Bismillah al-Rahmaan al-Raheem

It is the duty to Allah incumbent
on those who can, to make the pilgrimage to the House. But with respect to
those disbelieve, Allah has no need of all mankind.
The
Holy Qur''an, The Family of Emran (3): 97

Bismillah al-Rahmaan al-Raheem

Acting in accordance with this
risalah "Manaasik al-Hajj" is qualifying and discharges the duty by
the will of Allah Almighty.

Sadiq
al-Shirazi

Translators'' Foreword

This book is the English translation of the
Manaasik al-Hajj, by the eminent Marje'' Ayatollah al-Udhma Sayyid
Sadiq al-Shirazi. The Arabic document is the 2^nd printing, 1422
H / 2002 CE. The order of the material in this English version has been
kept the same as the Arabic original.

The book consists of main parts; the Hajj rulings,
and the Hajj procedure. For the English translation, a third part
glossary has been added for the benefit.

PART 1 deals with the Hajj rulings in
general and also addresses such topics as the eligibility of an individual
for the Hajj, and defines "the ability" one is required to attain in order
for him/her to be considered eligible. In addition this part also
addresses the issues and Hajj rulings of Hajj by Proxy, Hajj by Grant,
etc.

PART 2 of this work presents detailed
procedures for performing the Hajj in a step-by-step fashion,
starting from the rite needed and the site at which it must be performed,
up to the final one. To begin with, a brief overview of the entire
process is outlined such that the reader would obtain an overall idea of
the process involved. Specific issues concerning women are also
dealt with where applicable.

PART 3 is a glossary of the technical
terminologies and Arabic words used in this text, which has been compiled
by the translator. This has been included, at the end of the book,
to help the reader easily find the meaning and explanation of the Arabic
terms and words used in this text.

Finally a number of points should be taken into
account when reading this work:

When performing an act of worship is referred to
as a mostahab precaution, it means that the pilgrim has the option
as whether or not to do that act, although one is encouraged to do
so. On the other hand, if performing an act is based on obligatory
precaution, then it is obligatory for the pilgrim to act accordingly while
having the option to refer to the fatwa of another marje
(authority) in respect of this act.

All technical terminologies and Arabic words are
given lower case and italic, whereas names of places are given in
title case and non-italic. A glossary of all such terms is presented
in part 3 of the book.

To avoid ambiguity, and for the sake of clarity,
the reader should note that word Haram refers to the precinct or area that
encompasses the holy city of Makkah. This word should be
distinguished from the word haraam, which means prohibited.
Not that the same word is also used in the term Masgid al-Haraam''
referring to holy mosque in Makkah that encompasses the holy Kabah.

References to masculine pronouns such as he
and his are applicable to both sexes where appropriate. This is to
avoid the tedious repetition of he/she, his/her, etc.
Similarly the word Pilgrim refers to both male and female pilgrims.

All the terms and expressions within [ ] are the
translator''s, as well as all the explanatory footnotes.

Z. Olyabek

Dhil-Qadah 1423

January 2003