What are the other topics related to hajj and umrah?
a. Hady
The blood sacrifice which are presented as gifts to the sacred Meccan precincts in order to reach the mercy of Allah and as an atonement for the sins is called “hady”. Haram is the place where “hady” is sacrificed. It is not permissible to sacrifice it in any other place and as long as it is in the Haram area it can be sacrificed at any place.
The conditions required in sacrificial animals is also required in “hady”. The only camels acceptable as sacrifices are those which have completed five years of age and have entered their sixth year, while the only cattle which are acceptable as sacrifices are those which have completed two years of age and have entered their third year. As for the sheep, it must be a full year old, making proper sounds, although it is also acceptable at the age of six months if its front teeth have dropped and have the appearance of a year old sheep. As for goats, they must be two years old.
Animal sacrifices classified as hady are divided into three types:
- Dam al-jubran: Those which are required due to one’s performance of the hajj or the ‘umrah, such as the hady required by someone undertaking tamattu’ or qiran. This type, which is referred to by the Hanafis as “a blood sacrifice of thanksgiving”, also includes animal sacrifices which are required on account of a pilgrim’s having omitted some duty associated with the hajj or the ‘umrah.
- Hady offered as nadhr. Those are required because of a vow one has made.
- Hady offered as tatawwu. Those are voluntary, i.e., those which are freely donated by the pilgrim.
The hady sacrifice is mentioned in the Qur’an as follows: “And complete the Hajj or ‘umrah in the service of Allah. But if you are prevented (From completing it), send an offering for sacrifice, such as you may find, and do not shave your heads until the offering reaches the place of sacrifice. And if any of you is ill, or has an ailment in his scalp, (Necessitating shaving), (He should) in compensation either fast, or feed the poor, or offer sacrifice; and when you are in peaceful conditions (again), if any one wishes to continue the ‘umrah on to the hajj, He must make an offering, such as he can afford, but if he cannot afford it, He should fast three days during the hajj and seven days on his return, Making ten days in all. This is for those whose household is not in (the precincts of) the Sacred Mosque. And fear Allah, and know that Allah is strict in punishment.”[1]
Since hady means the sacrifice offered as a gift to the Ka’bah and Haram precincts, all types of hady are slaughtered within the limits of haram precincts.
The time for slaughtering a hady, which is due in fulfillment of a vow or a hady, which is simply recommended, begins once sufficient time for the holiday prayer plus two medium-length sermons has passed since the sunrise on the Day of Sacrifice. The time during which the slaughtering may be done extends up to sundown on the last of the “days of meat drying.”
It is permissible to slaughter one’s hady during the night or day during this period of time, although it is deemed undesirable to do so at night unless there is some need for this, as, for example, in a case where people who need to eat part of the sacrifice come at night [to the place where the pilgrim concerned is staying]. If the time specified for slaughtering the hady passes, the pilgrim must slaughter it as a compensation if it was due in fulfillment of a vow; otherwise, it will be too late to do so, and if the person does slaughter the animal, it will be nothing but ordinary meat rather than a hady.
As for the hady required of someone who is undertaking tamattu or qiran, the time for slaughtering is the time at which he enters ihram for the Hajj. Once a pilgrim has completed the rites for the ‘umrah, he may slaughter his hady before entering ihram for the hajj. There is no end to the time during which the slaughtering may be done, although it is deemed preferable to slaughter one’s hady on the Day of Sacrifice. (According to the Hanafi School, hady cannot be sacrificed before the festival.)
It is a Sunnah for someone performing the hajj to slaughter his hady in Mina, since it is in Mina that pilgrims performing the hajj are released from the state of ihram. As for someone who performs the umrah, it is a Sunnah to slaughter it in Mecca, since it is in Mecca that pilgrims performing umrah are released from the state of ihram.
It is not permissible for someone who offers a hady to sell any part of his sacrifice. It is wajib (necessary) to distribute the entire sacrifice as charity if the sacrifice is offered as a redemption due to violation of some ihram prohibition and the ones offered by the pilgrims who perform hajj al-tamattu or qiran. It is not permissible for the owner of such sacrifices to benefit from his sacrifice in any way. (According to the Hanafi School, the meat of the hady offered by the pilgrims who are undertaking tamattu or qiran can be consumed by their owners and offered to their kith and kin.)
