The Book of Hajj Rites

Hajj and Umrah Are Obligatory …

Manāsik (rites) is the plural of mansak. Originally, a mansak denotes the place or time of worship. It is also used to mean worship itself; in this usage, it is a verbal noun formed with mīm, meaning worship. Allah, exalted is He, says:

“And for every community We have appointed a rite.” [al-Hajj: 34, 67]

That is, a place of worship in which they worship. Most commonly, however, mansak, or nusuk, refers to a sacrificial offering. Allah says:

“Say, ‘Indeed, my prayer, my rites of sacrifice, my living and my dying are for Allah, Lord of the worlds.’” [al-An‘am]

The jurists—may Allah have mercy on them—use mansak to refer to matters connected with Hajj and Umrah, because these include the sacrificial animal and expiation, both of which fall under nusuk in the sense of slaughter.

His statement: “Hajj and Umrah are obligatory.”

“Hajj” is the subject, “Umrah” is conjoined to it, and “are obligatory” is the predicate of the subject.

Hajj is obligatory and prescribed by the Quran, the sunnah, and the consensus of the Muslims. Its rank in the religion is that it is one of the pillars of Islam.

Linguistically, it means intention.

In Islamic law, it means worshipping Allah, exalted is He, by performing the rites in accordance with what has come in the sunnah of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him.

The definition given by some jurists—“intending Mecca for a specific act”—is undoubtedly deficient, because Hajj is more specific than what they have stated;