Umrah (Lesser Pilgrimage)
The lesser pilgrimage to Mecca, which can be performed at any time of the year.
Umrah is the lesser pilgrimage to Mecca, which unlike Hajj can be performed at any time of the year. It consists of four main rituals: ihram (entering the state of pilgrimage), tawaf (seven circumambulations of the Kaaba), sa'i (walking between Safa and Marwa), and halq/taqsir (shaving or shortening the hair).
The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: "An Umrah to the next is an expiation for what is between them, and the accepted Hajj has no reward other than Paradise" (Sahih al-Bukhari). Prayer at Masjid al-Haram during Umrah has a special virtue — the Prophet said: "One prayer in my mosque is better than a thousand prayers elsewhere, except Masjid al-Haram" (Sahih al-Bukhari).
The four Sunni schools of law disagree on whether Umrah is obligatory (wajib) or merely strongly recommended (sunnah mu'akkadah). The Shafi'i and Hanbali schools consider it obligatory at least once in a lifetime, while the Hanafi and Maliki schools regard it as strongly recommended.
Related terms
Akhirah (The Hereafter)
Life after death — the eternal life that prayer prepares the believer for.
Salat al-Tasbih (The Prayer of Glorification)
A special voluntary prayer with 300 tasbih recitations, recommended for forgiveness of sins.
Masjid (Mosque)
The Islamic house of worship, where Muslims gather for congregational prayer.
Masjid al-Nabawi (The Prophet's Mosque)
The Prophet Muhammad's mosque in Medina, the second holiest mosque in Islam.
Turbah (Prayer Stone)
A small clay tablet upon which Shia Muslims place their forehead during sujud.
Salah (Prayer)
The Islamic ritual prayer, performed five times daily.