Alhassanain(p) Network for Heritage and Islamic Thought

4-AN ISLAMIC LIFE-STYLE

Question:

What is meant by an Islamic life-style?

Answer:

An Islamic life-style relates to man's various activities but, however, concerns matters which Islam either encourages or discourages but which are not in the category of being obligatory or forbidden.

Such a life-style or way of living is to the greater benefit of the individual and society in this world and the next.

Question:

If these matters bring about an upward spiritual growth in man why has not Islam made them obligatory?

Answer:

Because Islam realizes that man by nature is weak and does not want to tire him out with a plethora of laws. Therefore it has only made obligatory what is essential for his religion and his wellbeing in this life and has left the non-essential matters up to him entirely. If he wishes he can do them, and if he does not want to do them then he need not. Islam has issued directives concerning matters of which it approves or disapproves so that those of strong character who seek greater advance and well-being for themselves and for society as a whole should act upon them.

Question:

Please give us examples of Islamicbehaviour or an Islamic lifestyle.

Answer:

An Islamic life-style is multi-faceted but here we shall set out the main aspects of Islamicbehaviour and which relate to the following subjects:

1. What a woman should do when a man wants to marry her, and vice-versa. The subject is bound up with considerations regarding religion, manners, looks, finance, family and maturity.

2. The marriage ceremony, dowry, the intimate side of marriage, how a husband and wife should treat one another, the waiting-period after divorce (the ‘idda ), becoming a widow.

3. Pregnancy, breast-feeding and the bringing-up of children.

4. Responsibility relating to work (man and wife) within the house and outside.

5. Dress code in relation to fabric,colour , cut and the number of dresses.

6. The hair, beard, eyebrows and the hair on the rest of the body, as regards combing, oiling, cutting and beautifying, the removal and plucking of hair and dyeing andcolouring .

7. The rules of caring and looking after the body as regards oiling, rubbing the skin and doing exercise.

8. Eating and drinking.

9. Waking, sleeping, lying down and stretching out the body.

10. Applying kohl (antimony) to the eyes, brushing the teeth, using a toothpick or dental floss, making the mouth smell nice as well as the whole body.

11. Going to the bathroom or toilet with regard to entering and leaving, how to cleanse oneself with water and remove impurities (after bodily functions) and wearing a bathing cloth.

12. Meeting one another and such topics as being the first to greet the gathering, opening up space for others, and the guarding of tongue, eyes and ears from habits incompatible with good manners like whispering in someone’s ear; eschewing foolish talk; the use of polite language when meeting others and avoiding vulgarity;

and the way of sitting properly.

13. Eating and the way of eating with others; washing the hands before and after eating; to eat only when hungry and to stop eating before being full; how to sit properly before the food; to partake first of all with salt; sayingbismillahi-rrahmani-rrahim (in the name of God, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate) at the beginning of the meal and al-hamdulillahi Rabb al-‘alamin (praise be to God, the Lord of the worlds), or similar expressions of thanks to God, at the end.

14. Drinking water: whether to drink standing or sitting;

gulping down the water or drinking in sips; the suitable time to drink.

15. Making a living and engaging in trade.

16. Farming.

17. Keeping healthy: ways of preventing bad health and how best to go about a cure.

18. Teaching and learning, duties of a teacher and his student, composition, handwriting andmemorising lessons.

19. Business transactions; buying and selling; renting and pawning and related matters.

20. Buying poultry and birds and how best to look after them.

21. Keeping the house and the area around it clean and how best to arrange the house and its rooms and so on.

22. Acquiring livestock and other animals: watering and feeding them; getting them to carry loads and looking after them.

23. Constructing buildings.

24. Widening roads, digging wells, opening up canals and rivers.

25. Profiting from the hidden resources of the world: mines, treasure hoards (sea and land).

26.Behaviour when travelling or staying in a place.

