The ruling on tawaf (circumambulation of the Ka'bah) without wudu' (the ablution for prayer)

Question:
He says: Is tawaf valid if one is not in a state of wudu'? And does one who performs tawaf in that state have to repeat the 'Umrah (the lesser pilgrimage)?

Answer:
Yes, one of the conditions for the validity of tawaf is wudu'. The saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), or as Ibn 'Abbas said: "Tawaf around the House is a prayer, except that you are allowed to speak in it."
They said: This is a mawquf (a report stopping at a Companion), but it is in the position of a marfu' (a report traced to the Prophet), because the fact that he says "tawaf" and the fact that he says it is permissible to speak in it—this is something only the marfu' would say, only the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) would say it, not by his ijtihad (independent legal reasoning), for it is not a matter for ijtihad. This indicates that it is marfu', so it is in the position of marfu'. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was never reported to have performed tawaf except while in a state of purity. For this reason, he would pray after tawaf, praying the two rak'ahs (units of prayer) of tawaf, which indicates that he also performed tawaf while in a state of purity. Also, when 'Aishah had her menses, he said to her: "Do what the pilgrim does, except that you do not perform tawaf around the House until you become pure." This indicates that purity is a condition for the validity of tawaf. Yes.