Saʿy between Safa and Marwah, and completing Umrah

Walking the seven lengths between Safa and Marwah after tawaf, and finishing Umrah by cutting the hair and removing ihram.

After tawaf, the next rite is saʿy: walking between two small hills called Safa and Marwah, seven times in total.

One trip from Safa to Marwah, or back, counts as one round.

How to do saʿy

Leave the mosque through the door nearest Safa, stepping out with your left foot first.
Climb up onto Safa, face the Kaʿbah, raise your hands, and say the takbir and the tahlil dua.
Walk down towards Marwah. Between two green lights along the way, men jog a little faster; women just walk the whole way.
When you reach Marwah, do the same as you did at Safa.
That is one round. Go from Safa to Marwah and back again seven times in total, ending at Marwah.

Said on leaving to start saʿy

اَبْدَأُ بِمَا بَدَا اللَّهُ بِهٖ بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ إِنَّ الصَّفَا وَ الْمَرْوَةَ مِنْ شَعَآئِرِ اللَّهِ فَمَنْ حَجَّ الْبَيْتَ أَوِ اعْتَمَرَ فَلَا جُنَاحَ عَلَيْهِ أَنْ يَطَّوَّفَ بِهِمَا وَ مَنْ تَطَوَّعَ خَيْرًا فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ شَاكِرٌ عَلِیمٌ

Abda'u bimā bada'a'llāhu bih. Bismillāhi'r-raḥmāni'r-raḥīm. Inna'ṣ-ṣafā wa'l-marwata min shaʿā'iri'llāh, fa-man ḥajja'l-bayta awi'ʿtamara fa-lā junāḥa ʿalayhi an yaṭṭawwafa bihimā, wa man taṭawwaʿa khayran fa-inna'llāha shākirun ʿalīm.

I begin with what Allah has started. In the name of Allah, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate. Indeed, Safa and Marwah are among the rites of Allah. So, whoever performs Hajj or Umrah, it is no harm for them to walk between them. And whoever volunteers in doing good, then surely, Allah is Most Appreciative, All-Knowing.

Finishing Umrah after saʿy

Face the Qiblah. A man shaves his whole head, or at least trims a quarter of it; shaving it all is better.
A woman does not shave. She gathers her hair together and trims off a length about the width of a fingertip.
A man also trims his nails, his mustache, and the hair under his arms.
Pray two rakats near the Black Stone, and then Umrah is complete; you may now take off your ihram and go back to your normal clothes.

Said while cutting the hair

اَلْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ عَلٰى مَا هَدَانَا وَاَنْعَمَ عَلَيْنَا وَ قَضٰى عَنَّا نُسُكَنَا اَللّٰهُمَّ هَذِهٖ نَاصِيَتِي بِيَدِكَ فَاجْعَلْنِي بِكُلِّ شَعْرَةٍ نُورًا يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ وَامْحُ عَنِى بِهَا سَيِّئَةً وَ ارْفَعۡ لِى دَرَجَةً فِي الْجَنَّةِ الْعَالِيَةِ اَللّٰهُمَّ بَارِكْ لِي فِي نَفْسِي وَتَقَبَّلۡ مِنِّي اَللّٰهُمَّ اغْفِرْ لِي وَلِلْمُحَلِّقِينَ يَا وَاسِعَ الْمَغْفِرَةِ . آمِينَ

Al-ḥamdu lillāhi ʿalā mā hadānā wa anʿama ʿalaynā wa qaḍā ʿannā nusukanā. Allāhumma hādhihī nāṣiyatī bi-yadika fa'jʿalnī bi-kulli shaʿratin nūran yawma'l-qiyāmah, wa'mḥu ʿannī bihā sayyi'atan, wa'rfaʿ lī darajatan fi'l-jannati'l-ʿāliyah. Allāhumma bārik lī fī nafsī wa taqabbal minnī. Allāhumma'ghfir lī wa li'l-muḥalliqīna, yā wāsiʿa'l-maghfirah. Āmīn.

Praise be to Allah, who has guided us and bestowed His blessings upon us and completed our rites. O Allah, this is my hair in Your hands, so make each strand a light for me on the Day of Judgement, erase my sins with it, and elevate my status in the highest part of Paradise. O Allah, bless my soul and accept my worship. O Allah, forgive me and the ones who shave their heads, O You who are vast in forgiveness.

