O people! Fear Allah the Almighty and know that Haj is one of the finest acts of worship and the greatest in reward. It was related that the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam, said: “(The performance of) ‘Umrah is an expiation for the sins committed (between it and the previous one). And the reward for Haj Mabroor (i.e. the one accepted by Allah) is nothing except Paradise. Whoever performs Haj to this House (i.e., the Ka’aba) and does not approach his wife (for sexual intercourse) nor commits sins (while performing Haj), will come out of it as sinless as a newly-born child.”
Haj is a physical devotion that every Muslim is required to physically fulfil, though a small part of it pertains to money - such as when one offers a sacrificial animal.
The Sunnah of the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam, has clarified that in the event of a person being genuinely unable to perform Haj, then it is permissible by proxy. It was related in Sahih Al-Bukhari on the authority of Ibn ‘Abbaas, may Allah be pleased with him, that: “A woman asked: ‘O Messenger of Allah! My father is very old. There is the obligation of Haj upon him from Allah, but he is incapable of sitting on the back of a camel.’ Thereupon Allah’s Messenger, sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam, said: “Perform Haj on his behalf.’” This happened on his Farewell Pilgrimage.
In another narration, a woman came to the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam, and asked: “My mother had vowed to perform Haj but she died before performing it. May I perform Haj on her behalf?” The Prophet sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam replied: “Perform Haj on her behalf. Had your mother been in debt, would you not have paid it off? Therefore pay (her debt to) Allah, as He has the most right to be paid.”
If a person has the ability to perform Haj in person, he is not permitted to authorise another person to make Haj on his behalf. Many people loosely resort to Haj by proxy in the case of supererogatory Haj, even though they are well capable of performing it. By doing this they deprive themselves of the immense reward attained from the fatigue of worship and all that it contains of remembrance, supplication, submissiveness to Allah, redoubling of reward, useful meetings, etc.
In one of the two narrations reported from Imaam Ahmad bin Hanbal, may Allah have mercy upon him, he forbade proxy in supererogatory Haj for those who are capable of performing it in person. Thus, a Muslim should not be careless concerning the matter of Haj; he should either perform supererogatory Haj in person if he wishes, or provide pilgrims with money in order to share with them the reward of Haj.
O people! Haj is a type of worship which is performed by the servant as a means to please Allah and to attain reward in the Hereafter. A servant’s attention must not be diverted to attaining worldly gains during Haj. Unfortunately, many people who perform Haj on behalf of others do this solely for the sake of money, which is prohibited since worldly considerations should not spoil acts of worship.
Allah the Almighty says that which means: “Whoever desires the life of this world and its adornments – We fully repay them for their deeds therein, and they therein will not be deprived. Those are the ones for whom there is not in the Hereafter but the fire. And lost is what they did therein [i.e., during worldly life], and worthless is what they used to do.” (Hud: 15-16).
He also says that which means: “And when you have completed your rites, remember Allah like your [previous] remembrance of your fathers or with [much] greater remembrance. And among the people is he who says: ‘Our Lord! Give us in this world,’ and he will have in the Hereafter no share.” (Al Baqarah: 200).
Allah will reject any worship that is not done purely for His sake. The Messenger of Allah, sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam, prevented seeking worldly gains in places of worship when he said: “If you see a man indulging in a (financial) transaction in the mosque, say to him: ‘May Allah not render your trade profitable.’” If this strict attitude is taken against those who utilise places of worship for worldly gains, what about those who turn the worship itself into a means of attaining worldly gains? Indeed it is not rare for us to find those requested to make Haj on behalf of others bargain and ask for extra money, which is turning worship into a craft or profession.
For this reason the Hanbali jurists maintained that it is invalid to hire a man to perform Haj on behalf of another. Shaykh Al-Islaam Ibn Taymiyyah declared that whoever makes Haj only to attain hire will have no reward in the Hereafter. However, if proxy is made for a religious purpose, such as benefiting others with the reward of Haj or aiming to increase acts of obedience through supplication and remembrance of Allah during the rituals of Haj, then Haj by proxy will be valid and acceptable in this case.
Those who charge proxy in Haj should devote their intention to seeking the pleasure of Allah, aiming to exercise the rituals related to Allah’s House, remembering Him and supplicating to Him, in addition to the fulfilment of the needs of their fellow Muslims who authorised them to make Haj on their behalf. They should not divert their attention to gaining worldly benefits; for if this becomes their sole interest, they will not be permitted to charge proxy in Haj.
If one entertains a sound intention for proxy in Haj, all the money he gets from the authorising person will be his, unless the latter demands refunding the remaining amount after covering the costs of the Haj. The deputy should intend to perform Haj and ‘Umrah on behalf of the authorising person, unless the former allows him to perform ‘Umrah for his own benefit.
A person deputised to make Haj on behalf of another person cannot deputise a third party, unless he obtains the consent of the person who commissioned him to make Haj on his behalf. All the reward of acts related to rituals of Haj goes to the authorising person, but the redoubling of reward through offering supererogatory prayers and Tawaf, as well as extra types of worship that exceeds the rituals goes to the authorised person.
The representative in Haj should exert the best of his efforts to accomplish the verbal and practical acts related to the rituals, since this is a trust that he should fulfil duly. When pronouncing Talbiyah, he should say: ‘labbayka ‘an fulan’ (i.e., ‘O Allah I respond to Your call on behalf of so and so’.) If he forgets the name of the person he is performing Haj or ‘Umrah for, he may intend it with his heart, saying: ‘labbaika ‘amman anabani fi hathihil-‘Umrah, or fi hathal-Haj’ (i.e. ‘I respond to Your call on behalf of one who authorised me to make this ‘Umrah or this Haj.’)
O servants of Allah! Fear Allah and do not pay much attention to worldly gains; and don’t turn worship into a means of attaining material gains!
Muslim pilgrims pray at the Grand Mosque in the holy Saudi city of Makkah.
