“‘Indeed, al-Safā and al-Marwah are among the symbols of Allah’ [al-Baqarah: 158]. I begin with what Allah began with.” (1) In a narration recorded by al-Nasā’ī (2), the wording is “Begin,” in the imperative. He then climbed al-Safā until he could see the House. Facing the qiblah, he proclaimed Allah’s oneness and greatness, saying:

“There is no god but Allah alone, with no partner. His is the dominion (3), and His is all praise, and He has power over all things. There is no god but Allah alone. He fulfilled His promise, granted victory to His servant, and defeated the confederates alone.”

He made supplications in between, repeating these words three times.

Ibn Mas‘ūd stood (4) at the cleft—the fissure in al-Safā—and was asked, “Here, Abū ‘Abd al-Rahmān?” He replied, “By Him besides whom there is no god, this is where the one to whom Surah al-Baqarah was revealed stood.” Al-Bayhaqī related this (5).

He then descended and walked towards al-Marwah. When his feet reached the valley floor, he ran; once he had crossed the valley and reached the rising ground, he walked again. This is what is authentically established concerning him. Today, that location lies before the two green markers at the beginning and end of the course (6). It appears that the valley has not changed