Saʿy follows tawaf: seven passes between the hills of Safa and Marwah, starting at Safa and ending at Marwah, each single pass counting as one round.

The distance between Safa and Marwah is roughly 750 yards, with about forty steps' difference in height between them.

The method of saʿy

One about to perform saʿy after tawaf performs a final Istilam of the Black Stone, then leaves for the gate nearest Safa (once called the gate of Bani Makhzum), stepping out with the left foot first while reciting the opening dua.
Climb Safa, face the Kaʿbah, raise the hands to shoulder height, palms towards the sky, and recite the takbir and tahlil dua, followed by the personal supplication.
Descend towards Marwah walking slowly while remembering Allah. Between the two green markers along the route, a man breaks into harwalah (faster than walking, slower than a full run) while a woman walks the whole distance without running.
On reaching Marwah, repeat what was done at Safa. This completes one round; repeat until seven rounds are finished, always starting at Safa and ending at Marwah.

Recited leaving the mosque to begin saʿy

Atop Safa (and again atop Marwah): the takbir and tahlil

اَللهُ اَكْبَرُ اَللَّهُ أَكْبَرُ اَللَّهُ اَكْبَرُ وَلِلَّهِ الْحَمْدُ اَلْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ عَلٰى مَا هَدَانَا . اَلْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ عَلٰى مَا أَوْ لَانَا اَلْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ عَلٰى مَا اَلْهَمَنَا اَلْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ الَّذِى هَدَانَا وَ مَا كُنَّا لِنَهْتَدِى لَوْ لَا أَنْ هَدَانَا اللَّهُ لَآ إِلٰهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَحْدَهٗ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهٗ لَهُ الْمُلْكُ وَ لَهُ الْحَمْدُ يُحْيِي وَيُمِيتُ وَهُوَ حَیٌّ لَّا يَمُوتُ بِيَدِهِ الْخَيْرُ وَ هُوَ عَلٰى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ لَآ إِلٰهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَحْدَهٗ وَ صَدَقَ وَعْدَهٗ وَ نَصَرَ عَبْدَهٗ وَ أَعزَّ جُندَهٗ وَ هَزَمَ الأَحْزَابَ وَحْدَهٗ لَا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَلَا نَعْبُدُ إِلَّا إِيَّاهُ مُخْلِصِينَ لَهُ الدِّينَ وَ لَوْ كَرِهَ الْكَافِرُونَ

Allāhu akbar, Allāhu akbar, Allāhu akbar, wa lillāhi'l-ḥamd. Al-ḥamdu lillāhi ʿalā mā hadānā, al-ḥamdu lillāhi ʿalā mā awlānā, al-ḥamdu lillāhi ʿalā mā alhamanā. Al-ḥamdu lillāhi'lladhī hadānā wa mā kunnā li-nahtadiya law lā an hadāna'llāh. Lā ilāha illa'llāhu waḥdahū lā sharīka lah, lahu'l-mulku wa lahu'l-ḥamdu yuḥyī wa yumītu wa huwa ḥayyun lā yamūt, bi-yadihi'l-khayru wa huwa ʿalā kulli shay'in qadīr. Lā ilāha illa'llāhu waḥdah, wa ṣadaqa waʿdah, wa naṣara ʿabdah, wa aʿazza jundahū, wa hazama'l-aḥzāba waḥdah. Lā ilāha illa'llāhu wa lā naʿbudu illā iyyāhu mukhliṣīna lahu'd-dīna wa law kariha'l-kāfirūn.

Allah is the Greatest, Allah is the Greatest, Allah is the Greatest, and to Allah belongs all praise. Praise be to Allah for guiding us, for bestowing upon us, for enlightening us with the truth. Praise be to Allah, Who guided us, and we would not have been guided had Allah not guided us. There is no god but Allah alone, without partner; to Him belongs the dominion and to Him belongs the praise; He gives life and causes death, and He is ever-living and does not die; in His Hand is all good, and He is over everything capable. There is no god but Allah alone; His promise is true; He assisted His servant, gave victory to His army, and defeated the confederates alone. There is no god but Allah, and we worship none but Him, sincerely devoting the religion to Him alone, even though the disbelievers dislike it.

