منیٰ — مزدلفہ

مزدلفہ is an open plain located between Arafah and منیٰ, approximately 8-9 kilometers from each. After the sun sets on the Day of Arafah, حجاج depart for مزدلفہ. Due to the massive number of people moving simultaneously, the journey — which should take 20-30 minutes — often takes 2-6 hours. Upon arrival, the immediate obligation is to pray Maghrib and Isha combined and shortened (Maghrib three rak'ahs, Isha two rak'ahs), with one adhan and two iqamahs. Delaying this نماز until reaching مزدلفہ is the sunnah, even if it means praying Maghrib well after its normal time has passed.

At مزدلفہ, حجاج collect the small pebbles (approximately chickpea-sized) they will use for the stoning of the جمرات over the following days. The minimum needed is 49 pebbles (7 for the 10th, 21 each for the 11th and 12th), though many scholars recommend collecting 70 to have extras. The overnight stay at مزدلفہ is considered wajib (واجب) by most scholars, though the exemption for elderly, ill, and weak حجاج (and their companions) to depart after midnight is well-established. For others, the sunnah is to spend the night, pray Fajr at its earliest time, then stand at al-Mash'ar al-Haram making دعا until the sky brightens, before departing for منیٰ.

مزدلفہ is specifically mentioned in قرآن مجید: 'But when you depart from عرفات, remember Allah at al-Mash'ar al-Haram. And remember Him, as He has guided you, for indeed, you were before that among those astray' (2:198). Al-Mash'ar al-Haram (the Sacred Monument) is identified with a specific area within مزدلفہ, though نبی کریم clarified that all of مزدلفہ is a valid stopping place. The قرآنic instruction to 'remember Allah' at مزدلفہ underscores that this is a site of worship, not merely a transit point between Arafah and منیٰ.

مزدلفہ offers a unique spiritual experience within the حج journey. After the emotional intensity of Arafah, the حاجی arrives at a barren plain with no facilities, no comfort, and no shelter. Sleeping on the bare ground under the stars alongside millions of others creates a profound sense of radical simplicity and equality. There are no walls, no rooms, no beds — just the earth and the sky. Many حجاج describe this night as one of the most memorable of their entire حج, not despite the discomfort but because of it. The simplicity strips away the last remnants of worldly attachment and prepares the heart for the intense ritual activity of the 10th of Dhul Hijjah.