27. The prescribed way of slaughtering an animal.

28. The sentencing of crimes and redress of grievances and matters relating to the judge, the witnesses, the taking down in writing of the court proceedings, documents produced to substantiate a claim, the way a courtroom should be arranged and the hearing of an independent opinion.

29. Wearing gold andjewellery and looking in the mirror.

30. Going to the lavatory as regards squatting or sitting, what to say before entering and after leaving and the removal of impurities.

31. Socializing with relatives and people in general; shaking hands and so on.

32. Establishing peace and enacting a peace-treaty; war and attacking the enemy.

33. Boarding and alighting from a vehicle and the like, alighting in the middle of the road, accompanying a friend on a journey.

34. Someone who is about to die, someone who has died, the funeral procession, the grave, mourning and so on.

35. How a healthy person treats someone who is ill.

36. Being rich and being poor.

37. Telling other people about Islam and how best to guide them to the truth.

38. The way a judge, religious scholar, preacher, imam of the mosque and other people in authority should behave.

39. Making a will, matters relating to the carrying out of punishments and judicial retaliation.

40. Invoking God, the five daily ritual prayers, the other acts of worship and the visiting of holy shrines.

There are many other topics for which we would require numerous volumes if we were to cover them in detail. Our aim here was simply to refer to the main themes.

5-WHAT IS FORBIDDEN INISLAM

Question:

What is the meaning of something forbidden?

Answer:

Something forbidden is what Islam has prohibited and has forbidden being done absolutely.

Question:

Why has Islam forbidden certain things?

Answer:

Because in doing them there is considerable harm.

Question:

If someone does a forbidden thing what will be his lot?

Answer:

Distress in this life and suffering in the world to come.

Question:

Give an example of distress in this life? What is it like?

Answer:

For example: gambling leads to loss of possessions, alcoholic drinks lead to illnesses, listening to songs can cause neurasthenia, adultery has the effect of confusing genealogy, sodomy is the source of venereal diseases and related ailments in both partners, interest brings about disorder in economic balance.

Question:

So why don’t we see these harmful consequences in society despite the fact that most, if not all, of these prohibited acts are widespread?

Answer:

In fact it is the reverse:

Crime has spread throughout the length and breadth of society, the courts are being swamped by criminals and the prisons are full.

Economic imbalance has reached its apex in that some possess millions while others are dying of hunger.

Dangerous diseases have got out of control so that thousands of hospitals, clinics and pharmacies and the like are of no avail in getting rid of them or even limiting their scope.

Anxiety and confusion have taken over people’s lives to an extent never seen previously in history.

In short, revolutions and wars dominate the history books of our time so that there is no room for anything else: wars which leave in their wake misfortune, tears, blood and catastrophes.

After all that we have said above, can it still be claimed that forbidden acts (according to Islam) have no bad effects?

Question:

What are things forbidden by Islam?

Answer:

Islamic prohibitions are numerous, some of which are as follows:

1. Assisting an unjust person.

2. Turning away from remembering God.

3. Wasting money (or any of God's bounties).

4. (For men), wearing golden trinkets or silk clothes.

5. Masturbation.

6. Causing distress to others.

7. Using gold or silver utensils.

8. Divulging the secrets of others.

9. Disobedience of parents by children, andunsubmissiveness of a wife to her husband (in those instances where submission is obligatory).

10. Spreadingrumours about adulterousbehaviour and the like.

11. Hoarding essential commodities.

12. Endangering one's life unnecessarily.

13. Charm, magic and so on.

14. Slander and malicious accusations.

15. Astrology and the like.

16. Swindling and fraud.

17.Altering a dead person’s will.

18. Spying on others.

19. Murdering or wounding another or severing one of his limbs.

20. Withholding what is due to God or to man.

21. Imprisoning someone unjustly.

22. Jealousy.

23. Squandering money held in trust for others.

24. Drinking any intoxicating liquid: alcoholic beverages or anything else.

25. Eating the meat of an animal not slaughtered according to Islamic law, eating pork or other forbidden meats, eating or drinking impure things and eating other forbidden things like clay and so on.

