Permissible Footgear During Hajj  

In the name of Allah, Most Compassionate, Most Merciful,

It is stated in the Hanafi fiqh classical text Al-Hidayah:

وَلَا يَلْبَسُ قَمِيصًا وَلَا سَرَاوِيلَ وَلَا عِمَامَةً وَلَا خُفَّيْنِ إلَّا أَنْ لَا يَجِدَ نَعْلَيْنِ فَيَقْطَعُهُمَا أَسْفَلَ مِنْ الْكَعْبَيْنِ

( الهداية, كتاب الحج – باب الإحرام)

The same text is found in the Arabic Hanafi text Mukhtasar al-Quduri. In the English translation of the book, the passage is translated as:

“He should not wear a shirt, nor pants, nor a turban, nor a cap, nor a gown. Nor [should he wear] khuffs unless he cannot find shoes, in which case he should cut them below the tarsus.”

(Mukhtasar al-Quduri, Book of Hajj; http://webpages.marshall.edu/~laher1/hajj.html#2)

The tarsus is defined as “the area of articulation between the foot and the leg, comprising the seven bones of the instep: the talus, calcaneus, navicular, three cuneiform, and cuboid bones.” (The American Heritage® Stedman’s Medical Dictionary)

The above-mentioned bones are clearly visible below:

(http://www.foottalk.com/anatomy.htm)

Thus it is the area containing the talus, calcaneus, navicular, three cuneiform, and cuboid bones that mustn’t be covered by the sandal straps. Therefore, it will incorrect to wear a sandal whose straps cover the ankle or the heel. There would be no problem with a strap across the upper part of the toes or just above them.

As well, Shaykh Muhammad ibn Adam al-Kawthari has previously explained here on SunniPath that: “one may also wear slippers under the condition that the bone on the foot where the shoelace is normally placed, remains exposed. If one does not have such slippers, it will also be allowed to cut the socks to the extent of that bone and then wear them. (See: Radd al-Muhtar, 2/490 & other fiqh references)”
(http://www.SunniPath.com/resources/Questions/qa00003108.aspx )

Verily, Allah knows best.

Sikander Ziad Hashmi

Montreal, Canada