The conditions of a woman's mahram.

The Shaykh : Now, are there conditions for the mahram? The answer is yes. It is required that he be a Muslim. If he is a disbeliever, he is not a mahram. The apparent statement of the companions of the school is that he is not a mahram, whether the woman agrees with him in religion or differs from him. Based on this, a disbelieving father is not a mahram for his disbelieving daughter, and a father who does not pray is not a mahram for his daughter who does not pray. Do you understand why? Because one of the conditions of the mahram is that he be a Muslim, and a non-Muslim is not a mahram. However, the correct view is the opposite: a person is a mahram for one who agrees with him in religion. So, if a woman's father is a disbeliever, he is a mahram for her, and we do not prevent him from traveling with her, for example. Now, is a disbelieving father a mahram for a Muslim woman? We say he is a mahram for her, but on the condition that he guarantees her safety. If he does not guarantee her safety, he is not a mahram, and she is not permitted to travel with him. It is also required that he be of legal age, so a minor is not sufficient to be a mahram. The reason for this is that the purpose of the mahram is to protect the woman and preserve her honor. Without reaching legal age, this is not achieved from him. It is also required that he be of sound mind, so a person of unsound mind is not valid as a mahram, even if he is of legal age, because a person of unsound mind does not provide protection, preservation, or sufficiency for the woman. He says, "And he is her husband or one for whom she is permanently forbidden." How many conditions are there now?
The audience: Three.

The Shaykh : Three: that he be a Muslim, of legal age, and of sound mind. These are the conditions of the mahram. As for if the mahram who is of legal age, of sound mind, and a Muslim is absent, or if he is found but refuses to travel with her, then Hajj is not obligatory for her. If she offers him the financial maintenance and says, "Perform Hajj with me, and I will guarantee all the expenses you incur in this Hajj," is he obligated to perform Hajj with her?
The audience: It is not obligatory upon him.

The Shaykh : He is not obligated, because that is an obligation for another person. Some scholars said, rather, he is obligated, because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to the man who said, "O Messenger of Allah, my wife went out for a need, and I have enrolled in the expedition of so-and-so," He ordered him to proceed, and the original ruling of a command is obligation. Also, if the woman will cover all the expenses, there is no harm to him in most cases, especially if he has not yet performed the obligatory Hajj, because in this case, we may say that it is obligatory for him from two angles: to perform the obligatory Hajj and to fulfill the need of this woman. What appears is that he is not obligated to agree, and he is not required to travel with her. As for the hadith, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) ordered him to perform Hajj with his wife because the woman had already begun the journey, and there was no way to resolve the situation except for him to travel with her.