Dought & clear - Guidelines and rulings on Hajj al-badal (proxy Hajj)

In our country there are some Hajj companies that offer Hajj al-badal
(proxy Hajj, i.e., Hajj on behalf of another), i.e., we give them
money – to cover the expenses ofHajj – and some seekers of knowledge
will do Hajj on our behalf. Is that permissible?
Praise be to Allah.
Many people have a careless attitude concerning Hajj al-badal. There
are guidelines, conditions and rulings on Hajj al-badal. We will
mention whatever we can of them, in the hope that Allah will cause
people to benefit thereby.
1.
Hajj al-badal is not valid in the case of theobligatory Hajj on behalf
of one who is able to perform Hajj himself.
Ibn Qudaamah (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
It is not permissible for one who is able to perform Hajj himself to
appoint someone else to perform the obligatory Hajj on his behalf,
according to scholarly consensus. Ibn al-Mundhir said: The scholars
are unanimously agreed that if a person is required to perform the
obligatory Hajj and he is able to perform Hajj, it is not acceptable
for someone else to perform Hajj on his behalf. End quote.
Al-Mughni, 3/185
2.
Hajj al-badal may be performed on behalf of a sick person who has no
hope of recovery, or one who is physically incapable, or one who has
passed away, but not on behalf of one who is poor or one who is unable
to do it because of political or security circumstances.
An-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
The majority (of scholars) are of the view that it is permissible to
appoint a proxy for Hajj on behalf of the deceased and one who is
incapable and has no hope of recovery. Al-Qaadi 'Iyaad gave the
reasonwhy the Maaliki madhhab differed from the majority concerning
this matter, which was that they thought that the hadeeth about
fasting on behalf of the deceased and doing Hajj on behalf ofthe
deceased was not sound. But this is not correct and the hadeeth is
sound. It is sufficient evidence of its soundness to note that Muslim
quoted it in hisSaheeh.
Sharh an-Nawawi 'ala Muslim, 8/27
The hadeeth to which an-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) referred
and noted that some of theMaalikis regarded it asunsound is as
follows:
It was narrated from 'Abdullah ibn Buraydah that his father (may Allah
be pleased with him) said: Whilst I was sitting with the Messenger of
Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), a woman came to
himand said: I gave a slave woman in charity to my mother, then she
died. He said:"Your reward is assured, and she (the slave woman) has
been returned to you as an inheritance." She said: O Messenger of
Allah, she owed onemonth's fasting, should I fast on her behalf? He
said: "Fast on her behalf." She said: She never went for Hajj, should
I perform Hajj on her behalf? He said: "Perform Hajj on her behalf."
Narrated by Muslim, 1149
Al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercyon him) said:
Those who regard it as permissible to appoint a proxy for Hajj were
unanimously agreed that it is not acceptable for the obligatory Hajj
except when it is done on behalf of one who has passed away or who
isparalysed. That does not include the one who is sick, because there
is the hope that he may recover; or theone who is insane, because
there is the hope that he may come back to his senses; or the one who
is imprisoned, because there is the hope that he may be released; or
for the one who is poor, because there is the hope that he may become
independent of means.
End quote fromFath al-Baari, 4/70
The scholars of the Standing Committee were asked:
Is it permissible for a Muslim who has performed the obligatory Hajj
to perform Hajj on behalfof one of his relatives in China, because he
isnot able to travel in order to perform the obligatory Hajj?
They replied:
It is permissible for the Muslim who has performed the obligatory Hajj
on his own behalf to performHajj on behalf of someone else, if the
other person is not able to perform Hajj himself because he is
elderly, or sick with anillness from which there is no hope of
recovery, or because he has died, because of the saheeh hadeeths that
speak ofthat. But if the person on whose behalf he wants to perform
Hajj is not able to perform Hajj because of some temporary reason
which it is hoped will pass, such as illness from which there is the
hope that he will recover, or because of the political situation, or
if the route is not safe and so on, then it is not acceptable to
perform Hajj on his behalf. End quote.
