Collecting the Jamarat pebbles
Iltiqat hasa al-jimar
Overview
It is a recommended, practical preparation to gather the small pebbles for the stoning — each about the size of a chickpea — ahead of time, commonly picked up around Muzdalifah on the morning of the 10th.
Qur'an
No ayah of the Qur'an is cited for this act — the evidence for it is from the Sunnah. See the Hadith below.
Hadith
- •On the morning of 'Aqabah, while on his mount, the Prophet (ﷺ) said to me, 'Pick up (some pebbles) for me.' So I picked up for him small pebbles the size of flicking-pebbles (hasa al-khadhf). When I placed them in his hand he said, 'With the like of these (throw), and beware of exaggeration (ghuluww) in religion, for those before you were destroyed only by exaggeration in religion.'References · Sunan an-Nasa'i 3057 · Sunan Ibn Majah 3029Grade · Sunan an-Nasa'i 3057: Sahih (al-Albani; the Ibn 'Abbas (RA) 'pick up pebbles / beware of ghuluww' hadith), Sunan Ibn Majah 3029: Sahih (al-Albani)
- •...he commanded the people to be calm as they moved off from Muzdalifah; and when he entered Mina, descending Muhassir, he said, 'You should pick up pebbles the like of flicking-pebbles with which the Jamrah is to be stoned,' while gesturing with his hand as one flicks a pebble.References · Sahih Muslim 1282 · Musnad Ahmad 1821Grade · Sahih Muslim 1282: Sahih (Sahih Muslim; corroborates the content), Musnad Ahmad 1821: Isnaduhu sahih (chain authentic — the Dar al-Salam editors; the al-Fadl ibn 'Abbas (RA) report)
Applies to
All Hajj types (Tamattu', Qiran, Ifrad) equally. Pebble totals are the same for all: 7 for the Day of Nahr, then 21 per day for the Days of Tashreeq (49 total with early departure/nafr awwal, or 70 with the later departure/nafr thani).
If missed
No penalty and no effect on the Hajj. A pilgrim who does not gather pebbles at Muzdalifah simply collects them later at or on the way to Mina; the stoning is equally valid. Only seven pebbles are needed for the Day of Nahr (the 10th); the pebbles for the Days of Tashreeq can be gathered afterwards at Mina.
Timing & place
Any time before the stoning. Commonly done on the morning of the 10th of Dhul-Hijjah at Muzdalifah (before or during departure), or on the way to / after arriving at Mina. Only seven pebbles are needed for the 10th; the rest may be gathered at Mina on the Days of Tashreeq.
No fixed location required. Traditionally gathered at Muzdalifah, but equally valid from Mina or anywhere in the Haram. It is disliked (makruh, not invalidating) to take them from around the jamarat basins, from najis places/toilets, or from inside the Sacred Mosque, or to break up a large stone.
Common mistakes
- •Believing pebbles must come from Muzdalifah, and spending excessive time at Muzdalifah gathering all 49-70 pebbles when only 7 are needed for the 10th.
- •Washing the pebbles thinking it is required (it is not; there is no evidence for it).
- •Collecting oversized stones instead of small flicking-pebbles (against the explicit hadith and the warning against ghuluww).
- •Picking up used pebbles from around the jamarat basins.
- •Taking pebbles from najis places or breaking large rocks.
Across the madhabs
Note: The four schools agree there is no obligation to collect the pebbles from a particular place; the stoning is valid whatever the pebble's source. Minor divergence is only on which places it is disliked (makruh) to take pebbles from.; Detail: Hanafi, Shafi'i and Hanbali sources record a mild karahah (dislike) for taking pebbles from certain spots — e.g. from around the jamarat basins (pebbles that may already have been used in an invalid throw), from najis places/toilets, from the Sacred Mosque, or breaking up a large rock — but this does not affect the validity of the ramy. Collecting at Muzdalifah versus at Mina is a matter of preference, not a school-level dispute.
Notes
The pebble should be roughly the size of a chickpea or date-stone (hasa al-khadhf) — larger than a lentil, small enough to flick, neither a large stone nor grit. Its purpose is dhikr and submission, not literally harming anything, which is why the Prophet (ﷺ) coupled the instruction with a warning against ghuluww. This item is the practical preparation for the separate wajib act of Ramy al-Jamarat (stoning); collecting is a means, the stoning is the ritual.