The Farewell Sermon

Midday in the valley

On the Day of Arafat during his Farewell Pilgrimage — 9 Dhu al-Hijjah 10 AH, converted to 6 March 632 in the Julian calendar — Muhammad left his tent at Namira after midday, rode his camel al-Qaswa to the bottom of the valley and addressed the assembled pilgrims.

In Jabir ibn Abd Allah’s account he declared the audience’s blood and property inviolable, abolished pre-Islamic blood-revenge claims and usury, addressed marital obligations, and told the listeners to hold fast to the Book of God.

Three calls to witness

Muhammad asked whether he had conveyed his message. After the audience affirmed that he had, he raised his forefinger toward the sky and pointed it toward the people, calling on God to witness — three times.

Bilal then called the prayers. Muhammad led the noon and afternoon prayers consecutively and remained standing at Arafat until sunset; the pilgrimage continued rather than ending with the speech.

The version circulating today is a composite

There is no single contemporary verbatim transcript. Later sources preserve overlapping selections, and modern “full sermon” texts often splice material from addresses reportedly given at Arafat, at Mina or elsewhere during the pilgrimage.

The strongest Jabir recension says Muhammad left his listeners the Book of God; it does not carry the expanded phrase “the Quran and my Sunnah.”

A report attributed to Umar says Quran 5:3 was revealed while Muhammad stood at Arafat on a Friday — but Sahih al-Bukhari does not say he recited it during the sermon.