Shaykh 'Abd al-'Azeez ibn Baaz, Shaykh 'Abd ar-Razzaaq 'Afeefi, Shaykh
'Abdullah ibn Qa'ood
Fataawa al-Lajnah ad-Daa'imah, 11/51
3.
Proxy Hajj (Hajj al-badal) cannot be done on behalf of one who is
financially incapable (and cannot afford to go for Hajj), because the
obligation of Hajj is waived for the one who is poor. Rather proxy
Hajj is done for the one who is physically incapable.
The scholars of the Standing Committee were asked:
Is it permissible for someone to do 'Umrahor Hajj on behalf of
hisrelative who lives far away from Makkah and does not have the means
of travelling there, even though he is (physically) able to do tawaaf
(circumambulation of the Ka'bah)?
They replied:
Your relative is not obliged to perform Hajj so long as he is not able
to afford it. It is not valid to performeither Hajj or 'umrah on his
behalf, because he would be physicallyable to do both if he was
present himself inthe holy places. It is only valid to do them by
proxy on behalf of one who has died or one who is physically unable to
do that himself. End quote.
Shaykh 'Abd al-'Azeez ibn Baaz, Shaykh 'Abd ar-Razzaaq 'Afeefi, Shaykh
'Abdullah ibn Ghadyaan
Fataawa al-Lajnah ad-Daa'imah, 11/52
4.
It is not permissible for anyone to perform Hajj on behalf of another
unless he has already performed Hajj for himself. If he does do that,
then his Hajj counts for him and not for the other person.
The scholars of the Standing Committee said:
It is not permissible for a person to perform Hajj on behalfof another
person before he performs Hajj for himself. The basic principle
concerning that is the report narrated by Ibn'Abbaas (may Allah be
pleased with him), according to which the Prophet (blessingsand peace
of Allah be upon him) heard a man saying, Labbayk 'an Shubrumah (Here
Iam (O Allah, for Hajj) on behalf of Shubrumah). He said: "Have you
performed Hajj on your own behalf?" He said: No. He said: "Perform
Hajj on your own behalf, then on behalf of Shubrumah." End quote.
Shaykh 'Abd al-'Azeez ibn Baaz, Shaykh 'Abdullah ibn Ghadyaan
Fataawa al-Lajnah ad-Daa'imah, 11/50
5.
It is permissible for a woman to perform Hajj on behalf of a man, and
for a man to perform Hajj on behalfof a woman.
The scholars of the Standing Committee said:
Performing Hajj on behalf of another person is permissible, if the
proxy has already performed Hajj for himself. The same applies to
paying a woman to perform Hajj on behalfof your mother, because it is
permissible for a woman to perform Hajj on behalf of a woman or a man.
There is proven evidence from the Messenger of Allah (blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him) concerning that. End quote.
Fataawa al-Lajnah ad-Daa'imah, 11/52
6.
It is not permissible for anyone to perform Hajj on behalf of two or
more people in one Hajj, but it is permissible to do 'Umrah for
himself – or on behalf of someone else – and todo Hajj on behalf of a
different person.
The scholars of the Standing Committee said:
It is permissible to perform Hajj on behalfof one who has passedaway
and on behalf of one who is still alive but is unable to perform Hajj.
But it is not permissible for a person to perform Hajj once and make
it on behalf of two people. Hajj can only be done on behalf of one
person, and the same applies to 'Umrah. But if someone does Hajj on
behalf of one person and he does 'Umrah on behalf of another person in
the same year, that is acceptable so long as the pilgrim has already
performed Hajj and 'Umrah on hisown behalf. End quote.
Shaykh 'Abd al-'Azeez ibn Baaz, Shaykh 'Abd ar-Razzaaq 'Afeefi, Shaykh
'Abdullah ibn Ghadyaan, Shaykh 'Abdullah ibn Qa'ood
Fataawa al-Lajnah ad-Daa'imah, 11/58
7.