26. Betrayal, deceit and cheating.

27. Stealing.

28. Acting as a procurer (pimp) to bring a man and a woman together for illicit sex, or two men or a boy and a girl.

29. Telling lies.

30. Using insulting language against God, the Prophets, Imams, Islam, the Qur’an or against other people.

31. Hypocrisy in all its kinds, one of which is beingdoublefaced , that is praising a person when he is present but backbiting him in his absence.

32. Bribery.

33. Usury.

34. Robbingtravellers on the road.

35. Shaving off the beard and the cutting off of any of one’s bodily parts or getting rid of one of the faculties, such as blinding oneself.

36. The free mixing and intermingling of boys and girls in a forbidden manner.

37. Approving what is forbidden.

38. Adultery, sodomy, lesbianism, looking with desire at someone or touching him/her who is not in that degree of consanguinity that precludes marriage.

39. Punishing others unjustly.

40. Falsely accusing someone of adultery, sodomy or being illegitimate.

41. Spreading lies, backbiting, getting involved in useless talk and spreading discord.

42. Attempting to demolish mosques or desecrate them.

43. To show someone in a bad light in front of ruthless people.

44. Making musical instruments, things for gambling, crucifixes.

45. Women discarding the veil and showing their fineries in public.

46. Breaking an oath, a vow or a covenant.

47. Giving a false testimony and concealing the truth.

48. The playing of chess, backgammon and other such games.

49. Not looking after those family members who are his dependants.

50. Oppressing people and violating the rights of others.

51. Getting worked up about matters of little consequence.

52. Songs with music.

53. Spreading corruption or evil ways.

54. Breaking off ties with one’s close relations, being disobedient to parents, and not looking after one’s children.

55. Using short weights and tampering with the scales.

56. Singing love poetry about a chaste woman or man who is not your wife/ husband.

57. Revealing one’s private parts in front of someone who is outside the degree of consanguinity.

58. Arguing for the sake of arguing.

59. Peeping into the houses ofneighbours .

60. Using anything which causes excessive harm to the body and similarly harming others ………… and other prohibitions.

You, esteemed reader, will see at a glance that the reason for most of these prohibitions is clear and obvious, and does not require much reflection. For example, can anyone deny the repugnance of murder, pillaging the property of others or injuring them, spying into other people’s houses or doing harm?

However, some of the matters do require some thought concerning the reason for their prohibition, for instance gambling, alcoholic drinks and women not covering their heads and their dressing immodestly. Anyone must surely realize that gambling leads to anxiety and material loss, alcohol causes numerous illnesses, dressing immodestly can often lead to immorality and the breaking up of families, and so on and so on. Is there any religion or legal system which has not formulated a list of forbidden things? Nevertheless the question remains, does not the fact that certain things are forbidden lead to a degree of unhealthy repression? The answer is that anything which leads to bad things has to be repressed or restrained in some way and legal systems, in general, are full of attempts to do so.

6-ISLAMIC ACTS OF WORSHIP

Question:

What is the meaning of worship?

Answer:

Worshipare those things that Islam has made obligatory and must be performed with the intention of seeking nearness or closeness to God Almighty.

Question:

What is meant by the intention of seeking nearness to God?

Answer:

It means that the action should be performed only for the sake of God and this intention distinguishes acts of worship and the other obligatory acts, because worship requires the intention of seeking nearness to God whereas acts which are not worship, but which are considered a means of gaining access to God’s mercy, may be performed without that specific intention.

Question:

Give an example of both:

Answer:

For example, offering prayers is an act of worship and they are not valid without the intention of seeking nearness to God but washing an item of clothing to make it pure is not worship and therefore can be done without that intention.

Question:

Why is worship conditional upon the intention of drawing near to God?

