And as for “combining ‘umrah with Hajj,” it is reported that ‘Umar prohibited it. His son, ‘Abd Allāh ibn ‘Umar, and others, however, used to say that he had not forbidden it; rather, he intended to direct people to what was better: setting out from their own homes to perform ‘umrah outside the months of Hajj. The imams agree that this ‘umrah is better than the ‘umrah performed in tamattu‘ (performing ‘umrah and then Hajj under separate consecrations) or qirān (combining them under a single consecration). Indeed, Abū Hanīfah’s position—and Ahmad’s explicitly stated view—is that performing ‘umrah outside the months of Hajj and then performing Hajj alone during its months is better than merely performing tamattu‘ or qirān, although both hold these to be better than ifrād (performing Hajj alone) without a separate ‘umrah.

Others held that ‘Umar’s prohibition concerned converting Hajj into ‘umrah. They maintained that this was forbidden and impermissible, and that the Prophet’s instruction to his Companions to make this conversion—peace and blessings be upon him—applied exclusively to them. This is the view of many jurists, including Abū Hanīfah, Mālik, and al-Shāfi‘ī.

Others among the earlier and later generations took the opposite position, saying that this conversion is obligatory, and that no one may perform Hajj except as tamattu‘, whether intending it from the outset or converting to it, as the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, instructed his Companions during the Farewell Pilgrimage. This is the view of Ibn ‘Abbās, his companions, and those among the Zāhirīs and Shī‘ah who followed him.

The “third position” is that this conversion is permissible and preferable, but that not making the conversion is also permissible. This is the view of many among the earlier and later generations, including Ahmad ibn Hanbal and other hadith-oriented jurists. The only way a person can perform Hajj in a manner whose permissibility is unanimously accepted is to undertake tamattu‘ from the outset, without converting to it. As for Hajj performed as ifrād or qirān, there is well-known disagreement about it among the earlier and later generations, just as they disagreed over the permissibility of fasting while travelling and of performing the prayers in full while travelling, though they did not dispute the permissibility of fasting and shortening the prayers in general.