It is no crime in you if ye seek of the bounty of your Lord (during
pilgrimage). Then when ye pour down from (Mount) Arafat, celebrate the praises
of Allah at the Sacred Monument, and celebrate His praises as He has directed
you, even though, before this, ye went astray.
(Al-Qur'an, 2:198 (Al-Baqara [The Cow])
A Question Of Validity
http://ourdialogue.com/answers/articles.php?action=show&showarticle=1134
Question
When I offered the pilgrimage last year, I was not fully aware of all the
duties I had to do and their timing. I did the Saie before doing the tawaf of
arrival. I missed the sacrifice because when I went to the bank, they were not
accepting any new payments. I also missed the tawaf of farewell. Is my
pilgrimage valid?
Answer
The Saie has always to be done after a tawaf. It can be done after the tawaf
on arrival or the tawaf of Ifadah. If you were asking me the same question
during your pilgrimage, I would have told you to repeat the Saie after the
tawaf of Ifadah. However, since the pilgrimage is over and you have returned
home, I hope that your mistake falls within the category for which no
compensation is required. The Prophet, peace be upon him, says: "My nation has
been forgiven what they do through genuine mistakes, or out of forgetfulness,
or what they are forced to do." I pray that this applies to you in this
particular case.
As for the sacrifice, it remains outstanding. You can offer it this year
instead of last year. Even if you missed out on doing it during the pilgrimage
season, you can still do it afterward. You may ask one of your friends who is
going to the pilgrimage to buy a voucher on your behalf and do what is
necessary. If you delay it further, you go to Makkah or ask someone who is
going there to arrange the slaughter and the distribution of the meat of the
sacrificed sheep to the poor of the Haram area. As for the tawaf of farewell,
you have to slaughter a sheep in compensation for that. The same applies to
this sacrifice as the other.
There is no question that your pilgrimage is valid. Pilgrimage is not
invalidated except through sexual intercourse during Ihram. On the other hand,
if one does not attend at Arafat on the 9th of Thul Hajjah, he is not a
pilgrim. The other essential duty of pilgrimage is the tawaf of Ifadah. If one
misses that and goes back home without doing it, he has to come back for it,
even if he has gone to Alaska or to New Zealand which perhaps are the farthest
points from Makkah.
As for missing other duties, or doing them wrongly, the slaughter of a sheep
is adequate compensation. When it is done, the pilgrimage is considered
complete.
AB
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
"For to us will be their return; then it will be for us to call them to
account." (Holy Quran 88:25-26)
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