What did Ibn Taymiyyah say about an elderly woman travelling for Hajj without a maḥram?
2026-10-14
T217 · Ibn Taymiyyah
Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah
شيخ الإسلام أحمد بن تيمية
Original Q&A · Complete source question and answer
Complete original question and answer, 26/13. The answer addresses the stated elderly woman and attributes the permission to one scholarly view. It is not translated as an unrestricted ruling for every woman.
النص العربي
السؤال الأصلي
وسئل: هل يجوز أن تحج المرأة بلا محرم؟
الجواب
إن كانت من القواعد اللاتي لم يحضن، وقد يئست من النكاح، ولامحرم لها، فإنه يجوز في أحد قولي العلماء أن تحج مع من تأمنه، وهو إحدى الروايتين عن أحمد، ومذهب مالك والشافعي.
English translation
English translation prepared for SalafAlSalih.com from the cited Arabic source. It is not an official translation.
Original question
He was asked: May a woman perform Hajj without a maḥram?
Answer
If she is among elderly women who no longer menstruate and no longer expect marriage, and she has no maḥram, then according to one of the two scholarly views she may perform Hajj with someone she trusts. This is one of the reports from Aḥmad and the position of Mālik and al-Shāfiʿī.
Source and editorial notes
Majmūʿ al-Fatāwā 26/13
مجموع الفتاوى
Majmūʿ al-Fatāwā
Arabic checked against the cited source and adjacent question boundaries. Diacritics and display marks omitted; honorific glyphs expanded. Titles and scope notes are editorial.