Tawaf, Sa'i, and Other Rites Explained

The tawaf — the circumambulation of the Ka'bah — is among the most ancient and most sacred acts of Islamic worship, tracing its origin to the practice established by Ibrahim (peace be upon him) when he built the Ka'bah as the first house dedicated to the worship of the one God. Mufti ibn Adam provides a comprehensive legal and spiritual analysis of the tawaf, addressing its conditions, its method, its recommended acts (mustahabbat), and the common questions that arise in its performance.

The legal conditions for the validity of the tawaf include: ritual purity (taharah) — the same state of wudu required for prayer; covering of the awrah; intention (niyyah); being performed within the Masjid al-Haram on the designated level or above (the rooftop of the Masjid is permissible for the obligatory tawaf, though not ideal); beginning at the Black Stone; performing seven complete circuits; and ensuring that the Ka'bah is to the pilgrim's left at all times, meaning the circumambulation moves counterclockwise. Any circuit in which the Ka'bah is not to one's left does not count.

The recommended acts of tawaf are numerous and enrich the experience immeasurably. Men are recommended to perform ramal — brisk walking with shoulders pulled back — during the first three circuits of the tawaf al-qudoom (the arrival tawaf). All pilgrims are recommended to touch or kiss the Black Stone at the beginning of each circuit if possible without causing harm to others, or to gesture toward it with the right hand if the crowds make physical contact impossible. The Hatim should be circumambulated on the outer side, since it is part of the Ka'bah. The Yemeni Corner (al-Rukn al-Yamani) should be touched with the right hand without kissing during each circuit if possible.

The tawaf is accompanied throughout by dua and dhikr. While no specific supplications are prescribed for the tawaf — unlike the prayer, which has fixed texts — scholars have compiled collections of beautiful du'as drawn from the Quran and the Sunnah that are appropriate for each section of the tawaf. The well-known supplication, 'Rabbana atina fid-dunya hasanatan wa fil-akhirati hasanatan wa qina adhab an-nar' (Our Lord, give us good in this world and good in the Hereafter, and protect us from the punishment of the Fire), is particularly associated with the tawaf and is recommended between the Yemeni Corner and the Black Stone.

The sa'i between Safa and Marwa consists of seven one-way trips between the two hills, beginning at Safa and ending at Marwa. The Quran mentions this rite: 'Indeed, Safa and Marwa are among the symbols of Allah. So whoever makes Hajj to the House or performs Umrah — there is no blame upon him for walking between them. And whoever volunteers good — then indeed, Allah is appreciative and Knowing' (2:158). The sa'i should be performed after tawaf, ideally on the same day but not necessarily immediately. At the beginning of the sa'i, the pilgrim ascends Safa, faces the Ka'bah, declares the greatness of Allah (takbir), and recites specific Prophetic supplications before beginning the walk.

The stoning of the Jamarat — the three pillars at Mina representing the locations where Shaytan appeared to Ibrahim — is performed by throwing seven small stones at each pillar on each relevant day. The stones should be approximately the size of a chickpea — not so large as to cause harm to others if they miss their target. The throwing should be accompanied by the words 'Allahu Akbar' with each stone, expressing the spiritual meaning of the act: the rejection of Shaytan and his temptations, and the affirmation of Allah's supremacy over every form of evil. The stoning is not a superstitious act but a disciplined act of symbolic worship rooted in prophetic history.