Continuing atop Safa or Marwah

اَللّٰهُمَّ إِنَّكَ قُلْتَ وَ قَوْلُكَ الْحَقُّ اُدْعُونِي أَسْتَجِبْ لَكُمْ وَ إِنَّكَ لَا تُخْلِفُ الْمِيعَادَ وَإِنِّي أَسْأَلُكَ كَمَا هَدَيْتَنِي لِلۡإِسۡلَامِ أَنْ لَّا تَنْزِعَهٗ مِنِّى حَتّٰى تَوَفَّانِي وَأَنَا مُسْلِمٌ سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ وَالْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ وَلَا إِٓلٰهَ إِلَّا اللهُ وَ اللهُ أَكْبَرُ وَلَا حَوْلَ وَلَا قُوَّةَ إِلَّا بِاللَّهِ الْعَلِيِّ الْعَظِيمِ

Allāhumma innaka qulta wa qawluka'l-ḥaqq: udʿūnī astajib lakum, wa innaka lā tukhlifu'l-mīʿād. Wa innī as'aluka kamā hadaytanī li'l-Islāmi an lā tanziʿahū minnī ḥattā tawaffānī wa ana Muslim. Subḥāna'llāhi wa'l-ḥamdu lillāhi wa lā ilāha illa'llāhu wa'llāhu akbar, wa lā ḥawla wa lā quwwata illā billāhi'l-ʿaliyyi'l-ʿaẓīm.

O Allah, You said and Your words are the truth, 'Call upon Me and I will answer you,' and indeed, You do not break Your promises. As You have guided me to Islam, I ask You not to remove it from me until You cause me to die in a state of Islam. Glory be to Allah, and all praise is to Allah. There is no god but Allah, and Allah is the Greatest. There is no power and no strength except by Allah, the Most High, the Great.

Concluding atop Safa or Marwah

اَللّٰهُمَّ صَلِّ وَ سَلِّمُ عَلٰى سَيِّدِنَا مُحَمَّدٍ وَ عَلٰى اٰلِهٖ وَصَحْبِهٖ وَ أَتْبَاعِهٖ إِلٰى يَوْمِ الدِّينِ اَللّٰهُمَّ اغْفِرۡ لِي وَلِوَالِدَىَّ وَ لِمَشَائِخِي وَلِلْمُسْلِمِينَ أَجْمَعِينَ وَالسَّلَامُ عَلٰى الْمُرْسَلِينَ وَ الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ

Allāhumma ṣalli wa sallim ʿalā sayyidinā Muḥammadin wa ʿalā ālihī wa ṣaḥbihī wa atbāʿihī ilā yawmi'd-dīn. Allāhumma'ghfir lī wa li-wālidayya wa li-mashā'ikhī wa li'l-muslimīna ajmaʿīn, wa's-salāmu ʿala'l-mursalīn, wa'l-ḥamdu lillāhi rabbi'l-ʿālamīn.

O Allah, send blessings and peace upon our master Muhammad, and upon his family, companions, and followers, until the Day of Judgment. O Allah, forgive me, my parents, my teachers, and all Muslims, and send peace upon the messengers. All praise is for Allah, the Lord of the Worlds.

Recited while walking, or jogging, between the two markers

رَبِّ اغْفِرۡ وَارْحَمۡ وَ تَجَاوَزۡ عَمَّا تَعْلَمُ إِنَّكَ تَعْلَمُ مَا لَا نَعْلَمُ إِنَّكَ أَنْتَ الْآعَزُّ الْأَكْرَمُ وَاهْدِنِي لِلَّتِي هِيَ أَقْوَمُ اَللّٰهُمَّ اجْعَلۡهُ حَجًّا مُبْرُورًا وَ سَعۡيًا مَّشْكُورًا وَ ذَنْبًا مَّغْفُورًا . اَللّٰهُمَّ اغْفِرْ لِي وَلِوَالِدَىَّ وَلِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَالْمُؤْمِنَاتِ وَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ وَالْمُسْلِمَاتِ يَا مُجِيبَ الدَّعُوَاتِ رَبَّنَآ اٰتِنَا فِي الدُّنْيَا حَسَنَةً وَّ فِي الْاٰخِرَةِ حَسَنَةً وَّقِنَا عَذَابَ النَّارِ

