What to do before, during, and after Eid ul-Fitrby Mufti Muhammad Taqi Usmani (edited by Bilal Ali)
Shawwal is the first of the three months named Ashhur al-Hajj (the months of hajj). Although the major acts of hajj are normally performed on the first ten days of Dhu ‘l-Hijjah, yet the whole period starting from the first of Shawwal up to the 10th of Dhu ‘l-Hijjah is held to be the period of hajj because some acts of hajj can be performed any time during this period. For example, the tawaf al-qudum followed by the sa’i of hajj, althoughimpermissible before Shawwal can be performed any day after Shawwal begins. Similarly, an ‘umrah performed before Shawwal cannot be treated as an ‘umrah of tamattu‘ while an ‘umrah performed in Shawwal can be affiliated with the hajj, making it a hajj of tamattu‘.Moreover, the ihram of hajj is considered undesirable before Shawwal.For these reasons, amongst others, the three months that follow Ramadan have been named the “months of hajj” and the month of Shawwal has the distinction of being the first of these months.