It is not permissible for anyone to have theaim of earning money by
performing Hajj on behalf of another; rather his aim should be Hajj
and reaching those holy places, and doing an act of kindness towards
his brother by performingHajj on his behalf.
Shaykh Muhammad ibn Saalih al-'Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
Performing Hajj on behalf of another person is something that is
mentioned in the Sunnah. A woman asked the Messenger (blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him): The command from Allah to His slaves to
perform Hajj has comewhen my father is an old man and cannot sit
firmly in the saddle; can I perform Hajj on his behalf? He said:
"Yes." In the caseof performing Hajj on behalf of another in return
for payment, if one's aim is the payment, Shaykh al-Islam [Ibn
Taymiyah] (may Allah have mercy on him) said: The one who performs
Hajj in orderearn a living will have no share in the Hereafter; as for
the one who takes payment in order to perform Hajj, there is nothing
wrong with that. But the one who takes payment in order to perform
Hajj on behalf of another should have the intention of using the money
he takes to help him to perform Hajj, and he should also have the
intention of meeting his companion's need,because the one who has
asked him to do it on his behalf is in need and is happy to find
someone who cando it in his stead. So he should have the intention of
doing an act of kindness towards him in performing Hajj on hisbehalf.
Then his intention will be good. End quote.
Liqaa'aat al-Baab al-Maftooh, 89, question 6
And he (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
It is unfortunate that many of those who perform Hajj on behalfof
others only do so in order to earn money. But this is haraam for them,
because it is notpermissible to do acts of worship with the intention
of worldly gain. Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the
new):
"Whosoever desires the life of the world and its glitter; to themWe
shall pay in full (the wages of) their deeds therein, and they will
have no diminution therein.
They are those for whom there is nothing in the Hereafter but Fire;
andvain are the deeds they did therein. And of no effect is that which
they used to do"
[Hood 11:15-16]
"But of mankind there are some who say: 'Our Lord! Give us (Your
Bounties) in thisworld!' and for such there will be no portion in the
Hereafter"
[al-Baqarah 2:200].
Allah does not accept any act of worship that is not done for Hissake,
and the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)
forbade earning money in places of worship. He (blessingsand peace of
Allah be upon him) said: "If you see anyone buying or selling in the
mosque, then say: May Allah not make your trade profitable."If this
has to do with the one who makes place of worship into a place for
earning wealth, and he is to beprayed against, askingthat Allah not
make his trade profitable, then how about those who make the act of
worship itself a meansof worldly gain, as if Hajj were a commodity or
a profession like that of a builder? You find theone who is asked to
perform proxy Hajj asking for more and bargaining, saying: This is too
little; this isnot enough; give me more, for So and so gave me such
and such, or So and so offered me such and such, and other such words
that turn acts ofworship into a profession. Hence the Hanbali fuqaha'
(may Allah have mercy on them) clearly stated that hiring a man to
perform Hajj on behalfof someone else is notvalid. Shaykh al-Islam Ibn
Taymiyah said: The one who performsHajj in order to earn money has no
share inthe Hereafter. But if hetakes on the task of performing it on
behalf of another for areligious purpose, such as if he intends to
benefit his brother by performing Hajj on his behalf, or if he intends
to do more acts of worship, du'aa'and dhikr in the holy places, then
there is nothing wrong with that and it is a sound intention.
Those who take on thetask of performing Hajj on behalf of others
should make their intention purely for the sake of Allah, may He be
exalted, and their intention should be to fulfil their desire to
worship around the House of Allah, remembering Him and calling upon
Him, as well as fulfilling their brothers' needs by performing Hajj on
their behalf. They should keep away from worldly intentions of earning
money. If they have nointention in their hearts other than earning
money, then in that case it is not permissible to take onthe task of
performingHajj on behalf of others. If a person takes on the task of
performing Hajj on behalf of another withthe proper intention, then
the money that he receives is all his, unless it was stipulated that
he should return anything that is left over. End quote.
Ad-Diya' al-Laami' minal-Khutab al-Jawaami', 2/477, 478
8.
