Explore common misconceptions about performing Umrah to avoid mistakes, enhance your journey, and ensure a rewarding sacred experience.
Umrah is one of the most sacred prayers for Muslims. Every year thousands of people avail of deals such as Cheap Umrah Packages and offer this minor pilgrimage. During their journey, they may make mistakes that could spoil the whole experience as well as rewards. Most of these errors are unintentional; still, they may damage your reward. This is where this helping guide comes in handy. It addresses the most common misconceptions or mistakes that people often make while they are end route to the Umrah journey. Read this piece to learn about these mix-ups so that you may have a profound and error-free Umrah.
Article Breakdown
Prayers are Answered Instantly
This is one of the most common misconceptions that is found in Muslims related to Umrah. They think that as soon as they enter the Haram and see the Kaaba, every dua is accepted. In fact, it is also a typical practice among them to say some words as they reach the Grand Mosque. However, this exercise has no evidence in Islamic history and it can only be termed as Bid’ah (Any matter, performed with the intention of reward and is not advised, ordered, or ever done during the Holy Prophet’s era).
As a matter of fact, when inquired about it Shaykh Sa’d al-Humayd (The current speaker or imam in Haram), said that we don’t have a proof for that thing, assuming that this activity wasn’t common in the era of Prophet Muhammad (SAW). however, looking at Kaaba gives some benefits, as evident from this narration:
One hundred and twenty mercies are descended upon the Kaaba and twenty of them are for those who merely look at it. (Musnadul Harith; Bughyatul Bahith, Hadith: 392)
Specific Prayers for Specific Rounds
Another common mistake is that people often regard specific duas or prayers for specific rounds of Umrah. However, there is no basis for this thing as no such dua exists. The only exception is that the Prophet made one particular dua when he reached between the Yemeni Corner and Hajre Aswad and said:
“Rabbana atina’ fid-dunya hasana wa fil-akhirati hasana wa qina adhaban-nar”
Apart from that, Umrah prayer doesn’t have any prayer. Rather, you should ask forgiveness from Allah, focus on sincerity, and request Allah to complete your needs. Other than that, just complete your Umrah as per the guidance.
Pause and Flying Kisses to Black Stone
Many people, who are unable to touch Black stone, try to fly kisses to Hajar al-Aswad. This is another wrong practice and is considered innovation. The following are three proper activities for Black Stone:
- Reach the specific point and kiss it;
- Touch it and kiss your hand;
- From a distance, point towards the Stone and keep doing your Tawaf;
Since there is a huge crowd on the floor of the mosque, pilgrims often find it difficult to carry out the above two deeds. They only have the option that they can perform. However, they take a pause and send a flying kiss. This is not only against the Shari’ah but also disturbs the flow of the crowd. If you can’t reach the Stone, just point towards it and say Takbir or Allah Akbar.
Avoiding Ihram Clothes Change
One of the standards of Umrah is that you have to perform it while wearing the white sheets. This is customary for men and women can wear any dress. A misconception also exists in this regard. Pilgrims think that they must have to perform Umrah while wearing the same Ihram and changing it may denounce their prayer. However, if your Ihram gets dirty, it is sweaty, or you are not comfortable, you can replace it with a new one. Islam is a universal religion that focuses on hygiene and pilgrims should maintain their cleanliness. Hence, they should change their clothes whenever the need arises. An important thing to consider is that they should only replace Ihram with another piece of similar clothing. You can only remove it and change your formal clothes, once you are done with Umrah and have performed Taqsir.
Touching Haram for the Purpose of Reward
Some people think that if they touch the Kaaba or any part of Haram, they will be rewarded. This is a misconception and is Bidah as we don’t have any authentic hadith reference for this thing. In fact, there is a reference from the companions of the Prophet on not doing this activity:
Once Muawiyah ibn Abi Sufyan (R.A) touched two northern corners of the Kaaba, Abd-Allah ibn Abbas (R.A) saw this and stopped him from doing this. He said that Prophet Muhammad (SAW) only touched the 2 Yemeni corners and we should only follow him.
The above narration implies that tapping any part of Haram other than the Yemeni corner and Black Stone regards no rewards and it may even spoil your good deeds as this activity is often termed Bidah.
Doing Multiple Umrah’s
In Islam, performing multiple Umrah’s is allowed. However, there is a protocol for this thing. People think that if they have to do more than one Umrah, they have to go to Masjid Taneem or Meeqat to re-establish the Ihram and then enter the Haram. However, this is a misconception. If you are willing to do more than one minor pilgrimage prayer, you can do that in one single Ihram. The standard is that once you have completed 7 circles around Kaaba, you have performed 1 Umrah. In order to do more than one, you can repeat the circling process 7 times and complete another Umrah. Once you are done, finish the remaining elements such as Sai, and Taqsir, and release your Ihram.
Performing Tawaf on Someone Else’s Behalf
Islam is a religion that offers convenience and comfort to its followers. If you have dead relatives or old parents, you can perform Umrah on their behalf. However, you can’t just assign or dedicate Tawaf to anyone. This practice is more common among illiterate people or those who don’t have enough knowledge of Islam. Often relatives or friends may request to a person that he should do a Tawaf on their behalf. However, this is a totally wrong practice and is termed as an innovation. The only time you are allowed to perform Tawaf for someone else is if you are interested in donating the entire Umrah to them. In this book, Fataawa Ibn Baaz, and Shaykh ibn Baaz said that you can’t do Tawaf around Kaaba for anybody. The only time you can do this is when you are performing Hajj or Umrah and do Tawaf as a part of it.
In conclusion, Umrah is one of the most frequent and sacred prayers for Muslims. While performing this prayer, they often make mistakes. These include dedicating specific prayers for specific rounds, doing multiple Umrah’s, and performing Tawaf on someone else’s behalf. If you are not sure how to have a safe Umrah journey, contact CPP Boxes. Our team of experts is ready to cater to all of your questions and will guide you throughout the process. Order our Family Umrah Packages to sail on your blessed journey.