And He made visiting it an expiation for past sins, erasing burdens of sin and removing transgressions. Thus, in the two Sahīh collections (1), Abū Hurayrah reported that the Messenger of Allah—peace and blessings be upon him—said:

“Whoever comes to this House without engaging in sexual relations or obscene speech, or committing sin, returns as he was on the day his mother bore him.”

He would accept no reward short of Paradise for those who visit it. In the Sunan collections (2), Abd Allāh ibn Mas‘ūd reported that the Messenger of Allah—peace and blessings be upon him—said:

“Perform Hajj and ‘umrah in succession, for they remove poverty and sins just as the bellows remove dross from iron. A righteous Hajj has no reward short of Paradise.”

And in the Sahīh (3), Abū Hurayrah reported that the Messenger of Allah—peace and blessings be upon him—said:

“One ‘umrah to the next is an expiation for the sins (4) committed between them, and a righteous Hajj has no reward but Paradise.”

If the Secure City were not the best of His lands, the most beloved to Him, and His chosen land, He would not have made its grounds places where His servants perform their rites, required them to visit it, made this one of Islam’s most emphatic obligations, or sworn by it in two places in His Book, saying:

“And by this secure city.” [al-Tīn: 3]

And He, Most High, said:

“I swear by this city.” [al-Balad: 1]

There is no place on the face of the earth to which everyone able to do so is obliged to journey (5) and circumambulate the House which