If a Muslim dies without having performed the obligatory Hajj, and
hemet all the conditions of it being obligatory, then it is obligatory
toperform Hajj on his behalf from the wealth that he left behind,
whether he left instructions to that effect or not.
The scholars of the Standing Committee said:
If a Muslim dies without having performed the obligatory Hajj, and
hemet all the conditions of it being obligatory, then it is obligatory
toperform Hajj on his behalf from the wealth that he left behind,
whether he left instructions to that effect or not. If someone who has
already performed Hajj for himself performs Hajj on his behalf (i.e.,
on behalf of the deceased), then his Hajj on his behalf is valid and
is acceptable in fulfilment of the obligation. End quote.
Shaykh 'Abd al-'Azeez ibn Baaz, Shaykh 'Abd ar-Razzaaq 'Afeefi, Shaykh
'Abdullah ibn Ghadyaan, Shaykh 'Abdullah ibn Munayyi'
Fataawa al-Lajnah ad-Daa'imah, 11/100
9.
Will the one who performs Hajj on behalf of someone else have the
reward of Hajj in full and will he go back (free of sin) as on the day
his mother bore him?
The scholars of the Standing Committee said:
With regard to evaluating the Hajj that a man performs on behalf of
someone else, and whether it is like the Hajj he does for himself, or
is lesseror greater in virtue, that is known only to Allah, may He be
glorified. End quote.
Shaykh 'Abd al-'Azeez ibn Baaz, Shaykh 'Abd ar-Razzaaq 'Afeefi, Shaykh
'Abdullah ibn Ghadyaan, Shaykh 'Abdullah ibn Munayyi'
Fataawa al-Lajnah ad-Daa'imah, 11/100
And they said:
If a person performs Hajj or 'Umrah on behalf of another, with or
without payment, the reward for Hajj or 'Umrah will go to the one on
whose behalf he did it,but there is the hope that he will also have a
great reward, commensurate with his sincerity and his desire to do
good. For everyone who reachesal-Masjid al-Haraam and does a great
deal of different types of supererogatory acts ofworship there, there
is the hope that he will attain a great dealof good if his actions are
sincerely for the sake of Allah. End quote.
Fataawa al-Lajn ah ad-Daa'imah, 11/77, 78
Imam Ibn Hazm (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
It was narrated from Dawood that he said: Isaid to Sa'eed ibn
al-Musayyab: O Abu Muhammad, for whichof them is the reward, for the
one who performs Hajj or the one on whose behalf it is performed?
Sa'eed said: Allah's bountry, may He be exalted, encompasses both of
them.
Ibn Hazm said: Sa'eed (may Allah have mercyon him) spoke the truth.
Al-Muhalla, 7/61
Whatever the proxy does of good deeds other than the rituals of Hajj,
such as praying in the Haram, reading Qur'an, and soon, the reward for
thatwill go to him and not to the one who appointed him as his proxy.
Shaykh Muhammad ibn Saalih al-'Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
The reward for actionsconnected to Hajj will go in its entirety to the
one who appointed him as his proxy; with regard to the extra reward
for prayers and tawaaf that he does voluntarily outside of the rituals
of Hajj, and reading Qur'an, (that reward) will go to the one who
performs Hajj, not the one who appointed him as his proxy. End quote.
Ad-Diya' al-Laami' minal-Khutab al-Jawaami', 2/476
10.
The best is for a son toperform Hajj on behalfof his father, and for a
relative to perform Hajj on behalf of his relative, but if he hiresa
stranger to do it, that is permissible.
Shaykh 'Abd al-'Azeez ibn Baaz (may Allah have mercy on him) was asked:
My mother died when I was young, and she hired a trustworthy person to
perform Hajj on her behalf. My father has also died, and I heard from
someof my relatives that heperformed Hajj.
Is it permissible to hire someone to perform Hajj on behalfof my
mother, or mustI perform Hajj on her behalf myself? Also, should I
perform Hajj on behalf of my father when I heard that he had performed
Hajj?
He replied:
If you perform Hajj on their behalf yourself, and strive hard to
complete Hajj in the manner prescribed in Islam, that is preferable.
