Why Umrah Is So Important In Islam

Umrah is a sacred traveling for Muslims towards the Makkah. Literally, it means to visit the place which is densely populated. Umrah can be performed at any time of year except for “5” days of Hajj which comes in the last month of Islamic Lunar Calendar. These days are started from the 8th day and ended on the 12th day of Last month (Dahul Hijjah).

A lot of Muslims consider the Umrah is a “Minor Pilgrimage” while Hajj is a “Major Pilgrimage”. So Umrah is not important and essential for all Muslims as the Hajj because Hajj is one of five pillars of Islam.

What happens in the Umrah?

According to Islamic traditions, the Umrah is that Tawaf around the Kaaba as well as Sai between the 2 mountains that lay in the Al-Haram Mosque in the city of Makkah. These two mountains names are Al-Safa and Al-Marwah. These steps also contain in Hajj. After these steps, men have to perform a Halq, where they have to shave their head completely, and woman have to perform a Taqsir, where they have to cut their hairs only for one inch.

Special Requirements for Umrah:

Before traveling the Umrah, you will need a passport, visa, airline ticket, and hotel reservation. You will need the best travel agency which arranges everything for you that is essential for your Umrah journey by the Umrah Packages all inclusive.

For Umrah, every pilgrim will need a special dress. This is not a normal dress because there are some rules for it. Its name is Ihram which would be wear before the crossing of Miqat. It is different for men and women. Men wear simple 2 white sheets which are unstitched. Women wear normal dresses which they wear in their normal lives. They cover their normal dress with Abayas. Abaya is a long loose over-garment.

There are some restrictions that are associated with Ihram:

1: Hunting the animals are prohibited in the state of Ihram.

2: Sexual activities are prohibited in the state of Ihram.

3: Women must uncover their faces and hands.

4: Use of any scents on the body or on the clothes are prohibited in the state of Ihram.

5: Men must uncover their heads.

Why is Umrah so important?

In Islam, the Umrah is 2nd holy journey after the Hajj.  Umrah removes the sins of those who perform it with full intentions. If anyone performs Umrah in Ramadan then he/she can get a great reward which is equal to the reward of Hajj. Umrah removes poverty. You make yourself a guest of Allah when you perform the Umrah’s parts as Tawaf and Sai.

Remove the Poverty_ Hazrat Ibn Abbas (RA) reported that Hazrat Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) said:

“Perform Hajj & Umrah consecutively; for they remove poverty & sin as bellows removes impurity from iron.”

Remove the Sin_ Hazrat Abu Hurairah (RA) reported that Hazrat Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) said:

“From 1 Umrah to another is the expiation for what comes in between and Hajj Al-Mabrur brings no reward less than Heaven.”

Equivalent to Jihad for some Muslims_ Hazrat Abu Hurairah (RA) reported that Hazrat Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) stated:

“Jihad of elderly, the young, the weak & the women, is Hajj & Umrah”

Every Muslim should perform the Umrah at least one time of life because it is a Sunnah of our beloved Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).

Essential Parts Of The Umrah | What Will You Need For Umrah To Perform?

There are two holy cities in the world in which one is Makkah and second is Madina. All Muslims from the world go to see the cities when they perform their Umrah and Hajj. All parts of Umrah be done in the city of Makkah, but Muslims also visit the city of Madinah during this journey.

But one goes to the other country then he/she may face some problems. The best way for you is that you go to the best travel agency who will solve all problems which may be faced during the journey. Verily, the agency offers Cheap Umrah Package and it is better for you in any condition to perform Umrah.

If you go to perform Umrah then obviously you will perform the Umrah in Makkah and then go to the city of Madinah. There are some rules for Umrah which are discussed in this article. There are four parts of Umrah which are respectively as Ihram, Tawaf, Sai, and Tahal-lul.                                                                      

Ihram:

Ihram is a name of dress but it is different for male and female.

Ihram for Male: it consists of only two sheets which color is white and unstitched. Male covers his whole body with two sheets, in which, one is used to cover the upper body and second is used to cover the lower body.

