Tawaf al-Wada, the farewell tawaf
The last rite before leaving Makkah: who must perform it, how it differs from other tawafs, and the parting at Multazam.
Before finally leaving Makkah, a pilgrim from outside the city does one more tawaf, the Farewell Tawaf, called Tawaf al-Wada.
| Who | Must they do it? |
|---|---|
| A pilgrim from outside Makkah, after Hajj | Yes |
| Someone who only did Umrah | No |
| A woman on her period | No |
| A woman bleeding after childbirth | No |
| Someone who lives in Makkah | No |
How to do the Farewell Tawaf
- Do the seven circuits like any tawaf, but without Ramal (brisk walking) or Idtiba (baring the shoulder).
- Drink Zamzam water afterwards, and pour some over your head, face and body.
- Go to Multazam, the wall between the Kaʿbah's door and the Black Stone, and press your chest and cheek against it, holding onto the cover of the Kaʿbah.
- Cry, ask for forgiveness, and make dua there.
- Kiss the doorframe if you can, touch the Black Stone one last time, and look at the Kaʿbah with love before you go.
- Walk backward, without turning your back to the Kaʿbah, until you leave through the Gate of Farewell.
- Give some charity to someone in need before you leave Makkah.
Tawaf al-Wada (also called Tawaf al-Rukhsah, al-Sadr, al-Ifadah, or Akhir al-Ahd bi'l-Bayt) is the last rite of Hajj, performed just before leaving Makkah for good.
| Pilgrim | Ruling |
|---|---|
| An Afaqi (non-resident), whether Mufrid, Qarin or Mutamatti | Obligatory |
| Someone who performed only Umrah | Not obligatory |
| A woman menstruating at the time of departure | Not obligatory |
| A woman in post-natal bleeding at the time of departure | Not obligatory |
| A resident of Makkah | Not obligatory |
The method of Tawaf al-Wada
- Perform the seven circuits without Idtiba or Ramal, unlike a tawaf that will be followed by saʿy.
- Afterwards, drink Zamzam water and pour some over the head, face and body as a source of blessing.
- Go to Multazam, the wall between the Kaʿbah's door and the Black Stone, press the chest and right cheek against it, reach the right hand towards the doorframe, and hold the covering of the Kaʿbah as a servant clings to a master's garment.
- Weep, seek forgiveness, and recite dua, istighfar, the kalimah, and salutations on the Prophet ﷺ.
- Kiss the doorframe, make further dua as desired, and perform Istilam of the Black Stone one last time.
- Look at the Kaʿbah with longing, weeping at the separation, and leave walking backward, without turning one's back to it, through Bab al-Wada, the Gate of Farewell.
- Give some charity to the needy at the time of departure.
Tawaf al-Wada is wajib for every Afaqi pilgrim, regardless of the type of ihram observed, but not for a Makkan or for someone who came only for Umrah.
A woman in menstruation or post-natal bleeding does not perform Tawaf al-Wada at all, since it would require entering the mosque while impure, and instead leaves Makkah through the gate of the Haram without it.
Tawaf al-Wadāʿ (also al-Rukhṣah, al-Ṣadr, al-Ifāḍah, Ākhir al-ʿAhd bi'l-Bayt, ṣadr and ifāḍah both carrying the sense of 'return') closes a pilgrim's stay, its earliest time following Tawaf al-Ziyārah and its latest extending through the whole of the stay, though performing it immediately before departure is preferred.
| Pilgrim | Ruling |
|---|---|
| An Āfāqī: Mufrid, Qārin, or Mutamattiʿ | Wājib |
| One who performed only ʿUmrah | Not obligatory |
| A woman in ḥayḍ at departure | Not obligatory, waived entirely |
| A woman in nifās at departure | Not obligatory, waived entirely |
| A Makkī | Not obligatory |
The method of Tawaf al-Wadāʿ
- Seven ashwāṭ are performed without iḍṭibāʿ or ramal, this tawāf not being followed by saʿy.
- Zamzam is drunk afterward, and poured over the head, face and body for its blessing.
- At al-Multazam, between the door of the Kaʿbah and the Black Stone, the chest and right cheek are pressed to the wall, the right hand extended to the doorframe, the kiswah held as a servant clings to a master's garment in seeking pardon.
- Weeping, istighfār, duʿā, the kalimah ṭayyibah, and ṣalawāt on the Prophet ﷺ follow.
- The doorframe is kissed, further duʿā made, and a final Istilām of the Black Stone performed.
- The pilgrim looks upon the Kaʿbah with longing, weeps at the parting, and withdraws walking backward, the back never turned to it, through Bāb al-Wadāʿ.
- Charity to the needy at the moment of departure closes the rite.
Tawaf al-Wadāʿ is wājib upon every Āfāqī pilgrim without distinction of iḥrām type, and is not obligatory upon a Makkī nor upon one who came for ʿUmrah alone.
A woman in ḥayḍ or nifās does not perform Tawaf al-Wadāʿ under any circumstance, entry to the mosque in that state being forbidden to her; she departs through the gate of the Ḥaram without it, and no kaffārah attaches to its omission in her case.
Terms on this page
Related
- The seven kinds of tawaf, and its fard, wajib and sunnah acts The seven named tawafs of Hajj and Umrah, their timing, and which of tawaf's acts are fard, which wajib, and which sunnah.
- How a woman's ihram differs from a man's The points where a woman's ihram, tawaf, saʿy, and hair-cutting differ from a man's, and what menstruation or post-natal bleeding change.
- How to perform tawaf, step by step The full method of circling the Kaʿbah seven times, from the intention at the Black Stone to the two rakats at Maqam Ibrahim and drinking Zamzam.
- Hajj, Umrah, and the three ways of combining them How Hajj and Umrah differ, and the three recognised ways of performing them together: Ifrad, Tamattu' and Qiran.