On Friday, the 24th of Dhul Qadah, the Prophet Muhammad left Madinah and traveled for eight days, arriving in Makkah on Saturday, the 3rd of Dhul Hijjah.
On Friday, the 24th of Dhul Qadah, the Prophet Muhammad left Madinah and traveled for eight days, arriving in Makkah on Saturday, the 3rd of Dhul Hijjah.
**Sermon Before Departure**
On the 24th of Dhul Qadah, the Prophet ﷺ delivered a Friday sermon to those who had gathered in Madinah, teaching them and reminding them of the purpose of the pilgrimage they were soon to perform. The Prophet ﷺ, dedicated to educating the pilgrims, answered questions directed at him whilst standing on the pulpit. Abu Huraira I narrates:
Allah’s Messenger ﷺ addressed us and said: ‘O people, Allah has made Hajj obligatory for you, so perform Hajj.’ Thereupon a person said: ‘Messenger of Allah, is it to be performed every year?. The Holy Prophet kept quiet, and the questioner repeated these words thrice. Allah’s Messenger ﷺ said: ‘If I were to say “Yes” it would become obligatory for you to perform it every year and you would not have been able to fulfil it.’ Then he said: ‘Leave me as I leave you, for those who were before you were destroyed because of excessive questioning, and their opposition to their apostles. So when I command you to do something, do it as much as you can and when I forbid you to do something, abandon it.’1
He was also asked what the entry points (Miqat) of Ihram. Nafi I narrates:
Allah’s Messenger ﷺ said: ‘The people of Madinah should assume Ihram from Dhul Hulayfah, the people of Syria from al-Juhfah and the people of Najd from Qarn.’ And Abdullah added: I
was informed that Allah’s Messenger ﷺ had said: ‘The people of Yemen should assume Ihram from Yalamlam.’
As the Prophet ﷺ continued his sermon, someone asked what clothes pilgrims were permitted to wear in Ihram. Abdullah ibn Umar I narrates:
A person stood up and asked: ‘O Allah’s Apostle! What clothes may be worn in the state of Ihram?’ The Prophet ﷺ replied: ‘Do not wear a shirt, trousers, headwear (e.g. a turban) or a hooded cloak. However, if somebody has no shoes, Khuffs may be worn, provided they are cut beneath the ankles. Do not wear anything perfumed with Wars or saffron. A woman in the state of Ihram must not cover her face or wear gloves.’
Departure from Madinah
Before setting off, the Prophet ﷺ performed Dhuhr salah at his mosque in Madinah in its usual manner, observing four rak’ahs. He combed his hair, anointed it with oil and donned his upper and lower garments. He planned to travel to Dhul Hulayfah via the route of al-Shajarah. At midday on Saturday 25th of Dhul Qadah, the Prophet ﷺ departed for the pilgrimage with thousands of companions by his side. Aisha J narrates:
We set out in the company of Allah’s Messenger ﷺ five days before the end of Dhul Qadah intending to perform Hajj only.
He was accompanied by men, women and children, some of whom were ridings camels and horses whilst others walked. Among the women was Asma bint Umais J, the wife of Abu Bakr I, who was heavily pregnant and due to give birth. The Prophet’s ﷺ cousin, Duba’a bint al-Zubair ibn Abd al-Mutallib I was also intent on performing the pilgrimage, although she was anxious about not being able to complete the journey on account of her old age and poor health. Aisha J narrates:
Allah’s Messenger ﷺ entered upon Duba’a bint al-Zubair and said to her: ‘Do you have a desire to perform the Hajj?’ She replied: ‘By Allah, I am poorly.’ He said to her: ‘Make an intention to perform Hajj and stipulate a condition, saying: ‘O Allah, my place of release is where You may detain me’ (i.e. I am unable to go further). She was the wife of Al-Miqdad ibn al-Aswad.
He was also accompanied by all of his wives.
In his absence, the Prophet ﷺ appointed Abu Dujana Simak bin Kharasha I, a companion from the clan of Banu Sa’idah of the Ansar, to govern Madinah. Madinah, which had been in the grip of war just a few years earlier, was now a place of security and tranquillity.
His Conveyance
Al-Qaswa, the same camel on which the Prophet ﷺ emigrated to Madinah 10 years earlier, was his favourite camel. It was fitted with an old saddle for him to sit on. He also had a shabby piece of velvet barely worth four Dirhams in his possession. Anas ibn Malik I narrated:
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ performed Hajj upon an old and worn saddle. On it was a piece of cloth, the value of which did not equate to four Dirhams. He supplicated, ‘O Allah, make the Hajj free of pretence, display and pride’.
The rest of his luggage and supplies were mounted on a luggage camel belonging to Abu Bakr I, which the two of them shared.
At Dhul Hulayfah
The Prophet ﷺ set up camp at the bottom of the valley in an area called Mu’arras, midway between the mosque situated in the middle of the valley and the road leading to Makkah. This place of encampment is today situated within the confines of Masjid Dhul Hulayfah. His companions also encamped within the valley. Fudayl ibn Sulayman I narrates what the Prophet ﷺ would normally do at Dhul Hulayfah:
The Messenger of God ﷺ dismounted at Dhul Hulayfa during his Hajj and whenever he performed an Umrah, beneath an acacia tree at the place of the mosque that is there. Whenever he was returning from Hajj, Umrah or a military expedition and his path would take him through here, he would descend to the centre of the valley. Upon reaching the valley, he would make his mount kneel at the plain that was on its eastern edge. He would dismount and rest there, rather than at the mosque near the rocks, nor at the palm trees in the vicinity of the mosque. At the bottom of the valley, there were piles of sand near which the Messenger of God ﷺ would pray. There was also a deep valley nearby in which Abdullah ibn Umar would pray. The flood from the plain ultimately buried that location where Abdullah would pray.
