We see some pilgrims or those performing 'Umrah carrying booklets with them while performing the rites, which they read from. What is the ruling on this in tawaf, sa'y, 'Arafah, and other places?

The questioner : The honorable Shaykh, a questioner says: We see some pilgrims or those performing 'Umrah carrying booklets with them while performing the rites, which they read from. What is the ruling on this in tawaf, sa'y, 'Arafah, and other places?

The Shaykh : In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and I send prayers and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions.
This question is a very important and great one that should be given due attention, and an effort should be made to reform the people regarding it. This is because people have now become accustomed to carrying with them, during tawaf, sa'y, and other stations of Hajj and 'Umrah, specific supplications for each lap and each place. So tawaf has a supplication for each lap, and there is a supplication at the Station of Ibrahim, a supplication at Zamzam, and supplications in other places that have no basis in the Shari'ah, neither in the specific places designated for them, nor in the manner, nor otherwise. Let us start with tawaf, for example. The one performing tawaf carries a book containing a supplication for each lap; each lap has its own supplication. It is not possible to recite the supplication of the first lap in the second lap, or vice versa, because he sees that he must complete this supplication in the first lap and not go beyond it. So much so that sometimes, if the area around the Ka'bah is wide, he will circle the Ka'bah quickly and reach the Yemeni Corner, or even the Black Stone, before finishing the supplication of the lap if he continues reciting. What does he do when he finishes? He stands still. He even stands at the place of the modifier before saying the modified noun, and leaves the modified noun. Why? Because he has reached the end of the lap. And if the area is crowded, the supplication will end before he reaches the end of the lap. What does he do? He remains silent and does not supplicate to Allah. Why? Because the first lap has a specific supplication, the second has a specific one, and so on. There is no doubt that this harms the one performing tawaf, because there is no silence in tawaf; tawaf is entirely dhikr. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: . One of the harms of this practice, in addition to it being a religious innovation, is that it is not reported from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he specified a certain supplication for each lap. Another harm of this practice is that the supplicant recites it without knowing its meaning. Perhaps you have heard the astonishing things from those who carry these supplications or these booklets and do not know their meaning. A few years ago, I heard one of them supplicating, saying: "O Allah, make me rich by Your Majesty from Your forbidden things, by Your Majesty from Your forbidden things." What does "by Your Majesty" mean? He wanted to say "by Your lawful things," but perhaps there was a printing error, so it said "by Your Majesty from Your forbidden things." And I heard this year someone saying: "O Allah, make it a Hajj that is accepted." So I held the man and said, "Come, are you a pilgrim performing Hajj or 'Umrah?" He said, "I am performing 'Umrah," but he was following the one leading the tawaf. I held the one leading the tawaf and said, "How do you say 'a Hajj that is accepted' when they are saying, 'We are performing 'Umrah, we have not performed Hajj'?" He said, "They will perform Hajj later." This is also one of the harms; that is, they supplicate for things that are not realistic based on these booklets.
Thirdly: They recite them in the manner of an uneducated person who reads it letter by letter without meaning, because if you asked most of them about the meanings of what they recite and read, they would say: "By Allah, I do not know."
Fourthly: They bring supplications that have no basis in the Sunnah, and in fact, some of the supplications are reprehensible. We hear them saying: "O Light of Lights." Who are they addressing with this? Allah (Mighty and Majestic). Is there in the Qur'an or the Sunnah that Allah is described as "the Light of Lights" or named "the Light of Lights"? What is in the Qur'an and the Sunnah is: . It is not reported in the Qur'an or the Sunnah that Allah is named "the Light of Lights" or described as "the Light of Lights." And there are many strange things you hear. Then the second place is at the Station of Ibrahim. It is established from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that when he finished tawaf, he proceeded to the Station of Ibrahim and then recited what? What did the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) recite when he proceeded to the Station of Ibrahim? He recited: only. Then he prayed two rak'ahs briefly and then left immediately, and did not remain in his place. Yet those who pray behind the Station now, you find them praying a long prayer and sitting after the prayer and supplicating with supplications that have no basis in the Sunnah. They say, "This is the supplication of the Station of Ibrahim." This is reprehensible. Where in the Sunnah is it said that the Station of Ibrahim (peace be upon him) has a specific supplication? And in addition to the fact that this matter they do is a religious innovation for which Allah has not sent down any authority, they annoy the worshippers who pray behind the Station and disturb them, to the extent that a man leaves his prayer not knowing what he was saying in it because of these people.
Thirdly: I have seen someone standing at the sign indicating that Zamzam is in this place, standing and supplicating. I do not know if they have a specific supplication for Zamzam? This is also reprehensible. Who said that Zamzam has a specific supplication? Who said this? This is also a religious innovation, and it disturbs the worshippers, and it also blocks people from moving, those who are performing tawaf or proceeding from tawaf to the Station of Ibrahim. Sa'y is the same; each lap has a supplication. So if our brothers, the students of knowledge, were to advise those who contact them in this matter and say that it is reprehensible, but they do not do what some reckless people do, taking this booklet from the pilgrim and tearing it up in front of him or throwing it, then this is certainly contrary to wisdom and contrary to calling to Allah (Mighty and Majestic). And a person told me the day before yesterday, a pilgrim, saying: "I was reading from this booklet, and a man came and took it and threw it far away. He said, 'I was so angry that I left tawaf and abandoned the entire tawaf because of what he did to me, and I was angry.'" So I said, "My brother, if you are angry, be angry at this man, and do not be angry at your Lord. Leaving tawaf and being affected to this extent is wrong. If he made a mistake in the path of calling to Allah, then you should be patient." So I say, if we spoke to people gently, we would hold one person, for example, gently: "Peace be upon you. My brother, do you understand what you are reading?" If he says yes, say, "Explain to me the word you said." The common person does not know the meaning. And at that time, you say: "How do you supplicate to Allah with something you do not know the meaning of?" The Messenger (peace be upon him) used to order a man, if drowsiness took him, not to pray, saying: "For he may go to seek forgiveness and curse himself without knowing it." So you now perhaps read a word incorrectly, and it becomes a supplication against you, not for you. If he says: "Then what should I say? I do not know the supplications," what do we tell him? We tell him: "Read the Qur'an, remember Allah, say Subhan Allah." By the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): . And it is established from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) this great hadith with which al-Bukhari (may Allah have mercy on him) concluded his book, which is the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): . Is there any Muslim who does not know these two phrases? I do not think anyone does not know them. If that is the case, repeat these two phrases to attain this virtue. They are beloved to the Most Merciful, light on the tongue, and heavy in the scale. If you start tawaf from the beginning to the end saying "Subhan Allah wa bihamdihi, Subhan Allah al-'Azeem" (Glory be to Allah and His praise, Glory be to Allah the Magnificent), you would have brought the wisdom of tawaf. Between the Yemeni Corner and the Black Stone, you say: .