HAJJ – THE GREATER PILGRIMAGE

Hadrat ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anhuma reported that the Messenger of Allah SallAllaho Alaihi wa Aalihi wa Sallam has stated,

يا أيها الناس كتب عليكم الحج فقام الأقرع بن حابس فقال : أفي كل عام يا رسول الله؟ فقال : لو قلتها لوجبت ، ولو وجبت لم تعملوا بها ولم تستطيعوا أن تعملوا بها ، الحج مرة فمن زاد فهو تطوع
“‘O People! Allah has made Hajj incumbent upon you.’ Hadrat Aqra’ ibn Habis stood up and inquired, ‘O Messenger of Allah! Is it incumbent each year?’ The Messenger of Allah said, ‘If I say ‘yes’ then it would be made obligatory and incumbent upon you each year, and if it was to be made incumbent each year you would not be able to fulfill this religious duty. Thus, Hajj is only once in the lifetime and those who exceed this (do more than once) then the (extra) is nafl (optional).’” [Mishkat, Kitab al-Manasik, Page 221]

From this we understand that the Holy Prophet has full power, control and authority on Shari’ah and Sacred Islamic Laws. If the Messenger of Allah desired, he could have made Hajj obligatory and incumbent each year. For a detailed treatise on this topic please read: Muniyyat al-Labib Anna al-Tashri’a biyad al-Habib (1311AH ) by Imam Ahmed Rida Khan.

Hadrat ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anhuma reported that the Messenger of Allah SallAllaho Alaihi wa Aalihi wa Sallam said,

من أراد الحج فليعجل
“He who intends to perform hajj should hasten to do so.” [Sunan Darimi, Vol. 2, Page 27]

Hadrat ‘Abdullah ibn Mas’ud Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anhu reported that the Messenger of Allah SallAllaho Alaihi wa Aalihi wa Sallam said,

تابعوا بين الحج والعمرة فإنهما ينفيان الفقر والذنوب كما ينفي ‏ ‏الكير ‏ ‏خبث الحديد ‏ ‏والذهب والفضة وليس للحجة المبرورة ثواب إلا الجنة
“Make the Hajj and the Umrah follow each other closely, (wear the Ihram for Qiran, in which the intention of Hajj and ‘Umrah is done or perform both the Hajj and ‘Umrah consecutively) for they remove poverty and sins as a furnace removes impurities from iron, gold and silver; and Hajj which is accepted, its reward is Paradise.” [Sunan Tirmidhi, Abwab al-Hajj, Vol. 1, Page 167]

Hadrat Abu Hurairah Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anhu reported that the Messenger of Allah SallAllaho Alaihi wa Aalihi wa Sallam said,

من خرج حاجا أو معتمرا أو غازيا ثم مات في طريقه كتب الله له أجر الغازي والحاج والمعتمر
“Anyone who went out (of his house) with the intention of performing Hajj, ‘Umrah or fighting in the Path of Allah, and then passed away as he was on his way, then Allah the Most Exalted shall forever write for him the reward of a Haji, one who performs ‘Umrah and a mujahid.” [Mishkaat, Kitab al-Manasik, Page 223]

Hadrat ibn ‘Abbas Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anhuma reported that the Messenger of Allah SallAllaho Alaihi wa Aalihi wa Sallam has stated,

أن العمرة في رمضان تعدل حجة
“Performing ‘Umrah in the month of Ramadan equals (in reward) a Hajj.” [Baihaqi, Bab al-Umrah fi Ramadan, Vol. 4, Page 565]

Hadrat Abu Razin al-‘Uqayli Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anhu came to the Messenger of Allah SallAllaho Alaihi wa Aalihi wa Sallam and asked,

يا رسول الله إن أبي شيخ كبير لا يستطيع الحج والعمرة ولا الظعن قال : حج عن أبيك واعتمر
“My father is very old, he cannot perform Hajj and Umrah himself; nor can he ride on any conveyance. He said, “Perform Hajj and Umrah on behalf of your father.” [Sunan Abi Dawood, Baab al-Rajul Yahujju 'an Ghayrih, Vol. 1, Page 252]

Hadrat ibn ‘Abbas Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anhuma reported that: A man came to the Holy Prophet SallAllaho Alaihi wa Aalihi wa Sallam and said,

إن أختي نذرت أن تحج وأنها ماتت . فقال النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم : لو كان عليها دين أكنت قاضيه؟ قال: نعم، قال : فاقض دين الله فهو أحق بالقضاء
“My sister vowed to perform the Hajj, but she died (before fulfilling it).” The Holy Prophet said, “Would you not have paid her debts if she had any?” The man said, “Yes.” So, the Holy Prophet said, “So pay Allah's Rights, as He is more entitled that His rights be fulfilled.” [Sahih Bukhari, Kitab an-Nudhur, Vol. 2, Page 991]

Hadrat ibn ‘Abbas Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anhuma reported that the Messenger of Allah SallAllaho Alaihi wa Aalihi wa Sallam said,

