing the Hajj if he occupies himself with the sa‘i.

The third type: ifrad: It means entering ihram for Hajj alone—that is, by itself without ‘Umrah. When he reaches Makkah, he performs the tawaf of arrival and the sa‘i of Hajj, and remains in his ihram

until he exits it on the Day of Eid. He may also delay the sa‘i until after the tawaf of Hajj, like the qarin. From this it becomes clear that the mufrid and the qarin perform all the rites of Hajj identically, except in intention, and that the qarin owes the hady (sacrificial animal) because both rites accrued to him, unlike the mufrid.

The best type of Hajj performance: The best type is tamattu‘, because the Prophet (peace be upon him) commanded his Companions to do it and urged them to it—indeed, he commanded them to turn the intention of Hajj into ‘Umrah for the sake of tamattu‘. From ‘A’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her), who said: We set out with the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) when five nights remained of Dhul-Qa‘dah, and we thought it was only the Hajj. When we drew near to Makkah, “the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) commanded whoever had no sacrificial animal with him to exit ihram once he had made tawaf of the House and between al-Safa and al-Marwah.” (1) And from Jabir ibn ‘Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with them both): the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “Had I known from the beginning what I now know, I would not have brought the sacrificial animal, and I would have made it an ‘Umrah; so whoever among you has no sacrificial animal with him, let him exit ihram and make it an ‘Umrah.”

And in a narration: “The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) stood and said: You know that I am the most God-fearing of you toward Allah, the most truthful, and the most dutiful. Were it not for my sacrificial animal, I would have exited ihram as you do. So exit ihram—for had I known from the beginning what I now know, I would not have brought a sacrificial animal.” So we exited ihram, and we heard and obeyed. (2) These two proofs are explicit in preferring tamattu‘ over the other two types—except in the case of driving the sacrificial animal, where qiran is better, as was the practice of the Prophet (peace be upon him). And tamattu‘ is easier for the pilgrim, since he enjoys being released from ihram between the Hajj and the ‘Umrah.