Answer:

Firstly, because worship is obedience to God Almighty and complete obedience cannot be expressed unless the act of worship is performed solely for the sake of God. Secondly, worship elevates the soul and so if man continually remembers God and realizes that he is in the presence of his Lord who is the Great, the Powerful, the All-Seeing and All-Hearing, undoubtedly he will be granted an excellence of character which will lead him towards the highest spirituality and noblest conduct and will distance him from bad things, whether they be attitudes of mind or actual deeds.

PRAYING

Question:

What are the Islamic acts of worship?

Answer:

The most important Islamic acts of worship are prayers, fasting,khums ,zakat , jihad and hajj.

Since this book has been written in order to provide a brief introduction to Islam, we will forgo an explanation of the wisdom and reasons behind these acts of worship and so anyone who wishes to know about these aspects should refer to our book entitled “Islamic Acts of Worship”15 .

Question:

What are prayers? How many units do they have and what else is involved?

Answer:

Prayers are of two kinds: obligatory prayers and recommended prayers.

Question:

Which are the obligatory prayers?

Answer:

Obligatory prayers are performed in the following sequence:

1. Dawn prayer (calledfajr orsubh ). This has two units16 , and its time is from dawn to sunrise.

2. Noon or Midday prayer (calleddhuhr ): four units, and its time is from the passing of the sun from the middle of the sky of the country where you happen to be until shortly before the sun sets beneath the horizon.17

3. Afternoon prayer (called ‘asr ): fourunits, and its time is from after the noon prayer until the setting of the sun beneath the horizon.

4. Sunset prayer (calledmaghrib ): three units, and its time is from sunset, which means in this case when the redness in the sky has passed from above one’s head (that is about a quarter of an hour after the actual sunset), until shortly before the middle of the night18 .

5. Evening prayer (called ‘isha ’): fourunits, and its time is from after the sunset prayer until the middle of the night.

Question:

Do prayers while travelling differ from prayers in the place of residence?

Answer:

Yes. Prayers while travelling are “qasr - shortened” that is the midday (dhuhr ), afternoon (‘asr ) and evening (‘isha ’) prayers should each be performed in two units like the dawn (fajr )

prayer19 .

Question:

How is the prayer divided up?

Answer:

It is divided up as follows:

1. SayingAllahu akbar20 , after first having made the intention.

2. The reading of the first chapter (sura ) of the Qur’an (al-Fatiha ), and any one other chapter, while standing.

3. Bowing with its specific invocation21 .

4. Standing upright again after bowing.

5. Two prostrations with their specific invocation22 , respectively, and sitting up between the two prostrations.

6. Standing up straight again, then the recitation of al-Fatiha and any othersura (just like 2 above) followed by theQunut prayers23 which are recommended but not obligatory.

7. Then bowing and standing up straight, after bowing; two prostrations (just like 5 above) and sitting back; then the saying of the tashahhud24 and the salam25 .

That is the way to pray two units. As for prayers of three or four units, however, in the third and fourth unit instead of reciting al-Fatiha and any othersura , special praises to God are recited26 .

Question:

What are the conditions of prayers?

Answer:

The conditions of prayers are as follows:

1. To stand facing the Qibla27 .

2. Cleanliness of dress, the body and the place of prostration.

3. Being in the state of purification by means of ablutions (wudu ’)28 or ghusl29 or tayammum30 .

4. The clothes of the person praying and the place of prayer must have been lawfully acquired.

5. Not doing anything which nullifies the prayers while they are being performed as, for example, flatulence and so on, laughing, or turning away from theQibla .

Question:

Are there other prayers besides the daily prayers which Islam has made obligatory?

Answer:

Yes.

1. The prayer over the deceased.

2. The prayer at the time of wondrous or fearful happenings (salat al-ayat )31 .

3. The prayer after the circumambulation (tawaf )32 .

4. Prayers performed on behalf of a dead person, if an individual is obliged to do them.

5. Prayers said after a vow.

There is a particular way to pray each of these other obligatory prayers and books on jurisprudence should be consulted for details.

