Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

altmuslim

Home
Muslim
Hajj and the Single Woman

Hajj and the Single Woman

Last updated on: September 11, 2016 at 2:49 pm by Guest Contributor

Hajj and the Single Woman 2016-09-11T14:49:37-04:00 Guest Contributor

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Image source: Pixabay

By Laura P.

Hajj season is always somewhat bittersweet for me.

For a number of years after I converted, I didn’t have enough savings to contemplate going on hajj. More recently, as my financial situation improved for the better and as I remosqued, I began to look more seriously into what would be necessary to undertake the pilgrimage.

Here I discovered a major roadblock: As a convert I have no Muslim relatives, and I have chosen not to marry. The hajj, it turns out, is not accessible for a woman without a man.

Under the rules set by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, a woman who wishes to obtain a hajj visa must either be accompanied by a Muslim mahram (adult male relative), or be over the age of 45 and submit a notarized “no objection” letter from a husband, son, or brother, then travel with a group. The U.S. State Department hajj visa page informs me that, “Violators face deportation.”

I’m 43 now, so the age limit of 45 is not such a concern – but does my non-Muslim dad count for the “no objection” letter? The rules don’t seem to imagine that a woman can exist without having a mahram, only that he is not able to accompany her. Where do I fit in?

Being a woman with no Muslim mahram makes a lot of situations challenging for me, especially at the mosque when women are often cut off from the imam and rely on a husband or male family member to provide that connection. However, I’m used to being marginalized in Muslim spaces because of this.

But to be cut off entirely from a major act of worship, one of the “five pillars” of Islam, is something else again. I’m physically and financially able to make hajj. If I were a man, there wouldn’t be a problem. But as a woman, because I don’t have the right kind of relationship to the right kind of man (i.e., a Muslim mahram), hajj is closed to me.

The problem isn’t with traditional fiqh – the exemption allowing women to travel with a group is well-known – it’s with the rules set by Saudi Arabia. As the State Department notes, trying to enter a country without a visa, or with a visa that was improperly or fraudulently obtained, is grounds for deportation.

The rules of the hajj’s host country would deem my presence there illegal, my state of being unimaginable or impossible. As an unmarried convert – a woman without a man who dares to make her own way through life – it seems that I am anathema to Saudi Arabia, and my worship of Allah at His house is not wanted or allowed.

I find this a bitter pill to swallow, especially knowing that the traditional rules of the religion do not place such a restriction on me. It is patriarchy that cuts me off, patriarchy that treats women as children who need a man’s permission to go about our business even when that business is religious worship, and patriarchy that values a woman by her relationship to a man and not as amatullah – a female servant of Allah, equal in His eyes and made equally responsible for fulfilling His commands.

Because the hajj can only be done in one place, I have no choice but to accede to this patriarchal system, even though its man-made rules place restrictions on me that the deen does not.

Image source: Author

And so another hajj season passes and I remain at home, asking Allah to accept my prayers, fasting, and Quran from a distance. To fulfill His promise not to lose the work of any worker, whether male or female (Quran 3:195). To recognize the limitations which bind me and to reward my patience. And to, some day, open a way for me and other women like me to complete a pilgrimage to His house.

Laura P is a convert who lives near Seattle. Her writing has appeared at Love InshAllah, AltMuslimah, Hindtrospectives, and Patheos Altmuslim. She volunteers with the Muslim Anti-Racism Collaborative and with Rabata. Follow her on Twitter at @muhajabah.

Previous Post

September 9, 2016

The Push for Muslim School Holidays - Where Do Other Children Go On Eid?

Next Post

September 11, 2016 Hajj Reflections: Finding Peace in the Chaos

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category 2012 Elections 30 Dayd 30 Writers (2017) 30 Days 30 Writers 30 Days 30 Writers (2015) 30 Days 30 Writers (2016) 30 Days 30 Writers (2018) 30 Days 30 Writers 2017 Ali Asadullah Ali Eteraz Alper Bilgili Arthur Richards Asides Asma Uddin Black History Month Briefings Charles Turner Commentary Cyrus McGoldrick Eman H Aly Fatimah Popal Hajj Hajj and Dhul Hijjah Hesham Hassaballa Hisham Hellyer Ibrahim Abusharif Inas Younis Irfan Yusuf Jalal Baig Junaid Afeef Laila Alawa Laila Alwala Mas'ood Cajee Muqtedar Khan Nakia Jackson Newsmakers Parvez Ahmed Podcasts Rabia Chaudry Rafia Zakaria Ramadan Reviews Safiyyah Ally Saud Inam Shahed Amanullah Svend White The Opinionated Oncologist Visions Wajahat Ali Zahed Amanullah Zahir Janmohamed Zainab Khan

Select a Month November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006 September 2006 August 2006 July 2006 June 2006 May 2006 April 2006 March 2006 February 2006 January 2006 December 2005 November 2005 October 2005 September 2005 August 2005 July 2005 June 2005 May 2005 April 2005 March 2005 February 2005 January 2005 December 2004 November 2004 October 2004 September 2004 August 2004 July 2004 June 2004 May 2004 April 2004 March 2004 February 2004 January 2004 December 2003 November 2003 October 2003 September 2003 August 2003 July 2003 June 2003 May 2003 April 2003 March 2003 February 2003 January 2003 December 2002 November 2002 October 2002 September 2002 August 2002 July 2002 June 2002 May 2002 April 2002 March 2002

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Who said, "Can anything good come from Nazareth?"

Select your answer to see how you score.

Nathanael Peter John the Baptist Pilate