لا تسافرن امرأة إلا ومعها محرم
“Never should any woman travel (even if it be for Hajj) without her mahram (to which she cannot marry i.e. marrying to him is Haram) [Sahih Muslim, Baab Safar al-Mar'ah Ma'a Mahram, Vol. 1, Page 434]

Hadrat ‘Ali Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anhu reported that the Messenger of Allah SallAllaho Alaihi wa Aalihi wa Sallam said,

‏من ملك ‏ ‏زادا ‏ ‏وراحلة تبلغه إلى بيت الله ولم يحج فلا عليه أن يموت يهوديا أو نصرانيا وذلك أن الله يقول في كتابه: ‏‏ولله على الناس حج ‏ ‏البيت ‏ ‏من استطاع إليه سبيلا
“If anyone possesses enough provision and an animal to mount on (or any other conveyance) to take him to the House of Allah and (despite this) does not perform the pilgrimage, there is no difference whether he dies as a Jew or a Christian. This is because Allah the Most Exalted has stated, ‘Pilgrimage to the House is a duty men owe to Allah, those who can afford the journey’.” [Sunan Tirmidhi, Baab Ma Ja'a minat Taghleedh, Vol. 1, Page 167]

IMPORTANT NOTES:

1. To perform Hajj to “show off” to others or pretence or to perform Hajj from wealth which is Haram (such that it was gained from Haram means) then it is Haram to go to perform Hajj. [al-Durr al-Mukhtar, Radd al-Muhtar, Bahar-e-Shari’at Vol. 6 Page 719]

2. If Makkah al-Mukarramah is situated at a distance of three days or more (normal walking distance which equals to approximately 57 ½ miles or 92 kilometres) from the place of residence of a woman who intends to perform Hajj then she must, (irrespective of being young or old,) accompany her husband or a “Mahram” (those relatives to whom it is Haram for the woman to marry; whether this prohitibiton is because of a blood-relation such as the son, brother, father or because of a foster relation or the in-laws, such as the father-in-law, or the son of his husband from his previous wife) [Bahar-e-Shari’at]

3. The husband or the “mahram” with whom the woman can go to perform Hajj has to be sane, mature and not a fasiq (transgressor). One cannot perform Hajj with an insane, immature or a fasiq. [‘Alamgiri, al-Durr al-Mukhtar, Bahar-e-Shari’at]

4. It is haram for a woman to go to perform Hajj without her husband or any “mahram”. If she does so, then she has accomplished the religious duty. However, a sin shall be written on every step she takes (to and fro). [Fatawa-e-Razawiyyah, Vol. 4, Page 691]

5. Some women go to perform Hajj with her spiritual guide (Peer) or a very old man (who are ghayr mahram for them). This is also unlawful and Haraam.

6. If there is no husband or “mahram” to accompany the woman, then it is not wajib for the woman to perform nikah (in order for a valid person such as her husband to accompany her to go to perform Hajj).[Bahar-e-Shari’at]

7. If one has an amount of money sufficient for him/her to perform Hajj, but not enough to bring gifts and souvenirs for friends and relatives on return, then to perform Hajj is still incumbent (obligatory) upon him/her. Not to perform Hajj because of the insufficient amount of money to bring gifts and toys is Haram.[Bahar-e-Shari’at]

8. The table below shows the rulings of each aspect of Hajj for a Mutammati’; which is Fard (obligatory), Wajib (necessary), Sunnah, or Nafl (optional):

9. The 5 days of Hajj (in brief):

10. A woman who is in her menstrual cycle (haiz) cannot perform Tawaf-e-Ziyarat (Tawaf-e-Ifada) on the 10th of Dhul Hijjah. If she cannot perform this Tawaf on this date due to her menstrual cycle, then if she becomes ‘clean’ after this date until the sunset on the 12th of Dhul Hijjah, it is obligatory on her to perform this tawaf. If even after these dates, the woman has not become ‘clean’, but has become clean after these dates, then it is obligatory for her to perform this Tawaf. 

a. If a woman who is in her periods (menstrual cycle) can take tablets to terminate the menstrual cycle, then she can do so. However, doing this shall cause harm to one’s health. Therefore, it is advisable not to do it.[Fatawa-e-Markazi Dar-ul-Ifta – 11th Year – 2006 - Page 35]

b. If a female can change her return date back to her country, in order for her to become ‘clean’ and thereafter perform this Fard Tawaf, then she should do so. Otherwise, if she returned back to her place of residence, not having performed this Fard Tawaf, then her Hajj is incomplete. She shall have to retrun in the “Months of Hajj” which are Shawwal, Dhul Qa’dah, first 10 days of Dhul Hijjah; and then perform the Fard Tawaf (Tawaf-e-Ziyarat). She shall also have to sacrifice an animal in the haram boundaries, as atonement for reutnring to her destination without having performed this obligatory Tawaf. [Fatawa-e-Faqih-e-Millat – Vol. 1 Page 349]

