Zamzam Water – Food, Blessing & Cure of disease

Meaning of the term 'Zamzam' and origin of the name

The Arabic term Az-Zamzam الزَّمْزَم] literally means the sound of something from afar that has an unclear noise/roar. Zamzama [زَمْزَمَ] refers to collecting and returning the parts of what has been spread from something.

Zamzam is the name of a famous Well in al-Masjid al-Ḥarām [the Sacred Mosque in Mecca], which is thirty-eight cubits [20 meters] away from the Kaʿba. The name was derived from Hājar’s call out “zam, zam” – “stop, stop” as the water of the Well of Ismāʿīl kept flowing, and she was in fear that it would run out. What she did was, she carved out the well because she was afraid that the water would go all over the place and nothing would be left. The prophet ﷺ was reported to have said; “had she not done that, then the entire earth would have been touched by Zamzam”

Narrated ibn ʿAbbās, The Prophet ﷺ said, "May Allah bestow His Mercy on the mother of Ismāʿīl! Had she not hastened [to fill her water-skin with water from the Zamzam Well], Zamzam would have been a stream flowing on the surface of the earth."

“‏ يَرْحَمُ اللَّهُ أُمَّ إِسْمَاعِيلَ، لَوْلاَ أَنَّهَا عَجِلَتْ لَكَانَ زَمْزَمُ عَيْنًا مَعِينًا ‏”

[Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī]

The virtues and blessings of Zamzam water

The water of Zamzam [ماء زمزم] is water of great virtue which first sprang forth when em>Jibrīl [peace be upon him] struck the earth.

Left in the desert by Prophet Ibrāhīm, Hājar and her infant son Ismāʿīl were in need of water in the stifling heat. Hājar ran between the hills of Aṣ-Ṣafā e al-Marwah [ٱلصَّفَا وَٱلْمَرْوَة‎] seven times in search of water, carrying her baby Ismāʿīl, looking for anyone to help. She was in an abandoned place, there was no one there. All of a sudden, she heard a sound. Allāh had sent Jibrīl, who struck the earth with his heels, and water started coming from the earth in huge loads. She called out and saw Angel Jibrīl where the Zamzam Well now stands.

The water of Zamzam is phenomenal. The Prophet ﷺ said: “The best water on the face of the earth is the water of Zamzam; it is a kind of food and a healing from sickness.” [Ṣaḥīḥ Al-jāmi'a].

The water is regarded as nourishment, embodying the essence of food. It is not merely a physical nourishment, but a spiritual one as well. It is a symbol of divine mercy and an integral part of the Muslim faith.

Many Ṣaḥīḥ aḥādīth have been narrated concerning the virtues of Zamzam; The Messenger of Allāh ﷺ said, “The water of Zamzam is a cure for whatever (ailment) it is taken for.”

قَالَ رَسُولُ اللٌّهِ ﷺ : مَاءُ زَمْزَمَ شِفَاءٌ لِمَا شُرِبَ لَهُ

[Sahih al-Bukhārī]

According to the ḥadīth of ʾAbū Ḏarr [may Allāh be pleased with him], the Prophet ﷺ said concerning the water of Zamzam, “It is a blessing, and it is food that satisfies.” [Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim]

Secondo l’ḥadīth trasmesso da ʾAbū Ḏarr [che Allah sia compiaciuto di lui], il Profeta ﷺ disse riguardo all’acqua di Zamzam: “È una benedizione, ed è un cibo che sazia.”
[Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim]

Imam ibn al-Qayyim al-Jawziyyah, may Allāh have mercy on him, said, "Zamzam water is the best and noblest of all waters, the highest in status, the dearest to people, the most precious and valuable to them.
The heart of the Prophet ﷺ was washed with Zamzam water. It was narrated from Anas ibn Mālik [Allāh be pleased with him] that Jibrīl came to the Messenger of Allāh when he was playing with the other boys. He took hold of him and washed his heart in a vessel of gold that was filled with Zamzam.
[[Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim]]

The report about the chest of the Prophet ﷺ being washed with the water of Zamzam is proven in the ḥadīth of ʾAbū Ḏarr [may Allāh be pleased with him)], who reported that the Prophet ﷺ said: “My roof was opened when I was in Mecca, and Jibrīl [peace be upon him] came down and opened my chest, then he washed it with Zamzam water. Then he brought a gold basin full of wisdom and faith, poured it into my chest, and closed it up again. Then he took me by the hand and ascended with me into the first heaven”.
[Reported by al-Bukhārī]

