What is your opinion regarding the people's expansion in appointing proxies for voluntary Hajj?
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The questioner : May Allah forgive you: People have expanded in appointing proxies for Hajj, so what is the correct method? I hope you will clarify this clearly.
The Shaykh : May Allah bless you. The expansion of people in appointing proxies for Hajj is a matter of regret in reality, and it may be incorrect according to the Shari'ah. This is because there are two narrations from Imam Ahmad regarding the permissibility of appointing a proxy for voluntary acts: one narration states that it is not permissible for a person to appoint a proxy for a voluntary act to perform Hajj or 'Umrah on his behalf, whether he is sick or healthy.
And this narration is most worthy of being correct and strong, because in acts of worship, the person of obligation is required to perform them himself, so that he may obtain from the worship and the humility before Allah the Exalted what he obtains. You see the difference between a person who performs Hajj himself and a person who gives money for someone to perform Hajj on his behalf. The latter has no share in the worship of rectifying his heart and humbling himself before Allah Mighty and Majestic. It is as if he made a sales contract in which he appointed someone to buy for him or sell for him.
And if he is sick and wants to appoint a proxy for a voluntary act, it is said: This is not what the Sunnah brought, but the Sunnah only brought appointing a proxy for the obligatory act. The difference between the obligatory and the voluntary is that the obligatory is a binding matter for the person, so if he cannot do it himself, he appoints someone to perform Hajj or 'Umrah on his behalf. But the voluntary is not obligatory, so it is said: As long as you are sick and you have performed the obligatory, thank Allah for that, and spend the money you want to give to someone to perform Hajj or 'Umrah on your behalf in other expenditures. Help a poor person who has not performed the obligatory Hajj with this money, for it is better for you than saying: Take this and perform Hajj on my behalf, even if you were sick.
As for the obligatory, people, praise be to Allah, have not been lax in it. You hardly find anyone who appoints a proxy to perform the obligatory Hajj on his behalf except that he is unable to do so, and this is what the Sunnah brought, as in the hadith of Ibn 'Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him and his father),.
And the summary is: that there are two narrations from Imam Ahmad regarding appointing a proxy for the voluntary: one is that the appointment of a proxy is not valid, and the second narration is that the appointment of a proxy is valid for both the able and the unable.
And the closest to the truth, without doubt, in my opinion, is that the appointment of a proxy for the voluntary is not valid, neither for the unable nor for the able. As for the obligatory for the unable person who does not hope for the removal of his inability, the Sunnah has brought this.
The Shaykh : May Allah bless you. The expansion of people in appointing proxies for Hajj is a matter of regret in reality, and it may be incorrect according to the Shari'ah. This is because there are two narrations from Imam Ahmad regarding the permissibility of appointing a proxy for voluntary acts: one narration states that it is not permissible for a person to appoint a proxy for a voluntary act to perform Hajj or 'Umrah on his behalf, whether he is sick or healthy.
And this narration is most worthy of being correct and strong, because in acts of worship, the person of obligation is required to perform them himself, so that he may obtain from the worship and the humility before Allah the Exalted what he obtains. You see the difference between a person who performs Hajj himself and a person who gives money for someone to perform Hajj on his behalf. The latter has no share in the worship of rectifying his heart and humbling himself before Allah Mighty and Majestic. It is as if he made a sales contract in which he appointed someone to buy for him or sell for him.
And if he is sick and wants to appoint a proxy for a voluntary act, it is said: This is not what the Sunnah brought, but the Sunnah only brought appointing a proxy for the obligatory act. The difference between the obligatory and the voluntary is that the obligatory is a binding matter for the person, so if he cannot do it himself, he appoints someone to perform Hajj or 'Umrah on his behalf. But the voluntary is not obligatory, so it is said: As long as you are sick and you have performed the obligatory, thank Allah for that, and spend the money you want to give to someone to perform Hajj or 'Umrah on your behalf in other expenditures. Help a poor person who has not performed the obligatory Hajj with this money, for it is better for you than saying: Take this and perform Hajj on my behalf, even if you were sick.
As for the obligatory, people, praise be to Allah, have not been lax in it. You hardly find anyone who appoints a proxy to perform the obligatory Hajj on his behalf except that he is unable to do so, and this is what the Sunnah brought, as in the hadith of Ibn 'Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him and his father),
That a woman came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and said: O Messenger of Allah! The obligation of Allah upon His servants in Hajj has overtaken my father, an old man who cannot stay on the mount. Shall I perform Hajj on his behalf? He said: Yes, perform Hajj on his behalf.
أن امرأة أتت النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم فقالت: يا رسول الله! إن فريضة الله على عباده في الحج أدركت أبي شيخاً كبيراً لا يثبت على الراحلة أفأحج عنه؟ قال: نعم، حجي عنهAnd the summary is: that there are two narrations from Imam Ahmad regarding appointing a proxy for the voluntary: one is that the appointment of a proxy is not valid, and the second narration is that the appointment of a proxy is valid for both the able and the unable.
And the closest to the truth, without doubt, in my opinion, is that the appointment of a proxy for the voluntary is not valid, neither for the unable nor for the able. As for the obligatory for the unable person who does not hope for the removal of his inability, the Sunnah has brought this.