Question:

Which are the prayers which are particularly recommended?

Answer:

There are many recommended prayers, for instance:

1. Daily supererogatory prayers (nawafil )33 .

2. The special prayers for the month of Ramadan.

3. Recommended prayers on sacred days like religious festivals.

4. Prayers which have been narrated by the Prophet and the pure Imams, which they themselves used to perform and which are known by their names as, for instance, the Prayer of the Prophet (God’s blessings and peace be upon him and his progeny) and the Prayer of ‘Ali (peace be upon him).

5. Prayers which are recommended in various circumstances such as prayers when visiting holy shrines (either physically or at a distance), the special prayer to beseech Almighty God for rain (istisqa ’), and the prayer of one who is in a state of fear.

FASTING

Question:

What is fasting?

Answer:

Fasting is keeping away from anything that will break the fast which is from the beginning of dawn until sunset.

Question:

How many different kinds of fasts are there?

Answer:

Fasts are of four kinds:

1. Compulsory fasts, such as the fast of the month of Ramadan.

2. Recommended fasts such as the fast of the month of Rajab34 .

3. Disapproved fasts like fasting on the day of ‘Ashura35 .

4. Forbidden fasts such as fasting on the Festival (‘Id) of al-Fitr and the Festival of al-Adha.36

Question:

How many days is it obligatory to fast in the month of Ramadan?

Answer:

For a Muslim on whom it is incumbent to fast, he or she must fast for a completemonth, that is the month of Ramadan, which is the ninth month of the lunar calendar, the first month being al-Muharram.

Question:

What are the things to which you havealluded that will break the fast and so it is obligatory to abstain from them?

Answer:

They are 10 in number:-

1. Eating.

2. Drinking.

3. Sexual Intercourse.

4. Masturbation.

5. Remaining in a state of ritual impurity until after the beginning of dawn.37

6. Injection of a liquid.

7. Enabling thick powder or dust to reach the throat.

8. Dipping the head completely in water.

9. Vomiting.

10. To ascribe deliberately words or deeds which are false, to God, the Prophet or the 12Imams.

Question:

If someone deliberately does not fast for a day, how can he requite himself?

Answer:

The requital for such a person isthreefold :

1. After the month of Ramadan he must fast for a day, in lieu of that day.

2. He must make an expiation which must be one of the following three things:

a. He should fast for two months successively, without a break.

b. He should feed 60 poor persons.

c. He should procure freedom for a believing slave.

338 . The Muslim jurist will chastise him for committing this transgression.

KHUMS and ZAKAT

Question:

What iskhums ?

Answer:

Khums consists of giving away twenty percent of income for the cause of God39 .

Question:

From what income shouldkhums be given?

Answer:

From seven things:

1. Booty from war.

2. Things that have been acquired by means of diving in the seas.

3. Mineral ore.

4. Profits and gains.

5. Land that a non-Muslim buys from a Muslim.

6. Ahalal (lawful or religiously permissible) gain which has been mixed with aharam (unlawful or religiously forbidden) gain.

7. Treasure.

Question:

To whom shouldkhums be paid?

Answer:

A part of thekhums should be paid to the Muslim jurist so that he may expend it according to Islamic activities as seems fit to him.

The remainder is expended by the person concerned for helping orphans, poor people and needytravellers , from among the descendants of the Prophet (God’s blessings and peace be upon him and his progeny).

Question:

What iszakat ?

Answer:

Zakat consists of the payment of a portion of certain assets for the cause of God.

Question:

From what things shouldzakat be paid?

Answer:

From three categories:-

1. The three groups of grazing livestock: cows, sheep and goats and camels.

2. The four types of grains: dates, raisins, wheat and barley.

3. Two types of coinage: gold and silver.

Thuszakat has to be paid obligatorily from nine things. It is recommended thatzakat should also be paid from other things like properties and business assets.