The Prophet ﷺ drank the water of Zamzam, did wuḍūʾ with it, and poured it on his head. He used to carry Zamzam water in small vessels and large containers in order to pour it on the sick and give it to them to drink.
[Silsilat al-aḥādīth al-ṣaḥīḥah]

In Sunan ibn Mājah [al-Manasik], it was reported from Jābir ibn ʿAbd Allāh that the Prophet ﷺ said: “The water of Zamzam is for whatever it is drunk for.”

Shaykh ibn al-ʿUthaymīn[may Allāh preserve him] in reference to the above ḥadīth, said that you should have the intention of what you want to gain by drinking this water. You may drink Zamzam with the intention of fulfilling some need such as healing from sickness or being freed from poverty and distress,

One of the Companions of the prophet ﷺ said: we used to call it al-Shabba’ah [satisfying] and it helped us to take care of our families [i.e., it was filling and helped them to do without food, it was also sufficient to nourish children].
[Silsilat al-aḥādīth al-ṣaḥīḥah li’l-Albānī]

It was reported in Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim that the Prophet ﷺ said to ʾAbū Ḏarr al-Ghifārīy, who had stayed near the Ka'bah and its coverings for forty days and nights with no food or drink other than Zamzam, "How long have you been here?" ʾAbū Ḏarr said, "I have been here for thirty days and nights." The Prophet ﷺ said, "Who has been feeding you?" He said, "I have had nothing but Zamzam water, and I have gotten so fat that I have folds of fat on my stomach. I do not feel any of the tiredness or weakness of hunger and I have not become thin." The Prophet ﷺ, said, "Verily, it is blessed, it is food that nourishes.".
[Narrato dall’Imam Muslim]

Zamzam water is not sweet; it is somewhat salty, and the believer just drinks this somewhat salty water out of faith, believing that there is bàraka [blessing] in it.
[al-Sharh al-Mumti’]

Recommendations for drinking Zamzam water

Drinking Zamzam water is not obligatory, rather it is mustahabb. Shaykh al-Islām said in Majmu‘al-fatāwā that it is mustahabb [desirable] to drink Zamzam water and to drink one’s fill of it, at all times, and to make whatever Islamically prescribed duʿāʾs one wants when drinking it.

Many of the companions of the prophet said that it is mustahabb to come to Zamzam and drink from its water for the one who wants to, and to drink one's fill of it, for whatever benefits one wants in this world and the Hereafter.

The etiquette recommended if a person wants to drink it for forgiveness or healing from sickness etc., is that he should face the Qibla and mentions the name of Allāh [Bi-ismi ‘llāh], then say, “O Allāh, I heard that Your Messenger ﷺ said: ‘The water of Zamzam is for whatever it is drunk for.’ O Allāh, I am drinking it so that You will forgive me so forgive me, O Allāh,” or: “I am drinking it to seek healing from sickness, so heal me, O Allāh.” And so on.

It is recommended to drink Zamzam in three draughts, sit whilst drinking, pause to take a breath as in the case of any other drink. And when one is done, they should praise Allāh.

Shaykh Ibin Bāz said in Majmu’ al-Fatāwā: It is mustahabb [recommended as a ritual] for the pilgrim doing Hajj or ‘umrah to drink from the water of Zamzam, if he is able to do so. However, if you do ‘umrah when you are fasting, you can wait and drink from it after you break your fast.

Extraordinary Scientific Properties of Zamzam Water

Zamzam Well [بِئْرُ زَمْزَم], the well of Ismāʿīl is phenomenal scientifically. It’s a very small Well with a dimension of only eight feet by three in diameter. From an official research that was done on Zamzam, it pumped 8000 liters per second. That means 691,000,000 liters a day, and it never dried up. That's just from the strike of Jibrīl, who struck the earth with his heel that dug Zamzam. And this is narrated in hadith musalsalat, Al-aḥādīth that have awṣāf - أوصاف [signals or descriptions in them]. That's our connection to Jibrīl [peace be upon him] until today.

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