The owner of tatawwu hady can benefit from his sacrifice; he can consume its meat, use its skin, and keep some of it meat and fat. However, it is wajib (necessary) to distribute at least some of it to the poor people living in Mecca.
b. Niyaba in Hajj (Performing the Hajj on someone else’s behalf)
It is permitted for one who cannot carry out hajj themselves to send someone else as his proxy in his place. The person’s inability to perform the hajj must be due either to a handicap, old age, or an illness from which he does not expect to recover based on the stated opinions of two trustworthy physicians or based on the person’s own knowledge provided that he is knowledgeable in medical matters.
If a person upon whom hajj is obligatory dies before undertaking this obligation, his proxy must fulfill this obligation in place of the deceased if he leaves inheritance behind enough to perform hajj. If he does not leave enough inheritance behind, his heirs are not required to send a proxy in place of the deceased to perform hajj. It does not matter if he leaves a will or not, it is permissible if someone voluntarily performs pilgrimage in place of the deceased.
As a matter of fact, a woman from the Bani Has’am came to our Prophet (pbuh) in the year of the Farewell Pilgrimage and asked:
“O Allah’s Messenger! The obligation of Hajj enjoined by Allah on His devotees has become due on my father and he is old and weak, and he cannot sit firm on the mount; may I perform Hajj on his behalf?” Our Prophet stated:
“-Yes you may,” He answered”[2]
In another narration, someone from the Bani Juhayna came to our Prophet and asked: “My mother had vowed to perform Hajj but she died before performing it. May I perform Hajj on my mother’s behalf?”
Our Prophet replied: “Perform Hajj on her behalf. Had there been a debt on your mother, would you have paid it or not? So, pay Allah’s debt as He has more right to be paid.”[3]
The person who performs hajj as proxy should express in his intention the name of the person who sent him as his proxy. All of the expenses of the proxy should be met by the person who appoints him.
Another condition of relevance here is that the proxy must have already performed the obligatory hajj, since it is not permissible to appoint as a proxy someone who has not yet done so.
If someone who was unable to perform the hajj recovers from the illness which was preventing him from doing so after the proxy has completed the hajj on his behalf, he must perform the hajj on his own behalf after his recovery since, under such circumstances, the agreement on the basis of which the proxy was hired will have been shown to be invalid.[4]
If the deceased is person in debt and if his inheritance is not enough to cover both his debts and the expenses of pilgrimage, according to preferred view, the expenses for pilgrimage should be deducted from his inheritance and the remaining part should be used for the payment of his debts.[5]
c. Places to Visit Related to Hajj and Umrah
It is one of the proper manners for the afaqis, who come to perform hajj or umrah, to go to Medina and visit the Prophet’s (pbuh) grave.
PLACES TO VISIT IN MECCA
1- The House where our Prophet (pbuh) was born: It is located on Shib-i Abu Street on the Bab al-Salam gate of the Ka’bah. It currently serves as a library.
2- Masjid al-Jinn: It is the place where the chapter al-Jinn was revealed and a mosque was constructed. The Jinn listened to the Prophet’s recitation of the Qur’an and embraced Islam in this place.
3- Jabal al-Rahma: It is a small mountain located in the Plain of Arafat. Allah’s Messenger (pbuh) performed waqfa on this mountain. It is also narrated that Adam and Eve came together on this mountain after a long period of time.
4- Jabal al-Nur (Mountain of Hira): It is in the North east of Mecca and is located between the city center of Mecca and Mina. The cave where the Prophet (pbuh) received his first revelation is located in this mountain.
5- The Cave of Thawr: It is in the South of Mecca close to the road leading to Arafat. This is the cave where Allah’s Messenger (pbuh) hid to protect himself from the evil of the polytheists when he was migrating from Mecca to Medina.
6- Jannat al-Mualla: It is the oldest cemetery in Mecca. Khadija (r. anha), the wife of the Messenger of Allah (pbuh), is buried in this cemetery.
PLACES TO VISIT IN MEDINA
1- Masjid al-Nabi and Marqad al-Sharif: The pilgrims visit the mosque and tomb of Messenger of Allah (pbuh). When the pilgrims go to this mosque, they send peace and blessings to the Messenger of Allah (pbuh).