Ihram for Female: 

it is not consists of two or three unstitched sheets while female wears the normal dress but loose-fitting. She can cover his normal dress by an abaya.

It is best for a female that wear light-colored clothes. In the state of Ihram, it is not allowed for her to use perfume and cosmetic product. If you can see any video of Umrah then you can notice that most women wear the white colored abayas but it is not compulsory for her.

It is essential for ihram that you can wear it at Meeqat but some people wear Ihram on their flights after the announcement of pilots. If you do not wear the Ihram and you wish to perform the Tawaf around the Kaaba then this is prohibited.

Tawaf:

Simple means of Tawaf is walked 7-time around the Kaaba. A Muslim wears Ihram and he/she recites the Talbiyah, Labbaik Allahumma Labbaik … La Sharika Lakka Labbaik but the recite of Talbiyah should be stopped when he/she reaches the Al-Haram Mosque.

Tawaf starts from the point of Hajre Aswad in the circle of anti-clockwise. After the completion of Tawaf, he/she offers two rakts in front of Maqam e Ibrahim. During the Tawaf, you can drink Zamzam water.

Sai:

In this part of Umrah, Muslims run between the Safa and Marwah. These are two hills, for which there is a verse of Surah (Al-Baqrah) in Holy Quran and this translate is, as Safa and Marwah are among the symbols of Allah.

It is started from the Safa where you can see the Kaaba and it is ended at Marwah. A woman can walk normally.

Tahal-lul:

Tahal-lul is the last part of Umrah after to complete this, you leave the state of Ihram. Halaq or Taqseer includes in Tahal-lul. Halaq means shave the hair completely and Taqseer means to cut the hairs for one inch but Most of the men prefer to shave the hair completely and women cut the hairs for one finger.

These are all parts of Umrah but there is one question, what to carry for your Umrah?

Some tips for you are here that what you should pack before leaving for Umrah.

1: Toothbrush and toothpaste.

2: Comb and hairbrush.

3: Money pouch for safe your money.

4: lightweight prayer mat.

5: An alarm clock.

6: one of comfortable of shoes and a pair of slippers.

7: Lotion and sunscreen.

8: Meningitis certificate.

9: A mobile and extra batteries.

10: A lightweight umbrella.

11: Sunglasses.

12: Visa.

After completing the Umrah, you can stay in the city of Makkah more days than one or two. Most travel agencies provide the ziyarah which is accommodated in Umrah Packages. 

The name of Ziyarh’s places are jabbal e Noor, Al-Haram Mosque, Mount of Arafat, Jannat ul Maula, Cave Suhr, Al-Nabvi Mosque, Al-Quba Mosque, Jannat ul Baqi, Jannat ul Muala, Abu Bakkar Mosque, Well of Uthman, Ali Mosque, Bilal Mosque, Mount of Uhud, Cave of Hira, and site of Trench.

Amazing Hajj Stats And Necessary Details

Hajj is simply compulsory worship and millions of Muslims want to perform it. Allah says it is not compulsory for those Muslims who cannot afford all expenses of Hajj and who are not physically fit. All Muslims have a wish of performing Hajj at least one time in their life.

Before performing your Hajj, you should carefully consider the advice and information on the website of the Saudi Embassy in your country, such as Saudi Arabia Embassy is in London. You should want to perform Hajj then you should take help from the internet because this is the best source of information in this world.

When you go to the best travel agency then you should check, this agency which is ATOL protected.

You must have:

A valid passport to perform Hajj.

A vaccination certificate.

An identification card and wrist band issued by your Hajj travel agent.

Many travel agencies offer Best Cheap Hajj Package in which agency arranges your visa, flights, tickets, hotels, transports, guide and animal slaughter.

According to the Saudi Government, Millions of Muslims perform the Hajj every year. In 2018, almost 2.4 million pilgrims completed the Hajj. There is discussed here, the total number of domestic and foreign Hajj pilgrims in Saudi Arabia from 1999 to 2018, so that, everybody can imagine here the Hajj statistic record.

