[part 4]

Evidences to support the second view: 1⃣. The ḥadīth of Ibn ’Umar raḍhiyallāhu ’anhumā reported by Bukhāri and Muslim: ((لاَ يَحِلُّ لاِمْرَأَةٍ تُؤْمِنُ بِاللَّهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الآخِرِ تُسَافِرُ مَسِيرَةَ ثَلاَثِ لَيَالٍ إِلاَّ وَمَعَهَا ذُو مَحْرَمٍ)). “It is not lawful for a woman who believes in Allāh and the Hereafter to travel for more than three nights journey except when there is a Maḥram with her.” [This is the wording of Muslim (1338)] 2⃣. The ḥadīth of Abū Hurairah raḍhiyallāhu ’anhu reported by Bukhāri and Muslim: ((لاَ يَحِلُّ لاِمْرَأَةٍ تُؤْمِنُ بِاللَّهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الآخِرِ تُسَافِرُ مَسِيرَةَ يَوْمٍ إِلاَّ مَعَ ذِي مَحْرَمٍ)) “It is not lawful for a woman who believes in Allāh and the Hereafter to travel a day's journey except in the company of a Maḥram.” [This is the wording of Muslim (1339)] 3⃣. The ḥadīth of Abū Sa‘eed Al-Khudri reported by Bukhāri and Muslim: ((لاَ تُسَافِرِ الْمَرْأَةُ مَسِيرَةَ يَوْمَيْنِ إِلاَّ وَمَعَهَا زَوْجُهَا أَوْ ذُو مَحْرَمٍ)) “No woman should travel on a journey of two days except with her husband or a Maḥram.” 4⃣. The ḥadīth of Ibn ’Abbās raḍhiyallāhu ’anhumā reported by Bukhāri and Muslim: ((”لاَ يَخْلُوَنَّ رَجُلٌ بِامْرَأَةٍ إِلاَّ مَعَ ذِي مَحْرَمٍ.“ فَقَامَ رَجُلٌ فَقَالَ يَا رَسُولَ اللهِ امْرَأَتِي خَرَجَتْ حَاجَّةً وَاكْتُتِبْتُ فِي غَزْوَةِ كَذَا وَكَذَا‏؟ قَالَ: ”ارْجِعْ فَحُجَّ مَعَ امْرَأَتِكَ“)) “No man should remain with a woman in seclusion except in the presence of a Maḥram.” A man stood up and said, O Messenger of Allāh (ﷺ)! My wife has gone out intending to perform Ḥajj and I have been enrolled (in the army) for such-and-such campaign. The Prophet (ﷺ) said, “Return and perform Ḥajj with your wife.” [This is the wording of Bukhari (5233)] These ḥadīths clearly prohibit a woman from travelling without a Maḥram, whether the distance of travel is long or short. Ibnul Mundhir An-Naysābūri said: “Taking the apparent meaning of the ḥadīth is more appropriate, and we do not know of any evidence to establish what they have said (i.e. those who hold the other view).” [Al-Ishrāf ’Alā Madhāhib Al-’Ulamā' (3/176)] Similarly, Al-Baghawi raḥimahullāh said: “The first view (i.e. absolute prohibition) is stronger due to the apparent meaning of the ḥadīth.” [Sharḥ As-Sunnah (7/20)] Sheikhul Islām Ibn Taymiyyah raḥimahullāh said (paraphrasing): “These Prophetic statements prohibiting women from travelling without a Maḥram are general. They are not limited to one type of travel over others. Likewise, travelling for Ḥajj was the most common type of travel undertaken by women, yet he ﷺ did not make any exceptions. In fact, the Ṣaḥābah saw the inclusion of Ḥajj in this prohibition. Thus when the man informed the Prophet ﷺ concerning his wife who had set out to perform Ḥajj without a Maḥram, he ﷺ endorsed his question and instructed him to go and accompany her and excused him from Jihad despite it being a duty upon him virtue of assignment...” [Sharh ’Umdat Al-Fiqh (2/174)] Similarly, Sheikh ’Uthaymīn raḥimahullāh commented on the fourth ḥadīth cited above, saying: “He ﷺ commanded him to leave the military campaign and go and perform Ḥajj with his wife, and the Messenger ﷺ did not ask: does she have any female companions? Is she safe? Is she young? Is she old? Is she beautiful? Is she ugly? He did not enquire. And from the principles mentioned by the scholars: «ترك السؤال في مقام الاحتمال يُنزّل منزلة العموم في المقال» Refrainment from seeking clarification concerning a probable situation indicates the same meaning as that of a general statement/rule.” [Al-Liqā' Ash-Shahrī (11/53)] i.e. The fact that the Prophet ﷺ did not seek further clarification indicates that his statement (go and perform Ḥajj with your wife) is a general rule that applies to every woman who finds herself in a similar position; that she is not allowed to perform Ḥajj except with a Maḥram; whether she is old or young, whether the journey is safe enough to travel alone or not, whether she is able to accompany a trustworthy group or not, etc.