On the morning of the 26th of Dhul Qadah, after the Fajr prayer, he informed his companions that he was visited by someone sent by God. He informed them of the instruction to pray within the valley, so ordered them to perform the Dhuhr prayer there and to enter the state of Ihram thereafter.
Entering Ihram
Later that morning, the Prophet ﷺ spent time with each of his wives individually, ensuring that they were comfortable and well set for the journey ahead. He then disrobed and performed ghusl, before using honey to matte his hair, so it would be impervious to dust and lice for the duration of the journey. His wife, Aisha J, the Mother of the Believers, perfumed him with a fragrant substance containing musk, using her own hands. She narrates:
I applied perfume to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ with my own hands before he entered into the state of Ihram and as he concluded it before performing Tawaf (al-Ziyarah) of the House.
His Talbiyah was as follows:
لَبَّيْكَ اَللَّهُمَّ لَبَّيْكَ ❁ لَبَّيْكَ لَا شَرِيكَ لَكَ لَبَّيْكَ، إِنَّ الْحَمْدَ وَالنِّعْمَةَ لَكَ وَالْمُلْكَ ❁ لَا شَرِيكَ لَكَ ❁
Labbayka Llāhumma labbayk, labbayka lā sharīka laka labbayk, inna-l-ḥamda wa n-niʿmata, laka wa l-mulk, lā sharīka lak.
At Your service, Allah, at Your service. At Your service, You have no partner, at Your service. Truly all praise, favour and sovereignty is Yours; You have no partner.
Sacrificial Animals
The Prophet ﷺ drove a number of camels along with him to offer as Hady during Hajj. He made an incision to the right-hand side of the hump of his camel, squeezing some blood from it. He then tied a pair of slippers around its neck to indicate that it was intended for sacrifice during the pilgrimage. The sacrificial camels were also garlanded in a ceremony known as “Taqlid”. Ibn Abbas I reported:
Allah’s Messenger ﷺ observed the Dhuhr prayer at Dhul Hulayfah, then called for his she-camel and marked it on the right side of its bump, removed the blood from it, and tied two sandals round its neck.
وَالْبُدْنَ جَعَلْنَاهَا لَكُم مِّن شَعَائِرِ اللهِ لَكُمْ فِيهَا خَيْرٌ ❁
And the camels and cattle We have appointed for you as among the symbols of Allah; for you therein is good.
[Surah al-Hajj, 22: 36]
Departure from Dhul Hulayfah
After marking his Hady, he mounted his she-camel and set off from Dhul Hulayfah completely absorbed in the devotion of Allah. As al-Qaswa began to move, the Prophet ﷺ faced the Qibla and pronounced the Talbiyah again. Abdullah ibn Umar I said:
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ pronounced Talbiyah in Dhul Hulayfa as he put his feet in the stirrup and his camel stood up and proceeded.
The companions raised their voices with the declaration of the Talbiyah, as directed by the Prophet ﷺ. They also added various other phrases such as:
Labbayk Dha al-Ma’arij. Labbayk Dha al-Fawadil. Labbayk wa sa’dayk wal-khayr fi yadayk, wal-raghba’ ilayk wal-‘amal. Labbayk Dha al-Na’ma’ wal-fadl al-hasan. Labbayk marhuban mink, marghuban ilayk. Labbayk haqqan haqqa, ta’abbudan wa riqqa.
I respond to You, Lord of the Ways of Ascent. I respond to You, Lord of all bounty. I respond to You with all my being: all goodness is in Your hand, and all hope is in You and all deeds are for You. I respond to You, Lord of great blessings and bounty. I respond to You in fear and hope. I respond to You very truly, in worship and submission.
Al-Rawha
As the Prophet ﷺ traversed the open desert, he could envision earlier prophets who had taken the same journey as him. Crossing al-Rawha passage, he said:
Seventy Prophets went through al-Rawha passage to do the pilgrimage, wearing woollen garments.
Jabal Jumdan
As the caravan passed Jabal Jumdan, a mountain approximately 100 kilometres from Makkah near the village of Khulais, attention was brought to the Prophet ﷺ that some companions, in their eagerness to reach Makkah, had left the congregation and gone ahead. Abu Huraira I narrates:
The Prophet ﷺ said: ‘March on. This is Jumdan. The Mufarridun (single-minded) have gone ahead.’ The companions asked who the Mufarridun were, to which he replied: ‘They are those who absorb themselves in the remembrance of Allah (i.e. perform dhikr). Their dhikr will reduce their heavy burdens to such an extent that they will have a light load on the Day of Judgement.’
Usfan
Travelling through Usfan Valley, the Prophet ﷺ had another vision of earlier prophets. He said:
Prophets Hud S and Salih S went through it riding young red she-camels with fibre reins. They wore ordinary lower garments and woollen top garments. They headed to offer the pilgrimage at the Ancient House.
Saraf
When the Prophet ﷺ attended to his wife, Aisha J, he found her weeping. She narrates:
Allah’s Messenger ﷺ came to me and saw me weeping and said: ‘What makes you weep, O Hantah?’ I replied: ‘I heard the conversation you had with your companions and I cannot perform the Umrah.’ He asked: “What’s the matter?’ I replied: ‘I cannot offer the prayers (i.e. I have my menses).’ He said, ‘ It will not harm you for you are one of the daughters of Adam, and Allah has ordained this for all daughters of Adam. Retain your intention for Hajj and Allah may reward you that.