Date : 21-09-2015

Question :

When is it permissible for the pilgrim to start stoning the Jamaraat on the Day of An-Nahr (Day of Eid) and the Days of Tashreeq?


The Answer :

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of The Worlds; and may His blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Mohammad and upon all his family and companions.



Stoning Jamraat Al-Aqabah on the Day of An-Nahr starts after midnight as determined by the Shafite and the Hanbalite jurists based on the following Hadith narrated by Abdullah (the slave of Asma') During the night of Jam', Asma' got down at Al-Muzdalifa and stood up for (offering) the prayer and offered the prayer for some time and then asked: "O my son! Has the moon set?" I replied in the negative and she again prayed for another period and then asked:  "Has the moon set?" I replied: "Yes." So she said that we should set out (for Mina), and we departed and went on till she threw pebbles at the Jamra (Jamrat-Al-`Aqaba) and then she returned to her dwelling place and offered the morning prayer. I asked her: "O you! I think we have come (to Mina) early in the night." She replied: "O my son! Allah's Messenger (PBUH) gave permission to the women to do so." {Bukhari}.



The time for stoning the Jamaraat on the Days of Tashreeq starts after Zawaal (i.e. the beginning of the time of Thuhr when the sun passes the meridian) of the second day of Eid (12th of Thul-Hijjah) according to the opinion of the majority of the Muslim scholars based on the Hadith narrated by Ibn Abbas who said: "The Messenger of Allah stoned the Jimar when the sun had passed the zenith." {At-Tirmizi}.



Wabra narrated:" I asked Ibn `Umar, "When should I do the Rami of the Jimar?" He replied, "When your leader does that." I asked him again the same question. He replied, "We used to wait till the sun declined and then we would do the Rami (i.e. on the 11th and 12th of Dhul-Hijja)." {Bukhari}.



Al-Khateeb Ash-Shirbini (May Allah have mercy on him) said:" Stoning the Jamaraat on the Days of Tashreeq starts after Zawaal of each day and ends-optional time-at sunset of each day as well. In terms of permissibility, the stoning ends by the sunset of the last Day of Tashreeq." {Moghni Al-Mohtajj}.



However, if the pilgrim wanted to avoid harm and hardship due to crowdedness and the great number of pilgrims, or was bound by a certain time of departure on the Day of An-Nafr (departure from Mina), then he is permitted to stone the Jamaraat before Zawaal, based on the exemption related by Ibn Abbas from the companions, from Tawoos and Atta` (came after the companions) and Abi Hanifah, based on the following Hadith: "Abdullah Ibn ‘Amro bin al-’As (RAA) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) stood in Mina during the Farewell Hajj, while the people asked him questions and he answered them. A man asked, ‘O Prophet of Allah! I was not alert and I shaved my head before slaughtering my animal?’ The Prophet (PBUH) said: “There is no harm, go and slaughter your animal." Another man asked, ‘l slaughtered the animal before I threw the pebbles? Prophet (PBUH) said: “There is no harm, go and throw your pebbles." The narrator said: "Whoever asked the Prophet (PBUH) about anything done before or after the other he told him "No harm done. Go and do (whatever you missed)." {Agreed upon}.



It was narrated on the authority of Abi Hanifah that it is better for the pilgrim to stone the Jamaraat on the second and third days of Tashreeq after Zawaal, but if he throws before Zawaal, then it is permissible." {Bdai` Assana`, vol.2/pp.137}.



However, the pilgrim who takes advantage of this exemption should start stoning after dawn, as stipulated by those who gave it.



Moreover, the accredited opinions of the scholars contain no exemption that allows a pilgrim to start stoning the Jamaraat of the second Day of Tashreeq after the midnight of the first Day of Tashreeq.



It is imperative that a Muslim takes the safe side as far as worship is concerned, and avoids following rare views because leaving an obligation (Wajiib) entails slaughtering a sheep (Expiation) and dividing its meat among the poor people of the Haram area.



It is stated: "A pilgrim who fails to stone the Jamaraat on any of the Days of Tashreeq is obliged to slaughter a sheep……and if he doesn`t stone them at all over the three Days of Tashreeq, then he is obliged to slaughter one sheep because the three days are considered as one day according to the famous opinion of the scholars." { Al-Mohazzab, vol.8/pp.236)}. And Allah knows best.