Question:

To whom shouldzakat be given?

Answer:

Zakat should be expended in eight categories:-

1. The poor.

2. The penurious: one whose condition is more severe than that of a poor person.

3. Officials who are appointed to collect thezakat .

4. Matters that may be considered to be for the cause of God, that is anything which is for the benefit of the Muslims be it related to his religious or worldly affairs.

5. Debtors who are unable to pay their debts.

6. Wayfarers who cannot travel any further and cannot afford to return to their own homeland.

7. Those who receive from thezakat in order either to strengthen the faith already present in their hearts40 or to discourage them from harming the Muslims.

8. Slaves: bondspersons who live under difficult conditions should be purchased withzakat money or freed.

JIHAD

Question:

What is jihad?

Answer:

Jihad consists of fighting for the cause of God.

Question:

What is the object and aim of jihad?

Answer:

The purpose of jihad is two-fold:

1. Delivering people from superstitions in their beliefs and in what they do.

2. Freeing the oppressed from the claws of the oppressors.

Question:

Does Islam ever justify starting a fight or a war with non-Muslims without provocation?

Answer:

No, never. On the contrary Islam fights in self-defence against:

1. People of the Scriptures (Ahl al-Kitab ), that is those who are possessors of a heavenly book, after they have been given an option between embracing Islam,or paying a tax (jizya ), or fighting.

2. People other than the People of the Scriptures when it has given them a choice between embracing Islamor fighting.

Question:

Who are the people of the Scriptures?

Answer:

People of the Scriptures consist of Jews, Christians andZorastrians , all of whom possess heavenly books.

Question:

Who are those people not considered to be among the People of the Scriptures?

Answer:

They are other non-Muslims such as idol-worshippers and the like.

Question:

What is the meaning ofjizya ?

Answer:

Jizya is an amount of money taken from the People of the Scriptures in return for the protection of the Muslims.

They are then free topractise their religious rites and they are excused from paying thezakat and thekhums , which are taken from the Muslims.

Question:

Why make this difference? Wouldn’t it be more just for the People of the Scriptures to be treated in the same way as Muslims?

Answer:

On the contrary, because the rights of the People of the Scriptures are fully safe-guarded under Islamic government whereas under other legal systems their rights have not been protected to such an extent, as is clear from the following principles:-

1. In an Islamic country People of the Scriptures enjoy the same rights as their fellow Muslim citizens.

2. Their life, property andhonour is protected, just like that of the Muslims.

3. The people of the Scripture are free to organize for themselves their own religious ceremonies just as Muslims are.

4. With regard to legal problems, the People of the Scriptures can, if they wish, seek justice through the Muslim courts but if they prefer they can go to their own judges.

5. The People of the Scriptures pay thejizya to the Muslim ruler while Muslims paykhums andzakat . So can it justifiably be said that the People of the Scriptures are oppressed under Islamic rule?

Question:

So why did Muslims ever fight the People of the Scriptures?

Answer:

The conflict was always with their governments who were characterized by the ugliest forms of oppression and persecution.

We can see with what eagerness the inhabitants of those countries would welcome the Muslims, since they considered them to be their deliverers from the hands of their tyrannical rulers. History is the best witness to that. The same was the case with those non-Muslims who were not People of the Scriptures because the reason why the Muslims fought others was simply to exalt God’s law and to deliver other nations from exploiters and despots who were ruling their people through violence and terror.

HAJJ

Question:

What is the Hajj?

Answer:

The Hajj consists of journeying toMakka in the Arabian Peninsula with the purpose of performing rites of worship.

Question:

Upon whom is Hajj obligatory?

Answer:

Hajj is obligatory upon one who is able to travel toMakka with his own money, on the proviso that this will not make him poor or cause him hardship.

Question:

How many times is Hajj obligatory upon a person who is able?

