When is delegation permissible in the stoning of the pillars?

Question : Honorable Shaykh, when is delegation permissible in the stoning of the pillars?

Answer : The stoning of the pillars is one of the rites of Hajj and one of the symbols of Hajj. It is obligatory for a person to perform it himself, and it is not permissible for him to appoint another to do it on his behalf. Similarly, it is not permissible for him to appoint another to stay overnight at Muzdalifah, or to perform the circumambulation, or the walking between al-Safa and al-Marwah, or any of the other rites of Hajj. So likewise, in the stoning of the pillars, it is not permissible for him to appoint anyone. Evidence for this is that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did not grant a dispensation for the shepherds to appoint someone to stone the pillars on their behalf, nor did he grant a dispensation for the weak members of his household to appoint someone to stone the pillars on their behalf. Rather, he ordered that they be sent out at the end of the night so that they would stone the pillar before the crowd. What some people do today by being lenient regarding delegation in the stoning of the pillars is a matter to be regretted, because it is leniency in what Allah has made obligatory upon them. However, if a person is unable to attend the stoning of the pillars himself because he is advanced in age, or because he is sick, or because he is weak, or for other reasons, such as a pregnant woman, for example, then he appoints someone to stone the pillars on his behalf. In this case, it is permissible for the agent to stone the pillar for himself first, and when he has finished, he stones it for his principal. Then the second pillar is done the same way, and the third pillar is done the same way. And if he is able to stone the pillars himself by combining the three days into the last day, then it is not permissible for him to appoint an agent, given that he is able to stone them himself.