When the pilgrim comes to Masjid al-Nabawi, he performs a two-cycle tahiyyat al-masjid prayer and a two-cycle shukr prayer in the place called a garden from Paradise located between the pulpit and the Prophet’s (pbuh) grave. Then he invokes Allah for himself, his family, his parents, his kith and kin, and for others.
One should try to perform daily prayers in Masjid al-Nabi as long as he stays in Medina. He should utilize his free time by performing make-up prayers, supererogatory prayers and recite the Qur’an in this mosque. What is important here is to benefit from the spiritual environment of this place as much as possible by getting the utmost benefit before returning to one’s home.
Masjid al-Nabi is one of the three mosques on earth to which a believer is allowed to set out on a journey for the purpose of visiting. This is stated by Allah’s Messenger (pbuh) in one of his sayings as follows: “Do not set out on a journey except for three Mosques i.e. al-Masjid aI-Haram, the Mosque of Allah’s Messenger (pbuh), and the Mosque of al-Aqsa, (Mosque of Jerusalem).”[6]
The prayer performed in Masjid al-Nabi is more virtuous than prayers performed in other mosques, except the ones performed in Majid al-Haram. According to Sa’d b. Abi Waqqas (r.a), it is reported that Allah’s Messenger (pbuh) said, “The prayer performed in my Masjid is better than thousand-cycle prayer performed in other mosques except the ones performed in Majid al-Haram.”[7]
2- Masjid Quba: This is the mosque built to perform prayers in congregation. It is five km away from Masjid al-Nabi. Allah’s Messenger (pbuh) regularly visited Masjid Quba on Saturdays and sometimes on Mondays. He would go there sometimes on a mount and sometimes on foot and perform prayer there. He advised the believers the following in one of his sayings, “Whoever purifies himself in his house, then comes to the Quba’ Mosque and offers one prayer therein, will have a reward like that for ‘Umrah.”[8]
3- Masjid al-Juma: It is the place where the Prophet (pbuh) performed the first Friday Prayer during his migration. On this place, which is located on the road between Medina and Quba, Allah’s Messenger built a big mosque by the name of Masjid al-Juma.
4- Masjid al-Qiblatayn: The mosque of the sons of Salama is also called Masjid al-Qiblatayn, meaning the mosque with two qiblas. This is because the Muslim’s first qibla, Masjid al-Aqsa in Jerusalem, was changed eighteen months later on the 15th of the month of Shaban to Masjid al-Haram in this mosque.
5- Jannat al-Baqi: It is the first cemetery established by Medinan Muslims. It is located on the Eastern side of Masjid al-Nabawi and about ten thousand Companions are buried in this cemetery including Uthman (r.a.), the Prophget’s uncle Abbas (r.a.), his aunt Safiya (r. anha), his youngest son Ibrahim, his daughters Ruqiya, Ummugulsum and Fatima, his grandson Hasan, and his milk brother Uthman b. Maz’un.
6- Mountain of Uhud and the Cemetery of Martyrs: Mountain of Uhud is 5 km north of Medina. On the third year of Hijrah, a large battle between the Muslims and the polytheists took place here. 70 people from the Companions were martyred in this battle and were buried at the skirts of this mountain. Hamza (r.a.), the uncle of Messenger of Allah (pbuh), and Mus’ab b. Umayr (r.a.) were also among the martyrs. Allah’s Messenger (pbuh) would visit this cemetery from time to time.
7- Masjid al-Sab’a: At this place where the Battle of Handaq took place, seven small mosques were built.
[1] Al-Baqara, 2: 196.
[2] Al-Bukhari, Hajj 1-2; Muslim, Hajj 713
[3] Al-Bukhari, Jazau al-Sayd 22
[4] Al-Nawawi, al-Majmu’, 7/85
[5] Al-Nawawi, al-Majmu’, 7/93
[6] Al-Bukhari, Fada’il al-Salat, 1, 6
[7] Ahmad b. Hanbal, I,184
[8] Ibn Maja, iqama, 198; al-Tirmidhi, Salat, 242
Source: Fiqh1 (According To The Shafi’i School Of Islamic Law), Erkam Publications
