If a person had the ability to perform Hajj but did not, is it permissible for his son to perform Hajj on his behalf, and is it obligatory for him?
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The questioner : Regarding the father who had the ability to perform Hajj but did not do so during his lifetime, his son, after his death, naturally has the ability to perform Hajj. They say that when he performs Hajj...
The Shaykh : ...on behalf of his father?
The questioner : What... regarding the son?
The Shaykh : This is the situation you described, namely that the father was able to perform Hajj but did not. In this case, no one, not even his son, can perform Hajj on his behalf. Yes, this is different from the case where he was excused, either by the excuse of poverty or illness, meaning that Hajj was not obligatory upon him because Allah says in the clear text of the Noble Qur'an:[Ali 'Imran 3:97], [Ali 'Imran 3:97]. So, if the father was able to make the journey, as you asked, then his son’s performance of Hajj will not benefit him or relieve him of hunger in any way. However, if he was not able, then the son’s role comes in. In this case, Allah, Mighty and Majestic, has placed the son in the position of his father. Naturally, the son’s ability is considered here, because if he is not able, his ruling is the same as the father’s. Do you see?
The questioner : The obligation falls off the son if he is not able.
Another questioner: Is the son not obligated to perform Hajj on behalf of his father?
The Shaykh : If he is able, or if he is not able?
The questioner : In this case, if the father was not able, does the son not perform Hajj on behalf of his father?
The Shaykh : No, on the contrary, I want to clarify to you now the exact opposite, but according to the detail I concluded with. I said that if the son is not able to perform Hajj, he cannot perform it for himself, let alone for his deceased father. Do you see how?
The questioner : Correct.
The Shaykh : But if he is able to perform Hajj, first he must perform it for himself.
The questioner : In the first year?
The Shaykh : In the first year. Then, if his ability continues, it is an individual obligation for him to perform Hajj on behalf of his father or his mother, if neither of them was able to perform Hajj. Do you see how? Why? We have a hadith in the two Sahihs, in al-Bukhari and Muslim, that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), in the Farewell Pilgrimage, after stoning the Jamarat al-Aqabah, a woman from the Khath'am tribe, from the Banu Khath'am, stopped him on his way. The one riding behind the Messenger (peace be upon him) on the camel was al-Fadl ibn Abbas, the brother of the famous Abdullah ibn Abbas. This woman said—and the narrator of the hadith says she was beautiful, and al-Fadl was handsome—she said: "O Messenger of Allah, my father is an old man who cannot stay on a mount, and the obligation of Allah, Hajj, has come upon him. Should I perform Hajj on his behalf?" He said: What is the meaning of her question? It is not hidden from any of you that the rulings were not all revealed at once, but gradually and with patience. And Hajj was among the last of the five pillars to be made obligatory, until it was said that Hajj was made obligatory in the last year of the life of the Messenger (peace be upon him). Therefore, his pilgrimage was delayed until the last year of his life.
When the obligation of Hajj was revealed, this father of the Khath'am woman was an old man who could not stay on a mount, meaning he was excused. After the obligation of his Hajj was revealed, he was an old, frail man. Therefore, she asked: "Should I perform Hajj on his behalf?" He said: In another hadith, he (peace be upon him) said: Sunan al-Bayhaqi 4:26 She said: "Yes." He said: Sunan Abi Dawud 3310Sahih (Al-Albani). From here, Imam al-Shafi'i (may Allah have mercy on him), regarding the command of the Messenger (peace be upon him) for the Khath'am woman to perform Hajj on behalf of her father, said: Imam al-Shafi'i said: "The wise Lawgiver considered the son's ability as an extension of the father's ability", because he was the cause of his existence. Do you see? And this meaning is confirmed by his (peace be upon him) saying: .
This hadith was reported regarding material matters, meaning money. But the ruling on spiritual matters is exactly the same in meaning, as we mentioned above: ongoing charity, or knowledge that benefits people, or a righteous son who prays for him.
Therefore, if there is a father for whom Hajj was not obligatory, but Hajj was obligatory for the son, the son performs Hajj for himself first, then he must perform another Hajj on behalf of his father, and a third Hajj on behalf of his mother, if she was like his father, meaning they were not able to perform Hajj.
The questioner : Shaykh, what happens in... for example, in this case?
