مرجع: Ayatollah Sistani
موضوع: Tawaf,Tawaf prayer and Sa'y

Tawaf

In Umrat-ut-Tamatu, the second obligation is tawaf. If a pilgrim deliberately abandons it, his Hajj, shall be null and void, irrespective of whether or not he was aware of the rule governing the matter. Delaying its performance could be materialized in a way that it would no longer be possible to perform it, as it would be time for the devotional stay in Arafat. Thus, the Umrah will be invalid. Apparently, the ihram will also be invalidated. [And as a rectifying measure], reverting to Hajj-ul-Ifraad is not sufficient, although one should do so, as a matter of precaution. In both the situations, it is obligatory to repeat the Hajj in the following year.


Tawaf prayer

The third obligation in Umrat-ut-Tamatu' consists of two raka'as to be said after tawaf. It is performed like Subh prayer except that the worshipper has the option to say it aloud or in a whispered way. It is obligatory to say it close to Maqam Ibrahim (a.s.). Evidently, it must be said at its rear. If it is not possible to do so, one may say it on any of its both sides in addition to saying it far from the Maqam but at its rear. If this is not possible, any of the two is sufficient. However, if this is not possible, then one may, as a matter of precaution, say it anywhere in the Mosque, and as close to the Maqam as possible. This is so when the tawaf is obligatory, but when it is optional, one may pray anywhere in the Mosque.


Rules of Tawaf prayer:

Rule 327: If a person deliberately fails to say tawaf prayer, his Hajj is invalid.

Rule 328: The prayer must be said immediately after tawaf, that is to say, there must not, generally speaking, be a gap between the tawaf and the prayer.

Rule 329: If a pilgrim forgets to say tawaf prayer, but realizes the lapse after sa'y, he should say it immediately. Accordingly, there shall be no need to repeat the sa'y, although one may do so as a matter of precaution. If he remembers it in the course of sa'y, he should interrupt it and say the prayer at the Maqam and then return to completing sa'y from where he had interrupted it. If he remembers it after leaving Makkah, it is obligatory to return and say it at the Maqam, should doing so will not cause inconvenience. If it is not possible to return, he should say it wherever he remembers it. Even if it is possible to return to the boundary of the Haram, it is not necessary to do so. If one fails to say the prayer out of ignorance, the same rule applicable to the one who forgets shall apply to him.

Rule 330: If a person dies, but has an obligation to say the prayer, it is obligatory on his eldest son to have the prayer said qadha, provided that the conditions concerning Qadha are satisfied.

Rule 331: If a pilgrim's recitation of prayer is not perfect, and he is unable to correct it, it is sufficient for him to recite Suratul Fatiha. Otherwise, he should, as a matter of precaution, add to it some Ayahs he is good at reciting correctly; if not, tasbeeh. If all effort has been exhausted to render the recitation correct, he should, as a matter of precaution, say it as best he could, join congregational prayer and hire an agent to say it on his behalf.

Rule 332: If a pilgrim is unaware that his recitation is not sound, and his ignorance is excusable, his prayer is valid; there shall be no need for him to say it again, even if he comes to know of the lapse after the prayer.If his ignorance was not excusable, he must, after correcting his error, say the tawaf prayer again; the rules governing a person who has forgotten to say the prayer shall apply to him.


Sa'y between Safa and Marwah

This is the fourth obligation in Umrat-ut-Tamatu'. In sa'y too, intention to seek nearness to Allah is obligatory but there is no obligation to cover the private parts, [although exposing one's genitals in a public place is not allowed], or for taharah from urine or excrement, although it is preferable (al awla) to be tahir during sa'y.


Time of Sa'y

Rule 333: Sa'y is to be performed after tawaf and its prayer. If it is performed before the tawaf or prayer, it is obligatory to repeat it after performing both. As for the one who forgets to perform tawaf, but recalls after performing sa'y, the rule has already been set out.


How to perform Sa'y

Rule 335: Sa'y consists of seven laps. The first round starts at Safa and ends at Marwah. The second round is a reversal of the first, the third is like the first, and so on until the seventh round ends at Marwah.One should cover the whole distance between the two mounts in each round; there is no need to climb any of them, even though it is preferable and precautionary (awla and ahwat) to do so. As a matter of precaution, it is obligatory for performing sa'y to be continuous, i.e. there should not be a break between the rounds.