SECTION ON THE RITES OF HAJJ · 1 – THE OBLIGATIONS OF HAJJ
1721 – From Ibn ʿAbbās (may Allah be pleased with him): Aqraʿ ibn Ḥābis (may Allah be pleased with him) asked the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him), “O Messenger of Allah, is the Hajj obligatory every year, or only once in a lifetime?” The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) replied: “It is once. Whoever performs it more than once, it is voluntary.” [515]
EXPLANATION
According to what is narrated by Muslim and al-Nasāʾī from Abū Hurayra, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) once said in a sermon: “O people! Allah has made Hajj obligatory for you, so perform Hajj.” Someone asked, “Is it every year, O Messenger of Allah?” The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) remained silent, and the man repeated it three times. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “If I had said yes, it would have become obligatory for you every year, and you would not have been able to bear it.” Since the command does not require repetition, fulfilling this obligation once in a lifetime suffices. The Hajj season is a condition for Hajj. The Kaʿba is the cause for Hajj. Since the cause for Hajj, the Kaʿba, does not recur, the obligation of Hajj does not recur either. Since the times, which are the containers for the prayers, do recur, the obligation of the prayers also recurs.
1722 – From the son of Abū Wāqid al-Laythī (may Allah be pleased with him): I heard the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) say to his families during the Farewell Pilgrimage: “After this Hajj, (for you) there are the tops of the mats.”
EXPLANATION
With this noble hadith, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is indicating that his wives would not be able to leave their homes, alluding to the approach of his passing.