What is the ruling on repeating 'Umrah in Ramadan?
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The questioner : The questioner, Majdah from Makkah al-Mukarramah, says: "My esteemed Shaykh, I am asking about the ruling on repeating 'Umrah in Ramadan?"
The Shaykh : Yes. Repeating 'Umrah in a single journey is not from the way of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family, nor from the way of his Companions, as far as we know. Here is the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) who conquered Makkah in Ramadan, on the twentieth of Ramadan or close to that, and he remained in Makkah for nineteen days, and it is not recorded that he went out to al-Tan'īm to perform 'Umrah, despite the fact that it was easy and convenient for him.
Likewise, in the 'Umrah of al-Qada' for which he made a truce with the polytheists before the conquest of Makkah, he entered Makkah and remained there for three days and did not perform any 'Umrah other than the first one, even though we know with certainty that no one among people loves obedience to Allah more than the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family. And we know with certainty that if it had been part of his Shari'ah (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family for a person to repeat 'Umrah in a single journey during this short period, if it had been part of his Shari'ah, he would have clarified it for his Ummah, either by his saying, his doing, or his approval. We know this. Since that was not the case—neither in his saying, nor in his doing, nor in his approval—we know that it is not part of his Shari'ah and that it is not from the Sunnah for a person to repeat 'Umrah in a single journey. Rather, the first 'Umrah that one came with from his country is sufficient.
This is also indicated by the fact that when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family sent 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr with his sister 'A'ishah to al-Tan'īm, 'A'ishah entered the state of ihram for 'Umrah, but 'Abd al-Rahman did not enter ihram. If it had been known among them that a person repeats 'Umrah, he would have entered ihram so as not to miss the reward for himself, since he was entering the sacred precinct and was necessarily with his sister, and yet he did not enter ihram.
And it is astonishing that those who do this, meaning those who repeat 'Umrah in a single journey, cite the hadith of 'A'ishah as evidence. The truth is that the hadith of 'A'ishah is evidence against them, not for them, because 'A'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) only did that because she had missed the first 'Umrah. She (may Allah be pleased with her) entered ihram from al-Hudaybiyyah when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) first arrived in Makkah. She entered ihram from al-Hudaybiyyah for 'Umrah, and during the journey she menstruated at Sarif. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family came to her while she was crying, and she informed him that what befalls women of menstruation had befallen her. So he (peace and blessings be upon him) ordered her to combine Hajj with 'Umrah. She entered ihram for Hajj and did not perform tawaf or sa'y when they arrived in Makkah; rather, she performed tawaf and sa'y afterwards. So the women of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) obtained an independent 'Umrah and an independent Hajj. When she finished Hajj, she asked the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family to come with an 'Umrah, and she said, "People will go with an 'Umrah and a Hajj, and I will go with only a Hajj." So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) permitted her to come with an 'Umrah. She went and performed the 'Umrah, and her brother 'Abd al-Rahman was with her, but he did not enter ihram with her. If this had been an absolute Sunnah for the general public, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family would have guided 'Abd al-Rahman to enter ihram with his sister, or 'Abd al-Rahman would have entered ihram with his sister, so that there would be an approval by the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) of this 'Umrah that 'Abd al-Rahman performed. None of that happened.
And we say that if a woman experiences what happened to 'A'ishah, meaning she entered ihram for 'Umrah intending to combine it with Hajj, but menstruation came to her before she reached Makkah, and she combined Hajj with 'Umrah, and she did not have an independent 'Umrah, and she was not at peace in her soul to return to her people without an independent 'Umrah, then she may do so as 'A'ishah did. Thus, the case is a specific one and not general for everyone.
And at that point, we say to this questioner: Do not repeat 'Umrah in a single journey. Perform the first 'Umrah that you came with to Makkah, and that is sufficient. And the best guidance is the guidance of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family. This is the truth in this matter.
