Tawaf al-Nisa in the Imamiyya School and Tawaf al-Wida in the Sunni School: Divergences and Convergences

Among the most important actions at the end of the Imamiyya Hadjdj pilgrimage rites is Tawaf-al-Nisa. However, jurists of important Sunni schools believe that another Tawaf called Tawaf-al-Wida is obligatory. Defining the relation and balance between these two types of Tawaf and reviewing their properties from various perspectives are an issue deserving study. Despite its significant functions in forming a better image of the religious beliefs of each Islamic sect and responding to questions regarding the duality or oneness of these types of Tawaf, this issue has been mostly neglected by Muslim scholars and researchers in the field of jurisprudence. The current study aims to highlight the points of divergence and convergence between these two types of Tawaf. Clarifying the differences such as the appellation, the onset of action, those under obligation of these two types of Tawaf, obligation in al-Umrah al Mufradah and the effects of these two types of Tawaf, which remove the assumption that they are one and the same despite apparent similarities in the way of performance, conditions, obligations, universality and type of necessity, is the result of the present study.