Iḥrām
Definition
Ihram is the sacred state that the pilgrim enters at the miqat (the designated boundary) by the intention and the declaration of the talbiya — and by donning the two plain white garments that replace ordinary clothing for men. In ihram, the pilgrim is forbidden from sexual relations, hunting, perfume, and certain other ordinary pleasures. Al-Ghazali describes ihram as the most vivid physical symbol in the entire pilgrimage: the white sheets resemble a burial shroud, the stripping of ordinary clothes mirrors the stripping of worldly identity, and the prohibition of ordinary pleasures rehearses the total renunciation that death will impose. The pilgrim in ihram is practising death.
As understood in the classical tradition of Imam al-Ghazali and the scholars of his school.
How the scholars use Iḥrām.
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"This involves donning the upper garment and wrapping the lower one in two white garments, as white is the most beloved clothing to Allah Almighty. It is also recommended to perfume the clothes and body with a fragrance that remains after entering ihram. It is noted that some musk was seen on the hair parting of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, after entering ihram, from what he used before entering ihram."
— Imam al-Ghazali, Book 7: The Mysteries of Pilgrimage
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"the Lord of the angels and the Spirit, You have enveloped the heavens with honor and might." The second section on the etiquette of ihram from the miqat to entering Mecca: The first part of the process involves performing the bath with the intention of the ihram bath. This is done upon reaching the well-known miqat, the designated place from which people begin ihram."
— Imam al-Ghazali, Book 7: The Mysteries of Pilgrimage
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"but the tawaf does not count as a compulsory duty because obligatory tawaf in Hajj must occur after standing. The qarin must offer a sheep unless he is from Mecca, as Mecca itself is his miqat. The third is tamattu', where one passes the miqat in ihram for Umrah, becomes lawful in Mecca, and enjoys permissible acts until Hajj time, then assumes ihram for Hajj. Tamattu' is observed with five conditions: Firstly, one must not be from residents near the Sacred Mosque, defined as being at a distance where shortening the prayer is not permissible."
— Imam al-Ghazali, Book 7: The Mysteries of Pilgrimage
Appears in
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