بَابُ
حَجِّ الْمَرْأَةِ عَنِ الرَّجُلِ
حديث 531
عن ابنِ
عبّاسٍ رضي الله عنهما، قَالَ: كَانَ الْفَضْلُ رَدِيفَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ (وَفِي
رِوَايَةٍ: وَكَانَ الْفَضْلُ رَجُلًا وَضِيئًا، فَوَقَفَ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ لِلنَّاسِ
يُفْتِيهِمْ)، فَجَاءَتِ امْرَأَةٌ مِنْ خَثْعَمٍ (وَفِي رِوَايَة: وَضِيئَةٌ،
فَجَعَلُ الْفَضْلُ يَنْظُرُ إِلَيْهَا، وَتَنْظُرُ إِلَيْهِ (وَفِي رِوَايَةٍ:
وَأَعْجَبَهُ حُسْنُهَا)، وَجَعَلَ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ يَصْرِفُ وَجْهَ الْفَضْلِ إِلَى
الشِّقِّ الآخَرِ، فَقَالَتْ: يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ! إِنَّ فَرِيضَةَ اللَّهِ عَلَى
عِبَادِهِ فِي الْحَجِّ أَدْرَكَتْ أَبِي شَيْخًا كَبيرًا لَا يَثْبُتُ عَلَى
الرَّاحِلَةِ أَفْأَحُجُّ عَنْهُ؟ قَالَ: نَعَم. وَذَلِكَ فِي حَجَّةِ الْوَدَاعِ.
(وَفِي رِوَايَةٍ: أَنَّ امْرَأَةً مِنْ جُهَيْنَةَ جَاءَتْ إِلَى النَّبِيِّ، فَقَالَتْ: إِنَّ أُمِّي نَذَرْتُ أَنْ تَحُجَّ فَلَمْ تَحُجَّ حَتَّى مَاتَتْ، أَفَأَحُجُّ عَنْهَا؟ قَالَ: نَعَم، حُجِّي عَنْهَا، أَرَأَيْتِ لَوْ كَانَ عَلَى أُمِّكِ دَينٌ أَكُنْتِ قَاضِيَةً؟ اقْضُوا اللَّهَ، فَاللَّهُ أَحَقُّ بِالْوَفَاءِ).
(وَفِي رِوَايَةٍ: أَتَى رَجُلٌ، قَالَ: إِنَّ أُخْتِي نَذَرْتُ أَنْ تَحُجَّ وَإِنَّهَا مَاتَتْ...). [وَلِمُسْلِمٍ مِنْ حَدِيثِ بُرَيْدَةَ رّضي الله عنها: أَنَّ امْرَأَةً أَتَتْ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ، وَذَكَرَتْ أَنَّ أُمَّهَا مَاتَتْ، وَقالتْ: إِنَّ أُمِّي لَمْ تَحُجَّ قَطُّ، أَفَأَحُجُّ عَنْهَا؟ قَالَ : حُبِّي عَنْهَا].
Narrated
by Ibn ‘Abbas (may Allah be pleased with both of them): Al-Fadl was riding
pillion behind the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
(In another narration: Al-Fadl is described as a
man of striking appearance, and the Prophet ﷺ
had halted to respond to the inquiries of the people). A woman from the
tribe of Khath'am approached (according to another
narration: she was of remarkable beauty), whereupon Al-Fadl began gazing
at her, and she likewise at him (in another
narration: he was taken by her comeliness). The Prophet ﷺ persistently redirected Al-Fadl’s gaze
towards the opposite side. The woman addressed the Prophet ﷺ, saying:
"O Messenger of Allah! The obligation of Hajj, which
Allah has enjoined upon His servants, has become incumbent upon my father, yet
he is an aged man unable to remain steady upon a mount. Shall I perform Hajj on
his behalf?" The Prophet ﷺ replied: "Yes".
This exchange occurred during the Farewell Pilgrimage.
(Another narration recounts: A
woman from the tribe of Juhaynah approached the Prophet ﷺ and said: "My mother had vowed to perform Hajj but passed
away before fulfilling it. May I perform Hajj on her behalf?" The Prophet ﷺ responded: "Yes, perform Hajj on her
behalf. Consider: were your mother indebted to someone, would you not have settled
the debt on her behalf? Then fulfil your obligation to Allah, for indeed, Allah
is more deserving of having His dues fulfilled.")
(Another narration reports: A man approached and said: "My
sister had vowed to perform Hajj, but she has died...").
(And in a narration transmitted
by Muslim on the authority of Buraidah (may Allah be pleased with her): A woman
came to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and said: "My
mother died without ever having performed Hajj. Shall I perform Hajj on her
behalf?" He ﷺ replied: "Perform
Hajj on her behalf.")
Key Lessons from the Hadith
1.
Substitution in Acts of
Worship (النيابة في العبادات)
This Hadith firmly
establishes the permissibility of fulfilling obligatory acts of worship, such
as Hajj, on behalf of individuals who are permanently incapacitated or
deceased.
It further confirms that acts associated with financial expenditure (such as
the pilgrimage) may be performed vicariously.
2.
Application of Analogy
(Qiyās) and Evidential Reasoning (Istidlāl)
The Prophet ﷺ employed an analogy, likening the
fulfilment of divine obligations to the repayment of debts. This application of
Qiyās illustrates the methodology by which juristic rulings are extrapolated
and underscores the imperative of fulfilling the rights owed to Allah with the
same diligence as settling human debts.
3.
The General Principle
of Facilitation (رفع الحرج)
Islamic law seeks to
remove hardship: since the father/mother could not perform Hajj themselves,
others are allowed to perform it on their behalf.
4.
Respect for Context and
Circumstances
Shariah takes into
account the condition of individuals (e.g., old age, death), allowing for alternative
ways to fulfill duties when direct performance is impossible.
5.
The Binding Nature of
Vows (نَذْرٌ)
The narrations
elucidate that a vow (nadhr) imposes a binding religious duty, the fulfilment
of which remains obligatory even posthumously through the agency of another.
6.
Prioritisation of
Divine Obligations (حقوق الله)
The Prophet ﷺ emphatically highlighted the precedence of
fulfilling Allah’s rights over interpersonal claims, establishing a cardinal
principle within the disciplines of Fiqh and Usul al-Fiqh.
7.
Regulation of
Intergender Interaction
The Prophet’s ﷺ redirection of Al-Fadl’s gaze serves as an
exemplar of practical measures to uphold modesty and to avert unlawful
attraction (fitnah), thereby setting an enduring ethical standard for gender
interactions within the public sphere.
8.
The Doctrine of Agency
in Worship (وكالة)
The permissibility
of proxy performance of Hajj is grounded in the broader legal framework of
agency (wakālah) in acts of worship, a concept well-recognised and
circumscribed within Islamic jurisprudence.
9. The Urgency of Proxy Fulfilment
The narrations convey the imperative of promptly discharging obligatory acts through a proxy when necessary, thereby ensuring the timely fulfilment of religious duties without undue delay.
