My brother passed away at the age of about 21 and did not perform Hajj, but he did perform 'Umrah. Is the Hajj of Islam obligatory upon him, and is it required for the father or one of the relatives to perform Hajj on his behalf?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : The questioner, your brother Abu Mus'ab from Aden, Yemen, says: "O honorable Shaykh, my brother passed away at the age of about twenty-one. He did not perform Hajj, but he did perform 'Umrah. Is the Hajj of Islam obligatory upon him, and is it required for the father or one of the relatives to perform Hajj on his behalf, or is it not necessary? Please inform us, and may Allah reward you with good."
The Shaykh : The Hajj of Islam is not obligatory except upon one who has the means to reach it, meaning the House.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : So, if one does not have wealth, he does not have the means to reach it. Therefore, this brother who died at the age of twenty-one, if he did not have wealth, then Hajj is not obligatory upon him, because it is not possible for him to reach the House on foot. And if he did not have wealth, then there is no Hajj upon him. So, be reassured and do not worry about the fact that he did not perform Hajj, because there is no Hajj upon him.
And the like of that is the poor man.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Is Zakah obligatory upon him? The answer is that Zakah is not obligatory upon him. So, if he died without having paid Zakah, we do not worry about that. Whoever does not have wealth, Zakah is not obligatory upon him, and he meets his Lord without being sinful. And whoever is unable to reach the House due to financial inability, Hajj is not obligatory upon him, and he meets his Lord without being sinful. However, if one of you wishes to volunteer and perform Hajj on behalf of this deceased person, there is no blame on him. Because a woman came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and said: "O Messenger of Allah, my mother vowed to perform Hajj, but she did not perform it until she died. Should I perform Hajj on her behalf?" He said: Yes.
The questioner : May Allah bless you.
The Shaykh : The Hajj of Islam is not obligatory except upon one who has the means to reach it, meaning the House.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : So, if one does not have wealth, he does not have the means to reach it. Therefore, this brother who died at the age of twenty-one, if he did not have wealth, then Hajj is not obligatory upon him, because it is not possible for him to reach the House on foot. And if he did not have wealth, then there is no Hajj upon him. So, be reassured and do not worry about the fact that he did not perform Hajj, because there is no Hajj upon him.
And the like of that is the poor man.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Is Zakah obligatory upon him? The answer is that Zakah is not obligatory upon him. So, if he died without having paid Zakah, we do not worry about that. Whoever does not have wealth, Zakah is not obligatory upon him, and he meets his Lord without being sinful. And whoever is unable to reach the House due to financial inability, Hajj is not obligatory upon him, and he meets his Lord without being sinful. However, if one of you wishes to volunteer and perform Hajj on behalf of this deceased person, there is no blame on him. Because a woman came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and said: "O Messenger of Allah, my mother vowed to perform Hajj, but she did not perform it until she died. Should I perform Hajj on her behalf?" He said:
Yes
نعمThe questioner : May Allah bless you.