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Umrah consists of the
performance of a set of devotional rites in the Masjid ul
Haram in Mecca. These rites also form an integral part of
Hajj, and were prescribed by Allah and Rasool Allah (pbuh).
Umrah may be performed at any time of the year and as many
times as you may wish.
The pilgrim assumes ritual
purity, Ihram, in a place which can be inside Mecca if he/she
intends to perform both Umrah and Hajj in one go or outside
Mecca (meeqat) if only the Umrah is to be performed. For the
residents of Jeddah, meeqat is their home. For the residents
of Makkah, meeqat is Masjid Al-Ayesha.
Uttering of the niya is the
second step, which is the statement that says what the pilgrim
is about to do. For the umrah, there are two possible niyas,
the pilgrim could either be doing the Umrah, or he/she could
be doing both Umrah and Hajj.
The next step is the
uttering of Labbaik, which is in arabic and normally
translated as "at your service". The labbaik is followed by
numerous sentences all dealing with Allah and/or the prophet
Muhammad (PBUH). |
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There are two types of Umrah, depending on whether one wishes
to combine the Umrah with Hajj. Al-Umrat al mufradah
refers to Umrah that is performed independently of Hajj and
Umrat al-tammatu refers to Umrah that is performed in
conjunction with Hajj. More precisely, the rituals of the
Umrah are performed first and then the Hajj rituals are
performed. |
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The pilgrim, sometimes referred to as a 'Haji', performs a
series of ritual acts symbolic of the lives of the prophet
Abraham (Ibrahim) and his wife Hagar (Hajarah), and of
solidarity with Muslims worldwide. These acts of faith include
Tawaf, Sa'i, and halq or taqsir.
First, a pilgrim must
perform a tawaf, which consists of circling the Kaaba seven
times in a counter-clockwise direction. Men are encouraged to
do this three times at a hurried pace, followed by four times,
more closely, at a leisurely pace. Second, they must perform a
sa'i, which means rapidly walking seven times back and forth
between the hills of Safa and Marwah. This is a re-enactment
of Hagar's frantic search for water, before the Zamzam Well
was revealed to her by Allah. Finally a pilgrim must perform a
halq or taqsir, meaning a cutting of the hair. A taqsir is a
partial shortening of the hair, whereas a halq is a complete
shave of the head. |
