The story of the Hajj of our Mother ‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her.
The difference between the Prophet’s (peace be upon him) treatment of Safiyyah when she menstruated and his treatment of ‘A’ishah.
A sister performing Hajj might wonder about the difference between the Prophet’s stance toward our Mother ‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, when she menstruated at Sarif,
and his stance toward our Mother Safiyyah, may Allah be pleased with her, when she menstruated at Mina.
Ibn Hajar, may Allah have mercy on him, answers this by saying that the discourse differs according to the context.
As for ‘A’ishah, he entered upon her while she was weeping out of regret for the rites she had missed, so he consoled her.
As for Safiyyah, he desired from her what a man desires from his wife, but she indicated the obstacle; thus, his address to each of them was appropriate to her specific situation.
Ibn Hajar, may Allah have mercy on him, said this in response to those who claimed that the reason for the difference in treatment
was his inclination toward our Mother ‘A’ishah more than toward our Mother Safiyyah.
This claim is incorrect, for the noble character of the Prophet (peace be upon him) rejects such a notion.
It may also be added that the onset of menstruation for our Mother ‘A’ishah
did not affect the movement of the people in performing the rites or otherwise.
This is in contrast to the onset of menstruation for our Mother Safiyyah,
as it would have affected the movement of the people and their departure from Makkah.
If she had not performed the Tawaf al-Ifadah—for there is no farewell circumambulation (Tawaf al-Wada‘) for a menstruating woman—
once the Prophet (peace be upon him) was certain that our Mother Safiyyah
had performed the Tawaf al-Ifadah before she menstruated, he ordered her to depart with the people and waived the farewell circumambulation.
He (peace be upon him) said to her, "There is no harm; depart."
In the Prophet’s command for her to depart,
there is evidence that the farewell circumambulation is not required of a menstruating woman, nor must she wait until she is pure.
This is the position of all the jurists (fuqaha’).
Therefore, my sister performing Hajj,
if your period begins during the days of Mina and you have already performed the Tawaf al-Ifadah before it,
you are exempt from the farewell circumambulation.
For this reason, you must be diligent in performing the Tawaf al-Ifadah on the Day of Sacrifice (Yawm al-Nahr).
Do not delay it, lest you encounter difficulties that burden you and your guardian during the journey.
Our Mother ‘A’ishah’s distress over her rites differing from those of the Mothers of the Believers.
When the Prophet (peace be upon him) departed from Mina after stoning the pillars (Jamarat),
he stopped at al-Muhassab, a place between Mina and the Sacred Mosque.
There, the Prophet (peace be upon him) prayed Dhuhr, ‘Asr, Maghrib, and ‘Isha’.
In the evening, our Mother ‘A’ishah discussed the matter of her rites with the Prophet (peace be upon him).
Our Mother ‘A’ishah says:
When it was the night of al-Hasbah, she said, "O Messenger of Allah,
your wives are returning with an ‘Umrah and a Hajj, while I am returning only with a Hajj."
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said to her:
"Your circumambulation of the House and between al-Safa and al-Marwah suffices for both your Hajj and your ‘Umrah."
She refused and said, "O Messenger of Allah, you have performed ‘Umrah, but I have not."
"O Messenger of Allah, the people are returning with two rewards, while I return with one."
"O Messenger of Allah, the people are departing with two rites, while I depart with only one."
"O Messenger of Allah, your companions are returning with the reward of both Hajj and ‘Umrah, and I have not exceeded the Hajj."
"Are your wives returning with a Hajj and an ‘Umrah, while I return with a Hajj that has no ‘Umrah with it?"
When she persisted, he allowed her to perform ‘Umrah to soothe her spirit.
She felt distressed that her companions would return with a separate Hajj and ‘Umrah,
for they were performing Tamattu‘ and had not menstruated, nor had they performed Qiran.
And she was returning with an ‘Umrah included within her Hajj.
So he ordered her brother to take her to perform ‘Umrah from al-Tan‘im to comfort her heart.
This action of our Mother ‘A’ishah
illustrates the nature of women from several aspects.
