After the 7th circuit, cover the right shoulder (men) and pray two units, behind Maqam Ibrahim if possible, otherwise anywhere in the mosque: al-Kāfirūn in the first, al-Ikhlāṣ in the second. Then drink Zamzam water while supplicating, and head to Safa.
Educational guide. If in doubt, ask your guide or a scholar.
Supplications
وَاتَّخِذُوا مِن مَّقَامِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ مُصَلًّى
Wa-ttakhidhū min maqāmi Ibrāhīma muṣallā
And take the station of Abraham as a place of prayer (verse recited when going to pray).
Quran 2:125
اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَسْأَلُكَ عِلْمًا نَافِعًا وَرِزْقًا وَاسِعًا وَشِفَاءً مِنْ كُلِّ دَاءٍ
Allāhumma innī asʾaluka ʿilman nāfiʿan wa rizqan wāsiʿan wa shifāʾan min kulli dāʾ
O Allah, I ask You for beneficial knowledge, abundant provision and healing from every illness (when drinking Zamzam).
Reported from Ibn Abbas; the supplication when drinking Zamzam is free.
Ibn Majah 3062 (“Zamzam water is for whatever it is drunk for”), authenticity debated
Common mistakes
- Praying right against the Maqam and blocking the tawaf flow: step back, anywhere is fine.
- Forgetting to cover the shoulder before praying.
What if…
No room behind the Maqam?
Pray elsewhere in the mosque: the prayer is still valid.
A woman is menstruating?
She neither prays nor performs tawaf; she waits to do tawaf + sa’i together later.
Checklist
- ☐ Shoulder covered
- ☐ Two units prayed
- ☐ Zamzam drunk with supplication
Sources
- Quran 2:125
- Muslim 1218, hadith of Jabir (the Prophet’s ﷺ pilgrimage)
- Ibn Majah 3062 (“Zamzam water is for whatever it is drunk for”), authenticity debated
All steps
- 1Forming your intention
- 2Documents and formalities
- 3Health and fitness
- 4The pilgrim’s suitcase
- 5The journey and arrival
- 6Ihram at the miqat or on board
- 7The talbiya
- 8Entering Makkah and the Sacred Mosque
- 9Tawaf: 7 circuits around the Kaaba
- 10Prayer behind Maqam Ibrahim and Zamzam water
- 11Saʿi: 7 laps between Safa and Marwa
- 12Halq or taqsir: leaving ihram
- 13Madinah: the Prophet’s Mosque and visits
- 14The return