Emancipating the pilgrims from Hell on the Day of 'Arafah:
Question
Is the virtue of the Day of ‘Arafah regarding forgiveness of the sins and emancipation form Hell confined to the pilgrims or it is for all people, especially the Muslims who adhere to the teachings of their religion?
Answer
The Prophet said: “There is no day on which Allah sets free more slaves from Hell than He does on the Day of `Arafah.” This Hadeeth (narration) proves that this merit is limited to the pilgrims who are standing at ‘Arafah, i.e. Allah The Almighty sets them free from Hell. Nevertheless, it is possible for anyone to be set free from Hell through doing other good deeds, as Allah The Almighty is Competent over all things.
Allah The Almighty may set one free from Hell for giving to charity, for a tear shed out of fear of Allah, a good and kind word showing dutifulness to one’s parents, etc.
This is why the Prophet said: “Protect yourself from (Hell) Fire, by giving half a date [to charity].” A half of a date given to a poor man may protect you from Hell.
‘Aa’ishah said, “A poor woman came to me carrying her two daughters. I gave her three date-fruits. She gave a date to each of her daughter and then she took up one date-fruit to her mouth to eat, but her daughters asked her that also. She then divided between them the date-fruit that she intended to eat. This (kind) treatment of her impressed me and I mentioned that to Messenger of Allah who said: 'Why are you surprised at what she did? Verily, Allah has rescued her from Hell-Fire because of this date.” [Muslim]
One date! It is a great bounty bestowed by our Great and Benevolent Lord upon us. The Prophet stressed this meaning saying: “Paradise is nearer to anyone of you than your shoe-lace, and so is the (Hell) Fire.”
Namely, if one fears, loves and obeys Allah The Almighty, Allah The Almighty will secure him from Hell.
Hence, emancipation from Hell is a general grace, but it may be limited to the pilgrims. Possibly, Allah The Almighty may set free people other than the pilgrims from Hell on the Day of ‘Arafah, as the bounty of Allah The Almighty is limitless and not confined to the Day of ‘Arafah. He is always Generous, and repentance pleases Him, exalted is He and exalted are His Names.
Allah Knows best.
The ruling on not kissing the Black Stone:
Question
I intend to perform Hajj and 'Umrah, but I refrain from kissing the Black Stone due to the teeming crowds. What is your opinion?
Answer
You should leave things to the will of Allah The Almighty. i.e., you should not go there with the intention of refraining from kissing the Black Stone or from any other non-obligatory acts of Sunnah (Prophetic tradition), unless it would result in evil or harm.
If such evil or harm is inevitable if a voluntary act of Sunnah is done, then it is permissible for you not to perform that voluntary act, but do not intend to refrain from it beforehand. You should rather say, “I will do if Allah wills” or similar words to be entitled to His Help.
Then, if you manage to kiss the Black Stone, even if there were crowded conditions, without harming anyone, it will be great; otherwise, Allah The Almighty does not charge a soul except with that within its capacity. It should be noted that obedience to Allah The Almighty never entails disobedience to Him.
Hence, one should not kiss the Black Stone if there are subsequent harms or evils, and he is required to obey Allah The Almighty within the limits of his ability.
Whoever refrains from kissing the Black Stone for a valid reason or excuse, Allah The Almighty will reward him as if he has kissed the Black Stone, since he refrained out of fear of Fitnah (trial). Hence, if you fail to kiss it, you will be rewarded as if you did.
Allah Knows best.
The merit of paying one’s Hajj expenditures and the permissibility of paying them on behalf of others:
Question
A woman working in the field of Da‘wah was asked by some Hajj groups to be among their guides. She says that she had saved a sum of money for performing Hajj, but they offered her to pay the expenditures for her.
So, is it better for her to perform Hajj with her own money or accept this offer and use the money in something else?
Answer
Firstly, I supplicate to Allah The Almighty to multiply the reward of the righteous sister who asked this question (and we do not confirm anybody's good conduct before Allah), as the Ummah (Muslim nation) will be fine as long as it has such good women and men.
There is no doubt that Allah The Almighty promised the believing men and women a great reward and praised both righteous men and women in His Book. He also lauded, from above seven heavens, the hearts that fear Him (what means): {…So righteous women are devoutly obedient, guarding in [the husband's] absence what Allah would have them guard….} [Quran 4:34] Allah The Almighty witnessed that they are devoutly obedient, guarding in their husbands’ absence what Allah The Almighty would have them guard. Hence, this is a great bounty and virtue of this Ummah to have women who fear Allah The Almighty, particularly these days. So we ask Allah The Almighty to provide our Ummah with many women like her.
As for the answer to your question, going to Hajj with good and righteous company is very helpful, because it helps one to remember Allah The Almighty and obey Him. However, you should pay the expenses of your Hajj from your own money and not allow others to pay for you. If you are with a group of pilgrims, ask the organizers to take money from you like the others, because the Daa‘iyah (caller to Islam) should not consider that his reward is to ride or eat with them for free; rather, he should postpone his reward to receive it the Hereafter.
Allah The Almighty Said (what means):
* {Say, "Whatever payment I might have asked of you - it is yours. My payment is only from Allah, and He is, over all things, Witness."} [Quran 34:47]
* {And I do not ask you for it any payment. My payment is only from the Lord of the worlds.} [Quran 26:109]
The reward of the person who invites people to the way of Allah is from Allah The Almighty.
So, I advise you to ask them to take the expenses from you like the other pilgrims and they will accept, by the permission of Allah The Almighty.
As for the sum that you dedicated for this purpose, you should give precedence to yourself, because there should be no altruism in the acts of worship and reward. You should perform Hajj with them if this will enable you to do what is good. We ask Allah The Almighty to accept all of our deeds.
Allah Knows best.