And on this occasion, I see many people striving to perform 'Umrah on the twenty-seventh night of Ramadan, and they come from their countries for this. This is also from religious innovations, because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family never encouraged performing 'Umrah on the twenty-seventh night of Ramadan, and the Companions did not intend to do so, as far as we know. The Night of Decree is specifically designated for standing in night prayer, which the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) encouraged in it, where he said:Sunan an-Nasa'i 2193Sahih (Darussalam).
Standing in night prayer on the twenty-seventh night of Ramadan is better than 'Umrah, contrary to those who leave Makkah for 'Umrah on this night or come with it from their country intending this night.
However, if it is by coincidence, meaning that a person traveled from his country at a time that coincided with his arrival in Makkah on the twenty-seventh night, then we do not say anything to him. We do not say, "Do not perform 'Umrah."
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And there is a difference between saying that it is recommended to come with 'Umrah on the twenty-seventh night and saying that one should not come with 'Umrah on the twenty-seventh night. We do not say, "Do not come with 'Umrah on the twenty-seventh night." Come with it, but do not intend for it to be the twenty-seventh night, because if you intend for it to be the twenty-seventh night, you have legislated in this night what Allah and His Messenger have not legislated. What is prescribed for the twenty-seventh night is standing in night prayer, as we have mentioned.
Therefore, I hope my brothers, the students of knowledge, will alert the general public to this matter, so that we may be callers to Allah with knowledge, callers to good, enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong, and so that the general public may be discerning, because the general public encourages one another and imitates one another. If the students of knowledge in the countries, and every person in his country, are granted success in alerting people to such matters that the general public has taken as a Sunnah but is not a Sunnah, much good will be achieved. The scholars are the leaders of the Ummah; they are the lamps of the Ummah, just as their Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family was a shining lamp. So it is obligatory for them to inherit from him (peace and blessings be upon him) this noble description and to be shining lamps for those around them. And we ask Allah the Exalted to make us all discerning in our religion.
The questioner : O Allah, amen. May Allah bless you, O honorable Shaykh.
The Shaykh : Yes. Repeating 'Umrah in a single journey is not from the way of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family, nor from the way of his Companions, as far as we know. Here is the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) who conquered Makkah in Ramadan, on the twentieth of Ramadan or close to that, and he remained in Makkah for nineteen days, and it is not recorded that he went out to al-Tan'īm to perform 'Umrah, despite the fact that it was easy and convenient for him.
Likewise, in the 'Umrah of al-Qada' for which he made a truce with the polytheists before the conquest of Makkah, he entered Makkah and remained there for three days and did not perform any 'Umrah other than the first one, even though we know with certainty that no one among people loves obedience to Allah more than the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family. And we know with certainty that if it had been part of his Shari'ah (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family for a person to repeat 'Umrah in a single journey during this short period, if it had been part of his Shari'ah, he would have clarified it for his Ummah, either by his saying, his doing, or his approval. We know this. Since that was not the case—neither in his saying, nor in his doing, nor in his approval—we know that it is not part of his Shari'ah and that it is not from the Sunnah for a person to repeat 'Umrah in a single journey. Rather, the first 'Umrah that one came with from his country is sufficient.
This is also indicated by the fact that when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family sent 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr with his sister 'A'ishah to al-Tan'īm, 'A'ishah entered the state of ihram for 'Umrah, but 'Abd al-Rahman did not enter ihram. If it had been known among them that a person repeats 'Umrah, he would have entered ihram so as not to miss the reward for himself, since he was entering the sacred precinct and was necessarily with his sister, and yet he did not enter ihram.
