Hajj and Umra Tips & Tricks

EXTREMELY IMPORTANT: DO study the fiqh of Hajj & Umra before you go, well in advance. (I mean really advanced, not the weeks before it'll be so hectic you won't be able to do it at your leisure. Think 2-3 months in advance.) Get some good books, tapes and videos. Look online and print everything out. Write all the Duas out on index cards. Try to memorize as many as you can BEFORE you go. Make flash cards whatever it takes!

DO NOT go there and expect to learn how to do everything from your guides/ppl with you. This is too important not to know for yourself. Remember if you do anything incorrect your umra or hajj WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED. There are many stories of the tour people taking people to do things too early or too late. Also, the crowd there is so enormous it is incredibly difficult when millions of people are all trying to do the same thing at the same time. This is where your fiqh of hajj knowledge comes in. It makes it much easier if you know things like you can pray your 2 rakats of Maqam Ibrahim all the way back in the Haram, or on the different levels or even anywhere in the Haram, or that you can do your Saiyy on the second level or that you can throw your stones from after sunrise to anytime at night. If you know things like this you can avoid the crowds of people who will try to stick to only one thing because they don't know what else is allowed. Also if something happens you will know what you should do to compensate for it and you may save your hajj or umra.

A NOTE about all the books and info. Everyone will tell you something a little different. Try to piece everything together so that you at least know what the required conditions you must fulfill are and what things would break your hajj or umra absolutely or what things will necessitate compensation. Ask your Imam or local knowledgeable people to help you understand the Fiqh and answer any questions you have.


Also VERY IMPORTANT: Learn the fiqh of praying a Janaza (funeral prayer). You will be doing it after every single prayer, no joke. (There was only one prayer in our entire 2 week stay that we didn't.) Learn the dua for it too. Praying at someone's janaza is a very good thing and you have ample opportunity of participating so take them. Also learn the different ways to send Salams on the prophet (saw) for the time you are in Madina. Another good suggestion is to draw a chart of the Kaaba (looking from above) and along each of it's walls (and along each of the special points), write the relevant duas.

The best times to visit the Haram of Makkah, do tawaf and saiyy, ibadah and to try to touch the black stone etc is from 1AM until Fajr and from about an hour after Fajr until 9 or so. A good schedule would be to sleep from Fajr until Zhuhr, pray Zhuhr in the Haram then go back to the hotel and eat and rest. (After Dhuhr about noon to 2 it is HOT.) Go back for Asr. Then go back for Maghrib and STAY there for Isha/Taraweeh. After you can take a few hours to go shopping if needed. Otherwise stay at the haram, alternating doing different things like Tawaf, reading Quran, praying until Qiyam which is about 1AMish Then stay until Tahajjud which is about an hour before Fajr. Then stay for Fajr. If you are going to Ziyara or doing multiple Umrahs and can't sleep after Fajr, take a few hours at night before Fajr to sleep. (You might say to yourself.. gee doesn't look like there is any time for sleep there! That's true.. don't waste your time sleeping.. you can always sleep when you come home :) But know when your body is tired and can't take it anymore. Don't make yourself sick The best spots in the Haram are right in front of the Kaaba on the marble surrounding it or on the second level at the front. If you want to be on the haram floor you have to go early and stake out a spot. Sisters should head towards the Zamzam area and sit right near there, otherwise you'll get kicked out of any other area after awhile. A really good spot I found for sisters is upstairs all the way in the front of the sisters section. You have an incredible birds-eye view of the entire haram and can still pray with the Kaaba in sight. Remember to bring your prayer rug to sit on. This is so that people don't come and sit right in front of you or back of you so you'll have room to pray later. Two things that I wish I knew before hand about this. You can pray anywhere in the Haram without a sutrah ie people can walk in front of you without breaking your prayer. (This was extremely annoying to me at the beginning when people would walk right through my sutrah every time!) (But you should try your best not to do this to others). And you can also look at the Kaaba while you pray in the Haram.

PREPARE yourself mentally for alot of frustration, mental anguish, annoyance and anger.

PREPARE yourself physically for alot of walking and physical exercise. You may be walking back and forth from your hotel to the Haram at least 10 times a day, not to mention logging Tawafs and Sai'ys that come out to miles in the end.

DO NOT bring alot of clothes. All you need really is 3-4 jilbabs - mostly black for umra time (lighter colors for hajj and summer season) and a few clothes underneath that you can mix and match. Bring enough socks and under garments . You can always wash clothes if you have to. But bringing alot of clothes just wastes your time and suitcase room. A regular traveling rule of thumb is to never pack more than you can carry for a trip!
It goes without saying that you should bring some comfy shoes/sneakers for when you go on Ziyara or shopping. Also bring some good chappals/shibshib for when you are going to the haram. Don't over pack your suitcase. You won't be able to get it all back home especially if you buy things. You can always give away some of your clothes/shoes while there or try this well-known traveling tip: bring an extra empty suitcase/bag with you or buy one there.

