Performing Hajj vs. helping a female relative marry
8-5-2006 | IslamWeb
Question:
Dear br. Assalaamu Alaikum! Since my childhood I have been hearing from religious speech that we should not perform Hajj if there are any girls in our blood relation who could not get married due to financial problems and if there is no one in our family, we should look for our seventh neighbor, in both cases if there is no girls then we can go for performing Hajj, otherwise we have to help them, by doing this Allaah will accept our deed more than performing Hajj. Is this correct? May Allaah give you all more health and blessings. Jazaakallah Khair!
Answer:
All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His Slave and Messenger.
As for what you mentioned that one should not perform Hajj if he has unmarried (immediate) female relatives, and that he should instead spend his money to help her get married; this statement is incorrect if what you are referring to the obligatory Hajj. As a matter of fact, whoever did not perform his obligatory Hajj while fulfilling all the prerequisites of Hajj must perform Hajj immediately. This is in accordance with the Saying of Allaah (which means):
• {And [due] to Allaah from the people is a pilgrimage to the House - for whoever is able to undertake the journey.}[Quran 3:97]
• {So race to [all that is] good.}[Quran 3:97]
Therefore, it is not permissible for someone to delay performing Hajj while he is able to perform unless he has a valid (Islamically accepted) excuse. One does not know what might happen to him. He may be able now but would become unable later.
However, if you are referring to an optional Hajj, in this case, Muslim Jurists have different opinions concerning which of the two deeds is better? Performing an optional Hajj or giving in charity? Imaam Abu Haneefah 
subscribes to the opinion that performing Hajj is better. Moreover, Imaam Maalik said: ‘Performing Hajj is better if there is no famine.’ However, some other scholars said that charity is better than performing an optional Hajj.
We, in Islamweb, support the opinion which states that performing an optional Hajj is better except if the charity is given to a poor relative or to Muslims who are in dire need for it. If the choice is between performing Hajj and giving in charity without any added factors, in this case, Hajj is better than charity since Hajj is both a physical and financial act of worship. This is also the position taken by Imaam Ibn Taymiyyah .
Furthermore, the marriage of a girl does not depend on her financial status since it is the husband who is required to bear all marriage-related expenses. This is the practice in most Muslim countries.
However, if in a given country, women bear some marriage-related expenses, in this case, some scholars stated that giving her charity is better than performing an optional Hajj.
Finally, we do not know of any scholar who took the position of preventing relatives of unmarried girls from performing Hajj, rather the difference between the scholars is limited to the matter of preference.
Allaah Knows best.