1999: Total number of pilgrims who performed the Hajj this year= 1839154.

2000: Total number of pilgrims who performed the Hajj this year= 1913263

2001: Total number of pilgrims who performed the Hajj this year= 1944760

2002: Total number of pilgrims who performed the Hajj this year= 2041129

2003: Total number of pilgrims who performed the Hajj this year= 2012074

2004: Total number of pilgrims who performed the Hajj this year= 2164479

2005: Total number of pilgrims who performed the Hajj this year= 2258050

2006: Total number of pilgrims who performed the Hajj this year= 2378636

2007: Total number of pilgrims who performed the Hajj this year=2454325

2008: Total number of pilgrims who performed the Hajj this year= 2408849

2009: Total number of pilgrims who performed the Hajj this year= 2313278

2010: Total number of pilgrims who performed the Hajj this year= 2789399

2011: Total number of pilgrims who performed the Hajj this year= 2927717

2012: Total number of pilgrims who performed the Hajj this year= 3161573

2013: Total number of pilgrims who performed the Hajj this year= 1980249

2014: Total number of pilgrims who performed the Hajj this year=2085238

2015: Total number of pilgrims who performed the Hajj this year= 1952817

2016: Total number of pilgrims who performed the Hajj this year= 1862909

2017: Total number of pilgrims who performed the Hajj this year= 2352 122

2018: Total number of pilgrims who performed the Hajj this year= 2317675

The Saudi Government will not issue the Hajj visa to those Muslims who have performed Hajj in the past five years. There were some accidents during the Hajj in 2015. On 11 Sep 2015, a crane collapsed at the Holy Mosque in Makkah. On 25 September 2015, a crush in Mina resulted in over 750 deaths and many more fatalities. According to media reports, the crush in Mina resulted in over 1000 deaths and many more fatalities.

Approximately, Hajj 2022 will come 

Thursday

 

7 July

 to 

Tuesday

 

12 July

 in this year which is very near to us now. Anyone who wants to perform Hajj then he/she should contact any travel agency because last month of visa applying is June.  

 It is a very difficult task for the Saudi Government to manage a large crowd of Pilgrims in different places which are essential parts of Hajj.

Essential Parts Of Hajj:

Ihram:

The first step for every pilgrim is Ihram.

Ihram for a male:

It is a simple white cloth and it consists of two unsewn sheets in which one sheet covers the upper body and the second sheet covers the lower body.

Ihram for a female:

A woman wears normal stitched cloth and a headscarf. Woman wear the burqa or niqab.

Tawaf:

When the pilgrims arrive in Al-Haram Mosque then they perform Tawaf and Tawaf means walking seven-times around the Kaaba.

Sai:

Pilgrims run between the hills of Safa and Marwa and run means fast walking. This was an act of Hazrat Hajrah (RA) who was the mother of Hazrat Ismail (AS).

Mina:

Pilgrims go to the tent city of Mina on the 1st day of Hajj. Pilgrims stay here and leave this place until the sunrise of the 2nd day of Hajj. They go to Arafat.

Arafat:

When the pilgrims reach the place of Arafat then they spend this day by praying and repenting.

Muzdalifah:

After the Arafat, pilgrims go to the open land of Muzdalifah, southeast of Mina. Pilgrims offer the Maghrib and Isha prayers here. It is the best place to collect stones for Ramy al-jamarat.

Ramy al-Jamarat:

At this place, pilgrims throw the stones towards Jamarat. There are three walls in the city of Mina and stoning marks the 3rd day of Hajj (Eid-al-Adha).

Eid al-Adha:

Eid al-Adha is a Feast of Sacrifice festival. On this festival, Muslims slaughter the animals (Buffalo, Cow, Ox, Goat, Sheep, and Camel). It is a very essential part of Eid al-Adha but it is not essential for those who are not able to perform it. This is a Sunnah of Prophet Ibrahim (AS).