two units.” Mālik related it in al-Muwatta (1).

Umm Salama (may Allah be pleased with her), the wife of the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), reported that while the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) was in Mecca and preparing to depart—Umm Salama had not yet circumambulated the House and also wished to leave—he told her: “When the dawn prayer begins, circumambulate while mounted on your camel as the people are praying.” She did so and did not pray until she had left. Al-Bukhārī and Muslim both related it (2).

The relevant evidence lies in the words at the end of the hadith, “and did not pray until she had left”—that is, left the mosque or Mecca. This demonstrates that the prayer following circumambulation may be performed outside the mosque, for had performing it there been an indispensable condition, the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) would not have approved her doing so.

The majority also cited this as evidence that anyone who forgets the two units following circumambulation should make them up wherever he remembers them, whether outside or within the Sacred Precinct. This is the view of the majority (3).

– (3-17-4) What Should Be Recited in Them:

It is Sunnah to recite in them the two surahs of sincere devotion: “Say: He is Allah, the One,” and “Say: O disbelievers.”

This is based on the aforementioned hadith of Jābir describing the Prophet’s Hajj, where, after mentioning his circumambulation and his performance