Answer:

Once in a lifetime.

Question:

Is Hajj also a recommended act (apart from the obligation)?

Answer:

Yes, for those people who cannot really afford it, and for those who can but have already performed the obligatory pilgrimage, Hajj is recommended.

Question:

What must be done on the Hajj?

Answer:

Hajj is divided into two parts:

a) ‘Umra41 .

b) Hajj.

a ): the rites of ‘Umra are as follows:

1. Ihram (pilgrim’s dress) to be worn from the Miqat42 .

2. Going round the HolyKa‘ba (tawaf ) seven times.

3. Two units of prayer after thetawaf behind the station (maqam ) of Ibrahim (peace be upon him).

4. Brisk walking (sa‘i ) between the mountains ofSafa andMarwa , seven times.

5. Cutting (taqsir ) some hair off the hair of the head or cutting from the nails.

b): the rites of Hajj are as follows:

1. Ihram (pilgrim’s dress) to be worn fromMakka .

2. Being on ‘Arafat on the ninth day ofDhu ’l-Hijja .

3. Being at theMash‘ar [Muzdalifa ] early on the morning of the tenth.

4. Setting out from theMash‘ar towardsMakka on the tenth day, namely the Festival (‘Id) of al-Adha .

5. Throwing seven pebbles at theJamra of the ‘Aqaba on the ‘Id of al-Adha .

6. The slaughtering of an animal from among the three categories of livestock: camels, cows or sheep and goats.

7. Shaving the head or cutting the hair.

8.Tawaf of theKa‘ba seven times, called thetawaf of al-ziyara .

9. Performing two units of prayer after thistawaf behind themaqam of Ibrahim (peace be upon him).

10.Sa ‘i or brisk walking betweenSafa andMarwa , seven times.

11. Anothertawaf around theKa‘ba seven times, called thetawaf of al-nisa ’.

12. As 9, above.

13. Staying at Mina on the eve of the eleventh and twelfth, and in some cases the eve of the thirteenth.

14. Throwing pebbles at the threeJamarat in Mina, eachJamra being stoned with seven pebbles during the daytime of the 11th ofDhu ’l-Hijja and the 12th, and also on the 13th if the pilgrim had stayed at Mina on the eve of the 13th.

Question:

When should a Muslim go on the Hajj?

Answer:

In the months of Hajj, namely Shawwal,Dhu ’l-Qa‘da andDhu ’l-Hijja43 . Of course, the Hajj itself can only be performed in the month ofDhu ’l-Hijja .

Question:

What is ‘Umra by itself (that is without Hajj)?

Answer:

The ‘Umra is exactly the same as we have mentioned above44 plus thetawaf around theKa‘ba , called thetawaf of al-nisa ’, and the two units of prayer that follow it (as 11 and 12, above).This ‘Umra can be performed at any time during the whole year.

Question:

What are the benefits of Hajj?

Answer:

Hajj has many benefits, some of which we will point out here:

1-Political Benefits:

Hajj brings about unity among the Muslims and gives them strength, making their enemies fear their might.

2-Economic Benefits:

Hajj makes money circulate and move from one end of the Islamic World to the other and so causes trade to flourish.

3-Psychological Benefits:

It gives comfort to the soul and bestows the calm andpiece of mind that travelling brings and which dispel anxiety and worry regarding the homeland for as the poet says:

Go abroad to seek high things

and travel, for in travel there are five benefits,

The dispelling of anxiety, gaining a livelihood,

a sound mind, a good code of conduct

and admirable company.

4-Social benefits:

The Hajj causes the Muslims to get to know each other and helps them speak with one voice.

5-Spiritual benefits:

Circumambulating theKa‘ba , the walk betweenSafa andMarwa , the prayer of circumambulation, the ritual prayers, the standing on ‘Arafat are all worship. There are many other benefits of making the Hajj which are mentioned elsewhere in more detail.45