And it is astonishing that those who do this, meaning those who repeat 'Umrah in a single journey, cite the hadith of 'A'ishah as evidence. The truth is that the hadith of 'A'ishah is evidence against them, not for them, because 'A'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) only did that because she had missed the first 'Umrah. She (may Allah be pleased with her) entered ihram from al-Hudaybiyyah when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) first arrived in Makkah. She entered ihram from al-Hudaybiyyah for 'Umrah, and during the journey she menstruated at Sarif. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family came to her while she was crying, and she informed him that what befalls women of menstruation had befallen her. So he (peace and blessings be upon him) ordered her to combine Hajj with 'Umrah. She entered ihram for Hajj and did not perform tawaf or sa'y when they arrived in Makkah; rather, she performed tawaf and sa'y afterwards. So the women of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) obtained an independent 'Umrah and an independent Hajj. When she finished Hajj, she asked the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family to come with an 'Umrah, and she said, "People will go with an 'Umrah and a Hajj, and I will go with only a Hajj." So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) permitted her to come with an 'Umrah. She went and performed the 'Umrah, and her brother 'Abd al-Rahman was with her, but he did not enter ihram with her. If this had been an absolute Sunnah for the general public, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family would have guided 'Abd al-Rahman to enter ihram with his sister, or 'Abd al-Rahman would have entered ihram with his sister, so that there would be an approval by the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) of this 'Umrah that 'Abd al-Rahman performed. None of that happened.
And we say that if a woman experiences what happened to 'A'ishah, meaning she entered ihram for 'Umrah intending to combine it with Hajj, but menstruation came to her before she reached Makkah, and she combined Hajj with 'Umrah, and she did not have an independent 'Umrah, and she was not at peace in her soul to return to her people without an independent 'Umrah, then she may do so as 'A'ishah did. Thus, the case is a specific one and not general for everyone.
And at that point, we say to this questioner: Do not repeat 'Umrah in a single journey. Perform the first 'Umrah that you came with to Makkah, and that is sufficient. And the best guidance is the guidance of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family. This is the truth in this matter.
And on this occasion, I see many people striving to perform 'Umrah on the twenty-seventh night of Ramadan, and they come from their countries for this. This is also from religious innovations, because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family never encouraged performing 'Umrah on the twenty-seventh night of Ramadan, and the Companions did not intend to do so, as far as we know. The Night of Decree is specifically designated for standing in night prayer, which the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) encouraged in it, where he said:
Whoever spends the night of Lailat Al-Qadr in prayer out of faith and in the hope of reward, he will be forgiven his previous sins.
من قام ليلة القدر إيمانا واحتسابا غفر له ما تقدّم من ذنبهStanding in night prayer on the twenty-seventh night of Ramadan is better than 'Umrah, contrary to those who leave Makkah for 'Umrah on this night or come with it from their country intending this night.
However, if it is by coincidence, meaning that a person traveled from his country at a time that coincided with his arrival in Makkah on the twenty-seventh night, then we do not say anything to him. We do not say, "Do not perform 'Umrah."
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And there is a difference between saying that it is recommended to come with 'Umrah on the twenty-seventh night and saying that one should not come with 'Umrah on the twenty-seventh night. We do not say, "Do not come with 'Umrah on the twenty-seventh night." Come with it, but do not intend for it to be the twenty-seventh night, because if you intend for it to be the twenty-seventh night, you have legislated in this night what Allah and His Messenger have not legislated. What is prescribed for the twenty-seventh night is standing in night prayer, as we have mentioned.
Therefore, I hope my brothers, the students of knowledge, will alert the general public to this matter, so that we may be callers to Allah with knowledge, callers to good, enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong, and so that the general public may be discerning, because the general public encourages one another and imitates one another. If the students of knowledge in the countries, and every person in his country, are granted success in alerting people to such matters that the general public has taken as a Sunnah but is not a Sunnah, much good will be achieved. The scholars are the leaders of the Ummah; they are the lamps of the Ummah, just as their Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family was a shining lamp. So it is obligatory for them to inherit from him (peace and blessings be upon him) this noble description and to be shining lamps for those around them. And we ask Allah the Exalted to make us all discerning in our religion.
The questioner : O Allah, amen. May Allah bless you, O honorable Shaykh.