The Shaykh : No.
The questioner : The father is included in the second Hajj.
Another questioner: He also performs Hajj on behalf of his father and his mother, for example.
The Shaykh : No, no, it is not permissible except for one person.
The questioner : Okay, if he cannot...
The Shaykh : Each one, each one, each Hajj is for one person. It is not permissible for one person to perform one Hajj on behalf of two people.
The questioner : With whom does he start?
The Shaykh : ...on behalf of his father?
The questioner : What... regarding the son?
The Shaykh : This is the situation you described, namely that the father was able to perform Hajj but did not. In this case, no one, not even his son, can perform Hajj on his behalf. Yes, this is different from the case where he was excused, either by the excuse of poverty or illness, meaning that Hajj was not obligatory upon him because Allah says in the clear text of the Noble Qur'an:
And [due] to Allah from the people is a pilgrimage to the House - for whoever is able to find thereto a way
ولله على الناس حج البيت من استطاع إليه سبيلًاfor whoever is able to find thereto a way
من استطاع إليه سبيلًاThe questioner : The obligation falls off the son if he is not able.
Another questioner: Is the son not obligated to perform Hajj on behalf of his father?
The Shaykh : If he is able, or if he is not able?
The questioner : In this case, if the father was not able, does the son not perform Hajj on behalf of his father?
The Shaykh : No, on the contrary, I want to clarify to you now the exact opposite, but according to the detail I concluded with. I said that if the son is not able to perform Hajj, he cannot perform it for himself, let alone for his deceased father. Do you see how?
The questioner : Correct.
The Shaykh : But if he is able to perform Hajj, first he must perform it for himself.
The questioner : In the first year?
The Shaykh : In the first year. Then, if his ability continues, it is an individual obligation for him to perform Hajj on behalf of his father or his mother, if neither of them was able to perform Hajj. Do you see how? Why? We have a hadith in the two Sahihs, in al-Bukhari and Muslim, that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), in the Farewell Pilgrimage, after stoning the Jamarat al-Aqabah, a woman from the Khath'am tribe, from the Banu Khath'am, stopped him on his way. The one riding behind the Messenger (peace be upon him) on the camel was al-Fadl ibn Abbas, the brother of the famous Abdullah ibn Abbas. This woman said—and the narrator of the hadith says she was beautiful, and al-Fadl was handsome—she said: "O Messenger of Allah, my father is an old man who cannot stay on a mount, and the obligation of Allah, Hajj, has come upon him. Should I perform Hajj on his behalf?" He said:
Perform Hajj on his behalf.
حجي عنهWhen the obligation of Hajj was revealed, this father of the Khath'am woman was an old man who could not stay on a mount, meaning he was excused. After the obligation of his Hajj was revealed, he was an old, frail man. Therefore, she asked: "Should I perform Hajj on his behalf?" He said:
Yes, perform Hajj on his behalf.
نعم حجي عنهWhat do you think, if your father had a debt, would you pay it off for him?
أرأيت إن كان على أبيك دينٌ أفكنت تقضينه عنه؟So the debt due to Allah is the one which most deserves to be paid.
فدين الله أحق أن يُقضىThe purest earnings are the earnings of a man from the work of his hand, and your children are part of your earnings.
أطيب الكسب كسب الرجل من عمل يده وإن أولادكم من كسبكمThis hadith was reported regarding material matters, meaning money. But the ruling on spiritual matters is exactly the same in meaning, as we mentioned above: ongoing charity, or knowledge that benefits people, or a righteous son who prays for him.
Therefore, if there is a father for whom Hajj was not obligatory, but Hajj was obligatory for the son, the son performs Hajj for himself first, then he must perform another Hajj on behalf of his father, and a third Hajj on behalf of his mother, if she was like his father, meaning they were not able to perform Hajj.
The questioner : Shaykh, what happens in... for example, in this case?
The Shaykh : No.
The questioner : The father is included in the second Hajj.
Another questioner: He also performs Hajj on behalf of his father and his mother, for example.
The Shaykh : No, no, it is not permissible except for one person.
The questioner : Okay, if he cannot...
The Shaykh : Each one, each one, each Hajj is for one person. It is not permissible for one person to perform one Hajj on behalf of two people.
The questioner : With whom does he start?