Zamzam

Chief of the Quraysh and custodian of Zamzam. Born at Yathrib as Shayba, he redug the lost well, ransomed his son Abdullah with a hundred camels after a vow of sacrifice, faced Abraha before the Year of the Elephant, and raised his orphaned grandson Muhammad.

Umrah is the lesser pilgrimage to Mecca, performable year-round unlike Hajj. It consists of ihram, tawaf, sa'i and the cutting of hair. The schools of law differ on whether it is obligatory once in a lifetime or strongly recommended.

Zamzam is the sacred well within the precincts of Masjid al-Haram in Mecca, believed to have been miraculously revealed by God to Hagar for her son Ishmael. Its water has been provided to pilgrims for millennia and holds profound spiritual significance in Islam.