DO NOT change money before you go. There are tons of exchanges there that you can go to on the streets and you'll get a better rate than the usual bank rate too. Bring enough cash for what you want to buy. Don't rely on using your credit card. There are finance charges of at least 2-3% and the exchange rate of Visa sux.

DO bring alot of medicine - Tylenol, asprin, Theraflu, Tums, Pepto Bismol, Midol, Chap stick/Vaseline. Believe me you'll be glad you did and if by some miracle you don't get sick other people in your group will.

DO bring some snack food like granola bars, goldfish, dried fruit. You'll be glad when your stomach starts doing loops or you are starving in the haram. Not to mention sometimes getting stuck for hours on a bus during heavy traffic or waiting for clearance.

DO bring a cheap plastic bag/canvas bag to put your shoes and janamaz (prayer rug) and quran in when you go into the haram.
Don't bring a janamaz from home. Just buy a nice one there. You can also bring a small bag/purse you can wear under your jilbab for your money/passport. Don't bother with big handbags- you'll get searched every time you enter the haram and will have to watch it all the time.

DO NOT waste your time shopping. You're only in Makkah once in your life (anything could happen and due to life circumstances, being busy, illness etc you may never return again).
Make a list of what gifts you have to give to whom beforehand and write down what you need to buy and quantities. That way you won't waste alot of time trying to decide what to get for who.

Some common gifts include:

Dates ( normally people buy ajwa and amber but these are very expensive, so try buying cheaper dates from Madina)
Zamzam water
Tasbeeh Beads
Hijabs & Jilbabs
Prayer Rugs (called sajadahs there)
Jewelry (gold, fake and everything in between but be aware of the price of gold)
Metal work (tea sets etc)
Perfumes & Perfume bottles
Cards
Desi (IndoPak) dresses
Books
Watches / Sun Glasses

SISTERS be careful about going shopping alone (as in, DON'T) always go with a bro (hate to say it but you're safer from harassment) or with a group of sisters.

DO be careful about taking pictures and bringing cameras. They don't let cameras into either of the Harams and they'll check your bags too.

BEGGARS - There are beggars everywhere. On the streets of Makkah, at historical sites like Uhud, Arafat etc. They'll even come up to you (to sisters too!) and tell you stories about how they lost all their luggage and possessions and need to get back to Jeddah/Makkah/Madinah. It's hard to figure out who is faking and who isn't. I would suggest deciding on an amount you would like to give as Sadaqah before hand and. Then give that to a reputable Islamic relief agency or relatives you have in poor countries or even friends/people traveling back to their home countries. They would know better who is truly in need.

MAKE SURE to go to Ziyara. Ziyara is visiting the local historical sites in Makkah or Madina. It's extremely important to visit those sites, give your salams to the dead, to really get a feeling and understanding of how Islam began in this place. I would say it should be almost as important to you as making sure you do your Umra. (But please don't think it's farz or anything else. :)) Don't go there thinking it's part of any worship practices. Many people do go to those sites and commit strange innovative practices (you'll see all the Saudi signs in Arabic, English, French, Urdu and Turkish!! telling ppl not to). This is where learning some Seerah (study of the life of Muhammad (saw) and the early Muslims) is extremely important before you go so you can actually feel where you are visiting. Just take one day after fajr and have some cab driver take you out to the different places. Get a map of Jannat al-Baqi` and make sure you say salam to all the sahaba/saliheen buried there. For both Ziyara's go immediately AFTER Fajr at the haram, come back BEFORE zhuhr, pray zhuhr at the haram and then rest at the hotel for awhile.

DO NOT forget what gate you enter the Haram from and the hotel you are staying at.

REMEMBER you are there to worship. Shopping, eating, etc are all just a waste of time. Food: it will be tempting to eat all this food there, but remember this much: the more you eat, the more tired you will get and in Makkah you will NEED your energy.
Take all this advice with a grain of salt. Every situation/time is different. Most of the information here is suitable for umra. Hajj may be a completely different experience!

HOTEL - Choose one within 5 mins walking distance of Haram if you can. When the crowds descend it will take you 20-30 mins to get to the Mosque.

JUMAH - Go EARLY!!! otherwise you will not find place inside the mosque.

TAWAF - There are large groups who perform Tawaf together and link hands. If you see them approach you, then let them pass or step aside and give them way. Also watch out for the elderly who are being carried around the Kabah and people taking their relatives around in wheelchairs. As a rule the nearer the Kabah you perform your Tawaf the more squashed you will get and I mean squashed. This is especially true when going around Maqam Ibrahim because of the people trying to pray.

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