Where is a hajj pilgrim required to wear the iḥrām?
The place where a pilgrim going for hajj is required to wear the iḥrām is known as the miqāt. In today’s day it is permissible for a pilgrim to wear iḥrām from any port entering Hijaz (modern day Saudi Arabia) for hajj. This is because the specific places designated by the Prophet for wearing the iḥrām were places that naturally fell on routes taken by people at that time when embarking upon hajj. The purpose of fixing the miqāt was because they were the most convenient points for the pilgrims advancing to Makkah from various regions. (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, 2: 143; al-Kāfī 4: 321) Based on this, it can be concluded that the specified miqāts are means for the entry and not ends in themselves, and any entrance point can be used by the pilgrim to wear the iḥrām. In the light of this reasoning, Jeddah or any other point of entry to Saudi Arabia is deemed appropriate place for wearing the iḥrām.