Umrah is an obligatory act of worship for all Muslims. It
has a lot of merits that we do not take enough into consideration. These merits
are all the more important when Umrah is practiced during the holy month of
Ramadan.
Thus, it seemed essential to us to evoke the 'Umrah and its
merits, especially during the blessed month of Ramadan. We will rely in part on
the work of Sheikh Sa'id ibn Wahaf al Qahtani entitled "The Umrah, the
Hajj and the pious visit".
"Islam consists [...] in accomplishing Hajj and 'Umrah'
Umrah is a mandatory act for all of us. But do we know what
is the definition of this law and what proves its obligation?
The etymology of the term 'Umrah means' visit 'but its
religious meaning is' to visit the Sacred House of God, and to do it
exclusively in a state of sacralisation (ihram), with all that that implies as
devotional practices, processions rituals around the Kaaba, come and go between
the mountains as-Safa and al-Marwa and shave all or part of the skull, then the
profanation ".
The obligation of Umrah was prescribed in the same way as
that of Hajj. It is for this reason that the Prophet ('Aalayhi sil alat wa
salam) enumerated 'Umrah among the obligations of every Muslim. Indeed, 'Omar
ibn al Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that when Jibril ('
alayhi salaam) asked the Messenger of Allah ('alayhi salat wa salaam), he
replied:' Islam must testify that there is no deity besides Allah and that
Muhammad is His Messenger, to perform the prayer, perform the Zakat, perform
the Hajj and 'Umra, wash away the state of bodily impurity , perform the small
ablutions and observe the fasting of Ramadan "Thus, the Umrah is a
religious obligation that must be fulfilled once in the life of every Muslim,
as well as the pilgrimage." It is in this sense that Ibn 'Omar (may Allah
be pleased with him) said, "There is no one who is not required to perform
Hajj and Umrah, and therefore the obligatory nature of Umrah is indisputable.
The merits of 'Umrah
The merits of Umrah are numerous. We will not be able to
expose them all. That said, we will try to make a brief overview. Among these
merits, we can cite the purification of the soul which leads to a kind of
rebirth. Indeed, Allah's Messenger ('alayhi salat wa salam') said: "Whoever
visits this House (Ka'ba), without uttering crude words or committing
turpitude, will return [to his people] as it was the day of his birth
"(Muslim).
Similarly, in the version reported by at-Tirmidhy, one finds
there: "He will be forgiven his previous sins". These merits are
valid for both Hajj and Umrah because during these two acts, we visit the
Ka'ba. The
forgiveness of previous sins is one of the greatest merits
of 'Umra macha Allah. This merit is far from negligible!
Moreover, in a hadeeth narrated by Ahmed, the Prophet (peace
and blessings of Allah be upon him) affirmed that a prayer performed in the
Holy Mosque (al-Masjid al-Haram) is better than a hundred thousand others
performed outside of it. Thus, the reward of the prayer performed during Umrah
is immense compared to the one we hope to have five times a day. Imagine the
number of prayers that you will perform during the Umrah: to each of them, your
reward will be increased by the Grace of Allah!
Moreover, fulfilling the 'Umrah allows us to attain a
special status with our Lord. It is in this sense that Abu Hurairah (may Allah
be pleased with him) reports that our Noble Prophet ('Alayhi salat wa salam)
said:' Three types of people are part of Allah's delegation: to a conquest [for
the sake of Allah], the one who performs the Hajj and the one who performs the
'Umrah'. This merit alone should motivate us to fulfill this obligation with
all the love and fear that we must feel towards our Creator.
The merits of the 'Umrah are so numerous, ma'am Allah. That
said, the 'Umrah performed during the holy month of Ramadan has an immeasurable
merit. Indeed, Allah's Messenger ('alayhi salat wa salam') said: 'An' Umra
performed during Ramadan is equivalent to a Hajj performed in my company '. (Al
Bukhari and Muslim). This hadeeth brings us a merit of the most important macha
Allah. Thus, the resulting reward will be of indescribable grandeur
insha'Allah. The 'Umrah during the month of Ramadan may seem difficult because
of the fast it involves, but the merit it possesses should lead us to fulfill
it as soon as possible insha'Allah and now it is easy to fulfill our desires with
May Allah allow us to perform the Umrah before leaving this
life. May He grant us His Forgiveness through His Infinite Mercy!
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