Question:
I am a single, young woman who has the financial means to go on the Hajj pilgrimage. As far as I understand, once a person has the financial means to perform Hajj, it becomes obligatory upon them to do it before they die. As none of us can be sure when they will die, I would like to do the Hajj as soon as possible, especially since I am young and able to cope with the difficulties, Insha Allah. However, I also understand that Hajj is not obligatory for me if I don't have a Mahram to take me. I have no brothers and my father is not willing to take me, but my uncles (who I am not very close to) go regularly. My father will not let me go with them. Is it permissible for me to insist that my father allow me to go with my uncles? My father knows that it is unlikely that he will ever take me and thinks that I should wait until I am married and go with my husband. Also, I have heard that scholars like Yusuf Al-Qaradawi say that nowadays, a woman does not need a Mahram to travel because traveling is now safe and the woman is never alone (travel on planes, trains, buses not in the desert, as well as the fact that Hajj is usually done with an agent that takes care of the affairs of the pilgrim). Does this mean that if a woman has the financial means to go on Hajj, that she must go even if this means that she would go within a group with a Hajj tour operator and without a Mahram (my cousin is a Hajj tour operator and a trustworthy man, I could go with his group)?
Fatwa:
All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, and that Muhammad , is His slave and Messenger.
A woman who has determined to perform Hajj has to know that being accompanied by a Mahram (unmarriageable person) is an essential condition for Hajj. If she travels for Hajj without a Mahram, her Hajj is valid but such a breach constitutes a sin according to the dominant opinion among scholars of Islam. Shari'a rulings are not changed due to change in means of travel even if they become easy and safe. For more details on this issue, consult our Fatawa: 82195 and81435.
Know that your father is not allowed to prevent you from performing the obligatory Hajj if it becomes due and obligatory on you. So, it is not your duty to obey your father in such a matter since performing Hajj is an obligation that should be done at once as long as one is able to do so. Such "a disobedience" to your father is not a form of ingratitude.
In this vein, the Prophet (sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam) said: "There should be no obedience to a human being if such an action constitutes disobedience to The Creator". Ahmad and al-Hakim from Ali al-Albani regarded it as sound.
Another Hadeeth reads: "Obedience is required only in what is good". Al-Bukhari Such rulings include parents and all people.
Based on the above-stated points, it is your duty to perform Hajj since you are able to do so and there is a Mahram for you (your uncle). So, you are not allowed to travel alone: (1) according to the predominant opinion among Muslim scholars, (2) due to weakness of the opposite opinion, and (3) traveling alone results in many risks that are rejected by Shari'a. In addition, there is no need for your parents' consent. But, it is better to do your best to convince them, since such an action is considered as a good reconciliation between fulfilling an obligation and obtaining the parents' contentment.
Allah Knows best.