the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, on the strength of anyone else’s words. Rather, anyone’s statements may be accepted or rejected, except those of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him. This is agreed upon by the scholars and imams of the Muslim community. Only ignorant people among the Rāfidah and extremist ascetics have disputed it—those who believe that certain members of the Prophet’s household or certain shaykhs are infallible, or virtually so.

Ibn ‘Abbās advocated tamattu‘ so strongly that he regarded it as obligatory and also considered conversion of the pilgrimage rite obligatory. This is the view of Abū Hanīfah and a group among the Zāhirīs and the Shia. He held that anyone who had performed tawaf and sa‘y had thereby left ihram and become a pilgrim performing tamattu‘, whether he intended tamattu‘ or not. A group among the Shia and others likewise adopted the view that tamattu‘ is obligatory. This stands in direct opposition to those among the Umayyads and others who prohibited it and punished people for performing it.

As for the leading jurists, they permit both options, but disagree over conversion of the rite and whether it is recommended. Whoever performs Hajj as tamattu‘, beginning at the mīqāt, fulfils his obligation of Hajj by scholarly consensus. Other cases are disputed when a person arrives during the months of Hajj, whether he performs Hajj alone, combines Hajj and ‘umrah in one ihram, or converts his rite. The exception is someone who combines Hajj and ‘umrah in one ihram and has brought along his sacrificial offering: all agree that his Hajj also fulfils his obligation. As for someone who arrives for ‘umrah before the months of Hajj and stays until he performs Hajj, then in his case