11. Those who have been blessed with performing Hajj and visiting the August Presence of the Holy ProphetSallAllaho Alaihi wa Aalihi wa Sallam should (on return to their places) draw people closer towards religion; by giving them gifts which helps them to do so. Such gifts include giving books of the Ahl al-sunnah wa al-Jama’ah, Islamic lectures, Islamic CDs and so on. Unfortunately, however, most Hajis bring with them radios for their friends and relatives by which they, most of the time, listen to music; gaining sins upon sins upon sins, not only in their Book of Deeds but also in the Book of Deeds of the one who initially gave it to them. This same ruling applies to those people who bring gold rings and/or chains or any other jewellery item for men to wear. This is because it is unlawful (Haram) for males to wear any kind of jewellery (whether it comes from the two Holy Sanctuaries or any other place) made out of any metal whatsoever, except for one silver ring which has to have one stone, and which does not weight more than 4.23 grams.

Allah Most High states:

وتعاونوا على البر والتقوى ولا تعاونوا على الاثم والعدوان
“and help one another in (matters of) virtue and piety and do not mutually cooperatw in what is sinful and wicked…” [Surah al-Ma’idah, Verse 2]

  
12. A person who performed Hajj with pure Halal money (which was gained from Halal means), had a sincere intention (to perform Hajj solely for seeking the pleasure of Allah and His Beloved Messenger), did not fight, quarrel or argue in it, protected himself from all disobedincies and sins, and thereafter passed away (after having performed Hajj), but did not have the time to fulfil all of the Rights of Allah (Huququllah) or the Rights of His slaves (Huququl Ibaad), then in the situation of his/her Hajj being accepted, there is a high hope that Allah Ta’ala forgives all of His rights and through His mercy He shall forgive the rights of His slaves. There is also hope that on the Day of Resurrection Allah shall please all those whose right was upon the shoulders of this person, and protect this slave of His from contention as regards to the rights being unfulfilled. [A’jab al-Imdad fi mukaffirati Huquq al-‘Ibad – Imam Ahmed Raza Khan Rehmatullahi ‘Alayh – Fatawa-e-Razawiyyah – Vol. 24, Pages  459-476]

13. If a person stayed alive after having performed Hajj, and then as much as his/her capability, tried to fulfil the rights of Allah and the rights of His slaves; such as paying the Zakat which he/she did not pay for years that preceded; or performed the Qaza of prayers that were missed; or the fasts that had not been kept; or fulfilled the rights of those who owned that right by repaying the owner of the right or his/her next of kin, asked for forgiveness from the person to whom he/she had caused problems or had troubled; those who passed away before their rights were fulfilled, then he/she gave charity on behalf of them ; if anything remained unfulfilled from the rights of Allah and His slaves, then he did a wasiyyah (leave by will) near the time of death that the rights be fulfilled by taking that share from his/her own wealth and then giving it to the owner of the right. Conclusively, he/she tried their best to fulfil all the rights that were left unaccomplished, then there is even a greater hope for the forgiveness of such people. [A’jab al-Imdad]

14. Yes however, if one was neglectful in fulfilling these rights after having performed Hajj, and hence, he/she did not fulfill these rights then all these sins shall start to be written in his/her Book of Deeds.  This is because prior to performing Hajj, the rights of Allah and His slaves still remained on his/her responsibility to fulfill, but they delayed in fulfilling these rights and on top of this, they neglected these rights even after performing Hajj. Thus, the Hajj performed will not be sufficient to eliminate these rights that have remained on his/her responsibility. This is because, yes, Hajj does remove the sins of not performing salaah and keeping fasts in their prescribed times. However, Hajj deos not eliminate the obligation of performing the qaza of the prayers that have been missed; or keeping fasts that have been missed. 

15. A sign of a person’s Hajj being accepted is that the Haji becomes more ‘religious’ after Hajj than was before. [A’jab al-Imdad]

16. Nowadays, many people have become heedless of fulfilling the rights of Allah and His slaves for many years; such as they have not performed the Qaza for their missed prayers; or not kept the fasts that they had broken or not kept; or not payed the Zakat for their previous years. This is why we see them killing one another; seizing each others property; stealing other peoples wealth; causing problems and giving distress to others. it is great misunderstanding for such people to think that after having performed Hajj all of their sins have been eradicated. If the Rights of Allah and the Rights of His slaves have been left unfulfilled, even after having performed Hajj, then they have to be accomplished as soon as possible.

We ask Almighty Allah that He gives us the tawfiq and guidance to fulfil His rights and those of His slaves... Aameen!!

--
Extracted From
Anwaar al-Hadith, Chapter 7, Pages 263 to 274
by Hadrat Allama Mufti Jalal al-Din Qadiri al-AmjadiEnglish Translation: Mawlana Kalim al-Qadiri [Bolton - U.K.]