Light on the Path-194a

The questioner : The listener, Ra'fat 'Abd al-Badi', an Egyptian working in the outskirts of Ha'il, sent a message saying: I received a letter from my country stating that my wife would come to perform the obligatory Hajj. I went to Jeddah and met her at the airport, hoping that we would go to Madinah to visit the Prophet’s Mosque and greet the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). However, the person in charge of organizing the group said that visiting the Holy City of Madinah is to be done after performing the rites of Hajj. So we entered the state of ihram from Makkah, performed the tawaf, the sa'y, and the rites...

The Shaykh : From Makkah, or from Jeddah?

The questioner : He says: So we entered the state of ihram from Makkah, performed the tawaf, the sa'y, and the rites of Hajj. Is our Hajj valid, or is there something required of us regarding not entering ihram from the correct miqat? We ask for your guidance?

The Shaykh : As for the Hajj, it is valid because the person performed its pillars. As for not entering ihram from the miqat, it is a wrong and forbidden, but it does not invalidate the Hajj. It is compensated by a fidyah (ransom payment) that is slaughtered in Makkah and distributed to the poor there. If this man, when he arrived in Jeddah, or when his wife arrived in Jeddah and he also arrived in Jeddah, and they intended to go to Madinah to enter ihram from Dhul-Hulayfah, from Abi 'Ali, and that did not happen, if he had entered ihram from Jeddah, that would have been obligatory for him. But he did wrong by entering ihram from Makkah, if what was mentioned in the question is true. And if the intention was that he entered ihram from Jeddah, then he owes no blood (sacrifice) because he entered ihram from where he began. The brother who asked mentioned that his wife came from Egypt for Hajj, and the apparent meaning of his words is that she has no mahram (relative one may not marry) with her. This is forbidden for her; it is not permissible for her, based on the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) while he was addressing the people: A man stood up and said: O Messenger of Allah, my wife has gone out for Hajj, and I have been enrolled in the expedition of such-and-such. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) ordered him to leave the expedition in which he was enrolled and to go with his wife. He did not ask for details about whether the wife was safe or not, whether she was beautiful and there was a fear of fitnah (trial, discord or temptation) from her or because of her, or whether she had women with her or not. This is evidence of the generality of the ruling, and that it is not permissible for a woman to travel, neither for Hajj nor for anything else, except with a mahram. If a woman does not find a mahram, let her be content with safety, for Hajj is not obligatory for her in that case, based on the saying of Allah the Exalted: And if she does not find a mahram, she cannot reach the House because she is religiously prohibited from traveling without a mahram. In that case, she is excused for not performing Hajj, and there is no sin on her. Yes.

The questioner : May Allah bless you.