A woman may persist in a request and repeat it until she obtains approval from her guardian or husband.
Men should not be annoyed by this, nor should they demand that she act against her nature.
A woman is affected by the superiority of her peers over her,
so how much more so if they are her co-wives?
She does not want others among the wives to surpass her or be distinguished from her.
The Prophet’s (peace be upon him) soothing of our Mother ‘A’ishah’s heart.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) was of excellent conduct toward his family.
When our Mother ‘A’ishah said to him what she said regarding the ‘Umrah,
he agreed to her desire.
Jabir, may Allah be pleased with him, said:
"The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was an easy-going man;
if she desired something, he would follow her in it."
This is how a man should be with the women of his household—his wives, daughters, and sisters.
Easy-going, following his family in their desires, provided it is not a sin.
This is part of good conduct toward women.
This character is required at all times when dealing with women,
but it is even more necessary during travel,
so that the hardship of travel does not combine with the harshness of the man.
The ‘Umrah of al-Tan‘im.
Then the Prophet (peace be upon him) called ‘Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr
and said to him, "Take your sister out of the Sacred Precinct (Haram),
let her enter into the state of Ihram for an ‘Umrah,
then let her finish, and then meet me here."
"For I will wait for you both until you return."
The Prophet (peace be upon him) only ordered ‘Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him,
to go out of the Sacred Precinct
because a Makkan resident performing ‘Umrah must go out to the Hill (the area outside the Haram),
and then enter into Ihram from there.
Furthermore, ‘Umrah is a visit,
and one visits the Sacred Precinct from outside it,
just as one visits a person in their home from outside that home.
That is the Sunnah of Allah for His servants performing ‘Umrah.
Then the Prophet (peace be upon him) said to our Mother ‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her:
"Go,"
"and let ‘Abd al-Rahman ride behind you to al-Tan‘im,"
"then enter into Ihram for an ‘Umrah."
Al-Tan‘im is the closest part of the Hill to Makkah.
It is the nearest point of the Hill to Makkah.
One performing ‘Umrah from Makkah goes out to the Hill
to combine the Hill and the Haram.
This command from the Prophet (peace be upon him) to our Mother ‘A’ishah
had a reason,
which is that she had arrived in Makkah intending ‘Umrah,
but she menstruated and did not become pure until the days of Mina.
Thus, she did not perform a separate ‘Umrah.
She requested this from the Prophet (peace be upon him),
and he permitted her to perform the ‘Umrah from al-Tan‘im.
And this, my sister performing Hajj,
applies to every woman who arrives in Makkah,
then menstruates before performing the rites of ‘Umrah,
and then Hajj overtakes her while she is in the state of Ihram.
She should stop the acts of ‘Umrah and declare the intention (talbiyah) for Hajj.
Then, once she has completed her Hajj,
she performs ‘Umrah from al-Tan‘im.
As for what pilgrims do today—
repeating the ‘Umrah after Hajj, both men and women—
this was not known during the time of the salaf.
No one has reported from the Prophet (peace be upon him),
nor from any of those who performed Hajj with him,
that they did this.
Except for ‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her,
because she had arrived intending Tamattu‘,
then she menstruated,
so the Prophet (peace be upon him) ordered her
to enter into Ihram for Hajj and waive the ‘Umrah.
That is why our Mother ‘A’ishah used to refer
to this ‘Umrah
with phrases indicating that it was in place of the ‘Umrah she did not complete.
Our Mother ‘A’ishah says:
"When I completed the Hajj,
he ordered ‘Abd al-Rahman on the night of al-Hasbah,
and he helped me perform ‘Umrah from al-Tan‘im in place of the ‘Umrah I had intended."
She also said:
"He sent ‘Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr al-Siddiq with me,
and he ordered me to perform ‘Umrah in place of the ‘Umrah for which the Hajj overtook me,
and from which I had not exited the state of Ihram, from al-Tan‘im."
She also said:
"So I went out to al-Tan‘im,
and I entered into Ihram for an ‘Umrah in place of my ‘Umrah."
Indeed, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said to her explicitly:
"This is in place of your ‘Umrah."