= None of the Companions who performed the Hajj with him — nor anyone else — ever did what is now being advocated, so how could it be deemed superior to what they actually practised upon his instruction? In fact, no one is known to have performed an ‘umra starting from Makka during the lifetime of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, except ‘A’isha — not during the Farewell Pilgrimage, nor before it, nor after it. According to one of the two reports from Ahmad, that particular ‘umra does not count for the obligatory ‘umra of Islam; some scholars even classify it as tamattu‘, and a group regard performing ‘umra in Dhu l-Hijja as disliked. Moreover, whenever ‘A’isha herself came for Hajj she would wait until Muharram began, then enter ihram from al-Juhfa; she never made ‘umra from the nearest boundary of the Haram, nor in Dhu l-Hijja. Al-Insaf, 4/57, records: “Shaykh Taqi al-Din (Ibn Taymiyya) regarded going out from Makka to perform a voluntary ‘umra as reprehensible and declared it an innovation, because the Prophet—may the best blessings and peace be upon him—never did so, and no Companion during his time did so except ‘A’isha; this is agreed upon, whether in Ramadan or at any other time.” (1) In manuscripts A and B: “wa-in” (and if). (2) According to the explicit report from Ahmad, whoever performs an ‘umra after the Hajj is not required to offer a sacrificial animal. See: Masa’il Ibn Hani, 1/141. (3) An ‘umra performed from al-Tan‘im fulfils the obligation of the Islamic ‘umra according to the Hanbalis and Shafi‘is. By contrast, Imam Ahmad holds that it does not suffice for the obligatory ‘umra. See: Tuhfat al-Muhtaj, 4/49; al-Insaf, 4/56. The Hanafis and Malikis do not consider ‘umra obligatory at all, a view also favoured by Shaykh al-Islam. See: Bada’i‘ al-Sana’i‘, 2/226; Bidayat al-Mujtahid, 2/87; al-Ikhtiyarat, p. 170. (4) The phrase “and al-Hudaybiya” is omitted in manuscripts B and D.