Do the five daily prayers and Hajj expiate minor and major sins, or only minor sins?

The answer, briefly, is that we remind you of his saying (peace and blessings be upon him), and then we look at it—not to make things difficult—we remind you of his saying (peace be upon him). And you, O Arabs, help us understand this hadith: Is its indication general or specific? . Tell me: Are they minor sins, or are they major and minor sins? What do you understand from this hadith? Does any of its filth remain? The early Arabs said: No. So if we interpret the hadith to mean the expiation of minor sins, does any of its filth remain? They said: No, meaning from the minor sins, whereas the greater filth remains attached to the body. Is this the meaning of the hadith?
I do not think a non-Arab like me would understand this jurisprudence and this understanding; therefore, the hadiths that expiate sins—whether they relate to prayer or to Hajj—should be understood as expiating all sins, whether major or minor. Similarly, this hadith is exactly like the one we are approaching as we prepare for Hajj—if Allah wills—his saying (peace be upon him): . Do you think that when a child is born, he is born burdened with sins and major sins? Of course not. So the expiating acts include major and minor sins. But what must be noted is that this removes the problem or doubt that may occur to people. So every person who prays, no matter how they act—as they say in the Levant, "the ninety-nine"—the mere fact that he prays means his sins are forgiven, even if they are like the foam of the sea. I want to draw attention to the fact that this prayer, which is capable of expiating major sins, let alone minor ones, is not our prayer. It is enough for us that half of our prayer is recorded for us; because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) said in the authentic hadith: . That is, this is the half at which the Messenger (peace be upon him) stopped. This means that the best prayer people perform is that half of it is recorded for them. So what about the one for whom not even a tenth is recorded? Is the one for whom half of his prayer is recorded the one whose prayer expiates major sins? This is one point.
Then when he (peace and blessings be upon him) said in the hadith about Hajj: ; is it our Hajj in this time, where most of them do not perform Hajj—in the practical, outward, apparent sense—they do not perform Hajj as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) did? Rather, you see them trying to escape with the most trivial reasons by standing up from many of the obligations. Today we were discussing an individual we think is among the righteous Muslims—if Allah wills—though there is some weakness in what we know of him. He wanted to take a fatwa from me that it is permissible for him to delegate the stoning on the second day of the days of Tashreeq, meaning to hasten before the prescribed hastening, delegating someone to stone on his behalf. And there are many, and very many, like this, trying to lighten the rituals of Hajj until Hajj becomes a purely formal matter. So I say: Does this virtue——deserve the majority of pilgrims who do not perform Hajj in its apparent form? As for the conditions of this expiating Hajj, which the Messenger (peace be upon him) specified in the previous hadith: ; do these qualities accompany today's pilgrims such that it can be said, "By Allah, so-and-so's Hajj is blessed for him, and all his sins are forgiven"? No! Barely can it be said to many people that their Hajj is accepted. And this other group of pilgrims, we have heard some cursing the religion! And cursing the Lord of the Worlds!! While they claim they went out as pilgrims in the path of Allah!! To people like these, we say in the tongue of that old Arab poet:
"And I did not perform Hajj, but the camels performed Hajj."
Therefore, if we keep these facts in mind, and their summary is that we cannot say every person who prays has performed a complete prayer, and every pilgrim has performed a complete Hajj, if that is the case, then obtaining the prayer that takes its performer out of all sins, and obtaining—also—a Hajj that takes its performer out of all sins; this is, as it was said long ago, "rarer than red sulfur!"
So these hadiths remain among the hadiths—as is known from encouragement and warning—urging the one who prays to try to perfect his prayer and to master it, so that he may attain that forgiveness. As for being certain that he has obtained forgiveness; this is the farthest thing from being attainable. Similarly, a person tries to perfect his Hajj to the House of Allah the Sacred, and avoids open sinfulness, lewdness, harmful speech, and argumentation, as He (Glorified and Exalted is He) said: . So the one who tries to perfect his Hajj in this manner, as mentioned in the verse, may return as his mother bore him, clean from all sins.
In summary: It is hoped that all sins are expiated from the one who prays and perfects it, and from the one who performs a Hajj and perfects it.

The questioner: Well, the exception in the hadith: . Does the hadith not apply to the rest of the hadiths?!

The Shaykh: This is a condition similar to the condition in , then came ; so Allah bestows upon His servants what He wills. This was before He said: , or .