About Us
|
|
|
|
Labbaik Hajj and Umrah is
brought to you by Discount Travel which caters
specifically to unique travel requests with fast,
friendly, and accommodating services. Discount Travel
has been providing travel packages for over 27 years and
has received countless awards and recognition for our
unique services. During our vast years of
experience we have specialized
Why Us We are a corporation that is
synonymous with always pushing the limits of providing
unique and remarkable services to pilgrims so in doing
so we have collaborated with a highly reputable Saudi
company to establish an exceptional experience approved
by local government regulators Together we have collaborated
on a package designed to delight all pilgrims on their
journey. We currently operate four offices for
your added convenience. Three locations in Saudi
Arabia and one in the Midwestern belt of the United
States just outside of the city limits of Chicago. Each
are equally dedicated to servicing your needs with
utmost professionalism to ensure your trip is worry
free. We have twenty-four hour turnaround
service via; toll free number, email, fax, and if you
are in the area you can come in our doors at our
stateside location in Chicago from 10 am to 6 pm
Monday-Friday and on Saturdays from 10 am to 1 pm for
your added convenience. Our goal is to ensure your pilgrimage is one of prayer, remembrance, and contemplation. Hajj
Hajj is an imperative duty
(fard) for all Muslims who have the resources. It is to
be performed during the days of Hajj, preferably once in
a lifetime. The word Hajj means, literally, repairing to
a place for the sake of visit, and in the terminology of
the Islamic Sharia, it implies repairing to Bait-Allah
(the House of Allah, one of the names of al-Ka'aba) to
observe the necessary devotions. Hajj is not a new
institution introduced by Islam in its Sharia, This
institution is as old as al-Ka'aba itself which is
called in the Holy Koran first House of Divine
Worship appointed for mankind (3:95). This verse
corroborates the Hadith (Prophetic Saying) which tell us
that al-Ka'ba was first built by Adam, the first man on
earth. History Of Hajj The whole
ceremony of Hajj is commemorative of Prophet Ibrahim and
his family's acts of devotion to Allah Almighty. This
demonstrates that Muhammad, the Holy Prophet, peace and
blessings of Allah be upon did not innovate this
institution but purged it of all evil practices and made
it an obligatory act of piety by which one can develop
God-consciousness; hence it is one of the five pillars
of faith incumbent upon each believer to do if he is
capable physically and financially. Pilgrimage is
rightly said to be the perfection of faith since it
combines in itself all the distinctive qualities of
other obligatory acts of prayer, patience, privation of
amenities of life, devotion, Zakat (alms) and
application. In fact, physical pilgrimage is a prelude
to spiritual pilgrimage to Allah when man would bid
good-bye to everything of the world and present himself
before Him as His humble servant saying: 'Here I am
before Thee, my Lord, as a slave of Thine.' There are three forms of
Hajj: Tamattu', Ifraad and Qiran. Tamattu': A pilgrim wears
Ihram for Umrah only during the months of Hajj, which
means when a pilgrim reaches Makkah, he/she makes Tawaf
and Sa'yi for Umrah. Then shaves or clips the hair. On
the day of Tarwiya, which is the eighth of Dhul-Hijja, a
pilgrim puts on his Ihram for Hajj only and carries out
all of its requirements. Ifraad: A pilgrim wears Ihram
for Hajj only. When he reaches Makkah, he performs Tawaf
for his arrival and Sa'yi for Hajj. He doesn't shave or
clip his hair as he doesn't dis-engage from Ihram.
Instead, he remains in Ihram till after he stones Jamrah
Al-Aqaba on the Eid day. It is permissible for him to
postpone his Sa'yi for Hajj until after his Tawaf for
Hajj. Qiran: A pilgrim wears Ihram
for both Umrah and Hajj or he wears Ihram first for
Umrah, then makes intentions for Hajj before his Tawaf
for Hajj. The obligations on one performing Ifraad are
the same as those on one performing Qiran, except that
the latter must slaughter whereas the former is not
obligated to do so. The best of the three forms is
Tamattu'. It is the form that the prophet-may the peace
and blessings of Allah be upon him encouraged his
followers to perform. Even if a pilgrim makes
intentions to perform Qiran or Ifraad he is allowed to
change his intentions to Tamattu'; he can do this even
after he has performed Tawaf and Sa'yi. When the Prophet said- may
the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him- who
performed Tawaf and Sa'yi during the year of the
Farewell Hajj with his companions, he ordered all those
who hadn't brought sacrificial animals to change their
intentions for Hajj to intentions for Umrah, cut their
hair, and disengage from Ihram till Hajj. He said, " If
I hadn't brought the sacrificial animal, I'd have done
what I've ordered you to do." Umrah
In Arabic the word 'Umrah is derived from
al-i'timar which means a visit. Here it means paying a
visit to Ka'bah, performing tawaf around it, walking
between Safa and Marwah seven times, and then shaving
one's head or cutting one's hair short. There is
consensus among scholars that it is a prescribed
worship. Ibn 'Abbas reported that the Prophet (peace be
upon him) said, "An 'Umrah in the month of Ramadan is
equal (in reward) to performing a Hajj.'' RULES FOR TAWAF OF UMRAH One should be in the state of Ihram before
starting Tawaf. There are three conditions essential for Tawaf
of Umrah and for all other kinds of Tawaf as well,
namely: To be a Muslim Niyyah (intention) To perform
Tawaf inside Masjid al-Haram Without niyyah, Tawaf is
not valid. Tawaf can be performed in Mataf or on
different floors of Masjid al-Haram or even on its roof. While performing Tawaf, one should not look
towards Kabah. One has to face Kabah only when doing
Istilam of Hajar-e-Aswad.
After completing the seven circuits of Tawaf,
if someone deliberately starts the eighth circuit, it
becomes obligatory (wajib) for him to complete the
second Tawaf by doing six more circuits. Undesirable times for prayer are not considered
undesirable for performing Tawaf. If someone has to discontinue Tawaf because of
time for prescribed prayer or because a dead body is
brought for a funeral prayer or need for fresh ablutions
arises, he can later resume Tawaf at the point where he
discontinued. Umrah has three pillars:
|
|
in hajj and umrah tours
to provide quality experiences and competitive price
points. We are among a select few of elite tour
providers who operate worldwide approved by the hajj
ministry of Saudi Arabia and in compliance with the
rules and regulations imposed by the Saudi government.
Our tours are tailored to leave you worry free as you
are traveling abroad focusing all your time at ziyarats
and prayers. 
