—Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah—may Allah have mercy on him—who ruled that the child is under no obligation, for he is not yet liable for religious duties.

The ḥadith also shows that even a child who has not reached the age of discernment can perform a valid ḥajj. One may ask, however: how can a non-discerning child form the required intention? The scholars replied: the guardian intends on the child’s behalf, in his own heart, to place the child in iḥrām; thereafter the guardian carries out whatever rites the child is unable to perform himself.

On this occasion we wish to clarify another question: once a pilgrim has entered ḥajj, must he make a fresh intention for each rite—an independent intention for ṭawāf, another for saʿy, another for stoning the jamarāt—or does the original intention suffice?

The jurists differ. Some maintain that if a person enters iḥrām for ḥajj and then performs ṭawāf and saʿy without renewing his intention at each stage, his pilgrimage is nevertheless valid. Their reasoning is that ṭawāf, saʿy, standing at ʿArafah, stoning the jamarāt, and the overnight stays are all components of a single act of worship, so the initial intention covers them all—just as, when one begins the prayer, it is not required to make a separate intention for bowing, prostrating, standing, or sitting; those are simply parts of the prayer. Ḥajj, they argue, is analogous.

This opinion should be applied in cases of necessity. Suppose a questioner says: “I arrived at the Sacred Mosque and made ṭawāf, but at the time I had no explicit intention.” In such a situation, one should issue the fatwa that nothing is required of him and that his ṭawāf is valid. When there is no hardship, however, it is better to advise the pilgrim to renew his intention explicitly; in any case he must intend the ṭawāf, though it may slip his mind whether it is the obligatory circumambulation or a voluntary one, and the matter ultimately rests with Allah.