Q. A group of pilgrims from Riyadh intended to offer their pilgrimage in the Qiran method. Arriving in Mina, they placed their luggage and proceeded to Makkah, where they all did the tawaf and sa’ie. However, one of them decided to do another tawaf and sa’ie shortly afterward, calling this second one tawaf Al-Qodoom. They fulfilled all the subsequent duties of pilgrimage on time. Another one of their group decided to do a second sa’ie after the Tawaf of Ifaadah. Could you please explain who was correct, and if any of them is required to compensate for any omission?
May I also mention that on the day of Arafat, some of them prayed Zuhr and Asr with the Imam in Namirah mosque, although they were far from the mosque. Others prayed the two prayers separately, each at its normal time. Please comment.
A. Mafiz, Riyadh
A. The Qiran method of pilgrimage combines the Umrah and the pilgrimage together in one act of worship. It requires that the pilgrim does all the rituals of the pilgrimage, but means that his main tawaf and sa’ie are performed once but count for both the pilgrimage and the Umrah. The tawaf that counts as a duty for both is the tawaf of ifaadah, because it is the main tawaf and the most important duty of pilgrimage after the attendance at Arafat. Hence, one sa’ie for both is enough, and the Tawaf of Ifaadah counts for both.
This means that the people in the first case did right. They performed 3 tawafs and one sa’ie. The first tawaf of arrival was a Sunnah, and the second is the Tawaf of Ifaadah , which is a rukn or essential duty that cannot be waived or compensated for in any way, while the third is the tawaf of farewell, which is a duty according to most scholars.
The one who did a second tawaf and sa’ie calling them Qodoom added something extra. This term means arrival, and he has already done it the first time. However, tawaf may be offered as a voluntary one, or Sunnah, because tawaf is considered like a prayer. There is no problem of him offering an additional tawaf. The second sa’ie he offered was unnecessary. The same applies to the third person who did a second sa’ie after the Tawaf of Ifaadah. It was totally unnecessary. No compensation is needed from any, because they did not omit anything. They only added what is either a Sunnah, in the case of tawaf, or something extra, in the case of sa’ie.
As for praying with the imam in the mosque at a long distance, this depends on the exact location of the people. If they were behind the imam, then they may be part of the congregation despite the distance, provided they were not separated from the congregation by a physical barrier. If they were ahead of the imam, they were not in the congregation. May God accept their prayers.
The ones who prayed Zuhr and Asr separately, at their respective times, did wrong. For those at Arafat doing the pilgrimage, there is only one prayer time, which counts for both prayers. They are both offered at the same time, one after the other, each shortened to two rak’ahs. They may be offered in a congregation at every camp.
Forgiving Adultery
Q. A woman admitted to her husband that she had an affair with a man, but she had already stopped. The husband is troubled by this, yet he does not want to divorce her because of their children. Can he keep her?
(Name and address withheld)
A. Adultery is a very serious offense, but God may forgive it if the person who committed it genuinely repents and seek God’s forgiveness. Repentance means true and genuine regret that one has committed the sin concerned and a firm resolve not to repeat it in future.
I understand that the woman in this case regrets what she had done. If her husband trusts that she is genuine in her desire to mend her ways and never to repeat what she had done, he can retain her as his wife. He is not required to divorce her. But if he is unsure of her future conduct, then it may be better for him and his children that they are divorced. This is a matter that only he and his wife can decide.
