Second: none of the rites of Hajj may be delayed beyond the three months except out of necessity. Otherwise, Dhu al-Hijjah must not end while one still has any rite of Hajj outstanding, with the exception of the Farewell Circumambulation, for the Farewell Circumambulation is separate from Hajj: it is for whoever wishes to leave Makkah, even if he has remained there for a long time.

Accordingly, one may not delay shaving one’s head until Muharram begins, nor may one delay the Circumambulation of Ifadah until Muharram begins. But if there is an excuse, there is no harm in doing so.

An excuse for shaving or shortening the hair would be that a person has wounds on his head which prevent him from shaving or shortening it; he may then delay it until he recovers. An excuse for the circumambulation would be if a woman experiences postnatal bleeding—for example, if it begins while she is standing at Arafah. Postnatal bleeding normally lasts forty days, so Dhu al-Hijjah will end before she has performed the Circumambulation of Ifadah. There is no harm in this, because her delay in performing the circumambulation is due to an excuse. This view is the one with which the soul finds contentment and the heart finds ease, because it accords with the apparent meaning of the verse. The basic principle regarding textual indications is that we adhere to their apparent meaning, unless there is legal evidence that takes the wording away from its apparent meaning.

Question: Is it permissible for a person to enter into ihram for Hajj before the spatial or temporal miqat, or to enter into ihram for Umrah before the spatial miqat?

Answer: The correct view is that it is not permissible to enter into ihram before the temporal miqat. If one enters into ihram for Hajj before the beginning of Shawwal, his ihram becomes one for Umrah rather than Hajj, because Allah says:

“Hajj is in well-known months.” [al-Baqarah 2:197]

This person entered into ihram before the months of Hajj had begun, so his ihram is for Umrah,