But if you hire a person who is religiously committed and trustworthy
to perform Hajj on their behalf, there is nothing wrong with that.
The best is for you to perform Hajj and 'Umrah on their behalf. You
may also hire someone to perform Hajj and 'Umrah on their behalf. This
is part of your honouring them and treating them kindly. May Allah
accept (good deeds) from us and from you. End quote.
Fataawa ash-Shaykh Ibn Baaz, 16/408
11.
It is not stipulated that the one who performs Hajj on a person's
behalf shouldknow his name; ratherit is sufficient for him to have the
intention to perform Hajj on his behalf.
The scholars of the Standing Committee were asked:
I have approximately four relatives who have died among my paternal
uncles and aunts and grandparents, both men and women. But Ido not
know the names of some of them. I want to send people to perform
Hajjon behalf of each of them at my own expense.
They replied:
If the matter is as described, with regard to those whosenames you
know, bothmen and women, there is no problem. With regard to those
whose names you do not know, it is sufficient for you to intend it to
be on behalf of both men and women among your paternal and maternal
uncles and aunts, according their ages and descriptions,And it is
sufficient to have the intention to do that, even if you do not know
their names.End quote.
Fataawa al-Lajnah ad-Daa'imah, 11/172
12.
It is not permissible for the one who has been appointed to perform
Hajj on behalfof someone else to appoint someone else to do it except
with the consent of the one who originally appointed him.
Shaykh Muhammad ibn Saalih al-'Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
It is not permissible for the one who has taken on the task of
performing Hajj on behalf of another to appoint someone else to do
that, whether fora small or large payment, except with the consent of
the one who gave task to him. End quote.
Ad-Diyaa' al-Laami' min al-Khutab al-Jawaami', 2/478
13.
Is it permissible to appoint a proxy for a supererogatory Hajj (Hajj naafil)?
There is a difference of scholarly opinion concerning this matter.
Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) favoured the view
that it is not permissible to appoint a proxy except for the
obligatory Hajj.
The Shaykh (may Allahhave mercy on him) said:
If a man has already performed the obligatory Hajj and wants to
appoint someone to perform anaafil Hajj or 'Umrah on his behalf, there
is a difference of opinionconcerning that among the scholars. Some of
them said that it is permissible and some of them saidthat it is not
allowed. What is more likely to be correct in my view is that it is
not allowed, and that it is not permissible for anyone to appoint
someone to perform Hajj or 'Umrah on his behalf if that is naafil,
because the basic principle concerning acts of worship is that they
should be done by the individual himself. Just as no oneshould appoint
another person to fast on his behalf – even though if he died and
still owed obligatory fasts, his heir should fast them on his behalf –
the same applies to Hajj; Hajj is an act of worship that a person
should do himself and it is not an act of charity for the benefit of
someone else. If an actof worship is a physical action that the person
should do himself, it is not valid for someone else to do it on his
behalf except in cases mentioned in the Sunnah, and there is no report
in the Sunnah about anyone performing a naafil Hajj on behalf of
someone else. This is one of the two opinions narrated from Ahmad,
i.e., that it is not valid for a person to appoint someone else to
perform a naafil Hajj or 'umrah on his behalf, whether he is able to
do that or not.
By expressing this opinion, we want to encourage those who are well of
and physically able to perform Hajj themselves, because some people
let years go by without going to Makkah, relying on the idea of
sending someone to perform Hajj on their behalf every year, so they
miss out on doing Hajjon the grounds that they are appointing others
to perform Hajjon their behalf. End quote.
14.
One should seek out good, sincere and trustworthy people who have
knowledge of the rituals of Hajj toperform proxy Hajj (Hajj al-badal).
The scholars of the Standing Committee said:
The one who wants to appoint someone to perform Hajj on his behalf
should seek outone who is religiously committed and trustworthy, so
that he may be confident that he will do what isrequired. End quote.
Fataawa al-Lajnah ad-Daa'imah, 11/53
And Allah knows best.