Mufti Saad Abdul Razzaq
In the year 9 Hijri, the following commandment of the Quran al-Kareem was revealed:
“O you who believe, the polytheists are indeed impure, so they should not approach Masjid al-Haram after this year”
(Surah al-Tawba, verse 28)
According to the predominant opinion, Hajj became obligatory in the same year, i.e., in the 9th year of the Hijri calendar. However, Rasulullah SAAW was reluctant to perform Hajj alongside the polytheists (inc. disbelievers and those who associate partners with Allah Ta’ala in any and every form), as they used to perform Tawaf of the Kaaba in a state of nakedness. Therefore, in that year, Rasulullah SAAW appointed Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq R.A as the Ameer (leader) of Hajj and publicly declared in Masjid al-Haram that no polytheist would be allowed to enter its boundaries in the future. Once the Haram was purified from the presence of the polytheists, Rasulullah SAAW resolved to undertake the pilgrimage in the following year, i.e., in the 10th year of Hijri.
How many times did Rasulullah SAAW performed Hajj?
After the Hijrah, Rasulullah SAAW performed only one Hajj, which occurred in the 10th year of Hijri, known as the Farewell Hajj. In a tradition recorded in Tirmizi Shareef, the following is narrated by Sayyiduna Jabir R.A: (Sunan al-Tirmizi, H. 815, p. 153)
‘Verily, Rasulullah SAAW completed three Hajj pilgrimages, two before his migration and one after it, with an Umrah performed during the last one’.
Hafiz Ibn e Hajar R.A, in Fathul Baari, asserts without doubt that Rasulullah SAAW did not forsake Hajj while he resided in Makkah.
What I have no doubt about is that he SAAW never abandoned Hajj while he was in Makkah.
(Fathul Bari, vol. 8, p. 107)
Ibn Athir R.A mentions that Rasulullah SAAW used to perform Hajj every year before his migration. Ibn Jawzi R.A further elaborates that Rasulullah SAAW performed Hajj so frequently that only Allah Ta’ala knows the exact number.
(Hujjatal Wadaa Wa Umraatun Nabi ? p.15)
When Rasulullah SAAW expressed the intention of Hajj
When Rasulullah SAAW resolved to perform Hajj in the 10th year of the Hijri, he announced to the people his intention to undertake the pilgrimage. This news swiftly spread far and wide and throughout the vicinity of Madinah Munawwarah, prompting believers from all corners to converge on the blessed city. The influx of people was so immense that the roads became filled, teeming with countless pilgrims eager to join Rasulullah’s SAAW caravan on this blessed journey.
Accompanying him were his noble wives R.A, and as the journey progressed, more and more individuals continued to join the procession. Imam Nasai R.A narrates on the authority of Sayyiduna Jabir R.A that when the Rasulullah SAAW announced his intention to perform Hajj, such was the response that there remained scarcely anyone who was capable, either by mount or foot, but did not heed the call. (Sunan Nasa’I – Hadith No. 2757, p. 669)
Everywhere one looked, ahead, behind, to the right and left, there were only people as far as the eye could see. Their numbers were beyond counting. In his previous battle, the Battle of Tabuk, the participants numbered 100,000. The farewell Hajj took place after the battle of Tabuk and most likely this figure increased during the pilgrimage. Various traditions estimate the number of pilgrims differently; some suggest 114,000, others 124,000, while yet another account places the figure at 130,000. (Hujjatal Wadaa Umraatun Nabi SAAW p. 18)