Rabbi'ghfir wa'rḥam wa tajāwaz ʿammā taʿlam, innaka taʿlamu mā lā naʿlam, innaka anta'l-aʿazzu'l-akram, wa'hdinī lilatī hiya aqwam. Allāhumma'jʿalhu ḥajjan mabrūran wa saʿyan mashkūran wa dhanban maghfūrā. Allāhumma'ghfir lī wa li-wālidayya wa li'l-mu'minīna wa'l-mu'mināt wa'l-muslimīna wa'l-muslimāt, yā mujība'd-daʿawāt. Rabbanā ātinā fi'd-dunyā ḥasanatan wa fi'l-ākhirati ḥasanatan wa qinā ʿadhāba'n-nār.

My Lord, forgive, have mercy, and pardon what You know, for indeed You know what we do not know. You are the Most Mighty, the Most Generous. Guide me to the path that is most upright. O Allah, make this Hajj accepted, the striving grateful, and the sins forgiven. O Allah, forgive me, my parents, all believing men and women, and all Muslim men and women. O Responder to supplications, our Lord, grant us good in this world and good in the Hereafter, and protect us from the punishment of the Fire.

Wājibmust do

Saʿy is performed between Safa and Marwah, starting at Safa, on foot where there is no excuse, and only after tawaf, never before it.

Umrah is completed after saʿy by cutting the hair. Facing the Qiblah, a man shaves the head starting from the right, or trims a quarter of it (shaving the whole head is preferable); a woman gathers her hair together, or the greater part of it, and trims off the length of a fingertip. A man also trims his nails, mustache, and armpit hair, and buries the cut hair.

Recited while removing the hair

Sa'y is seven shawṭs between al-Ṣafā and al-Marwah, begun at al-Ṣafā and closed at al-Marwah, each single traverse counting as one shawṭ.

Roughly 750 yards separate the two hills, with about forty steps of elevation between them; two green minarets near the market mark the stretch where harwalah is performed.

The transmitted method

One who will perform saʿy performs a final Istilām of the Black Stone before leaving, as though seeking leave to proceed, then exits towards the gate of Ṣafā (formerly the gate of Banū Makhzūm), left foot first, reciting the opening duʿā.
Ascend Ṣafā, face the Kaʿbah, raise the hands to shoulder height with palms towards the sky, and recite the takbīr, taḥlīl, and the two supplications that follow it, then a personal duʿā, lingering there at length, it being a place where duʿā is accepted.
Descend towards al-Marwah walking calmly. Between the two green minarets (one by the wall of Masjid al-Ḥarām, the other opposite the house of al-ʿAbbās), a man performs harwalah, faster than an ordinary walk but short of a full run; a woman performs no harwalah at any point.
At al-Marwah, repeat what was done at al-Ṣafā. One traverse constitutes one shawṭ; seven shawṭs, beginning at al-Ṣafā and ending at al-Marwah, constitute one complete saʿy.

Recited on leaving to begin saʿy

Atop each hill: the takbīr and taḥlīl

Continuing atop each hill

Concluding atop each hill

Recited during harwalah, or the corresponding walk

Wājibmust do

Sa'y is wājib, performed only after ṭawāf, beginning at al-Ṣafā, and (absent a genuine excuse) on foot. Each of these four conditions is stated as an independent wājib in the list of the wājibāt of Ḥajj; the ordering relative to ṭawāf is strict enough that a saʿy performed first is treated as not having occurred at all.

ʿUmrah is closed by ḥalq or taqṣīr following the saʿy. A man shaves the head from the right, or trims a quarter of it, ḥalq of the whole head being preferable to taqṣīr, while a woman gathers her hair, or the greater part of it, and trims the length of a fingertip; she never shaves. A man additionally trims the nails, mustache, and armpit hair, and the cut hair is buried.

Recited while removing the hair

Terms on this page

sai halq

How to do saʿy

Finishing Umrah after saʿy

The method of saʿy

The transmitted method

Terms on this page

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