The one performing Sa’i will walk between Safa and Marwah seven times, reciting the prescribed supplications.
➊ Allah, the Exalted, says:
إِنَّ الصَّفَا وَالْمَرْوَةَ مِنْ شَعَائِرِ اللهِ …. بِهِمَا
“Indeed, Safa and Marwah are among the symbols of Allah. So there is no blame upon one who makes Hajj to the House or performs Umrah if he goes around them (between them).”
➋ It is narrated from Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) that when the Prophet ﷺ had finished his Tawaf, he came to Safa (the hill), climbed upon it until he could see the House of Allah, raised his two hands, praised Allah, and supplicated with whatever he wished.
➌ In the narration of Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him), when the Prophet ﷺ approached the hill of Safa, he recited this verse:
إِنَّ الصَّفَا وَالْمَرْوَةَ مِنْ شَعَائِرِ اللهِ
(Then he said) “I begin with what Allah began with,” and he climbed upon Safa until he saw the House of Allah. He then turned towards the qiblah, declared the oneness and greatness of Allah, and said:
لَا إِلهَ إِلَّا اللهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ لَهُ الْمُلْكُ وَلَهُ الْحَمْدُ وَهُوَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْء قَدِيرٌ ، لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللهُ أَنْجَزَ وَعْدَهُ وَنَصَرَ عَبْدَهُ وَهَزَمَ الأحْزَابَ وَحْدَهُ
He then recited the supplication in the same manner three times there. Then he descended from Safa and headed towards Marwah, until when his feet reached the lowland of the valley, he ran until he climbed out of the lowland and walked towards Marwah. At Marwah he did the same as he had done at Safa (and finally he completed the seventh circuit upon arriving at Marwah).
The scholars have differed regarding the ruling on Sa’i.
(Majority) Sa’i is obligatory (fard).
(Shafi’i) It is a pillar (rukn); Hajj is not valid without it.
(Abu Hanifah) Sa’i is wajib, and whoever leaves it must give an animal as expiation (fidyah).
(Siddiq Hasan Khan) Sa’i is wajib.
The evidence of these scholars is as follows:
➊ A hadith of the Prophet ﷺ states: “Allah has not completed the Hajj and Umrah of the person who did not circumambulate Safa and Marwah.”
➋ Habibah bint Abi Tajrah says that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, while performing Sa’i between Safa and Marwah, was saying:
سعوا فإن الله كتب عليكم السعي
“Perform Sa’i, for indeed Allah has made Sa’i obligatory upon you.”
If one is performing Hajj al-Tamattu’, he will remove his Ihram after Sa’i, and when the day of Tarwiyah (i.e., 8 Dhu al-Hijjah) comes, he will don Ihram for Hajj and go towards Mina, and there he will perform the Zuhr, Asr, Maghrib, Isha and Fajr prayers.
➊ Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her), describing the Hajj of the people with the Prophet ﷺ, says:
فأما من أهل بالعمرة نأحلوا حين طافوا بالبيت وبالصفا والمروة
“Those who had put on Ihram for Umrah alone went around the House and between Safa and Marwah and became free (from Ihram).”
➋ It is narrated from Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) had put on Ihram only for Hajj al-Ifrad, but the Prophet ﷺ told them: (Put on Ihram for Umrah and) after Tawaf of the House and Sa’i between Safa and Marwah, remove your Ihram and trim your hair. Thus, convert your Hajj al-Ifrad, which you had intended earlier, into Tamattu’.
➌ It is narrated from Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him) that when we removed our Ihram, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ commanded us that when we set out towards Mina we should put on Ihram, so we put on Ihram from the valley of al-Abtah.
In the narration of Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him): “When the day of Tarwiyah (i.e., 8 Dhu al-Hijjah) came, the people set off towards Mina, and the Prophet ﷺ was also riding:
فصلي بها الظهر ، والعصر ، والمغرب والعشاء والفجر
“Then the Prophet ﷺ led the Zuhr, Asr, Maghrib, Isha and Fajr prayers there.”
