QUESTION:
If a person dies before getting to perform Hajj, is it true that they will be resurrected on the Day of Judgment as a Christian or a Jew? And what if a person dies and can’t perform Hajj?
ANSWER:
In the Name of Allah, the All-Beneficent, the All-Merciful.
May Allah bless Muhammad and his Family and damn their enemies.
There is no sin upon those who cannot perform Hajj, and they will be resurrected as a Muslim because of the conditions that make Hajj obligatory does not apply to them.
Those who purposefully neglect or delay performing Hajj and die having never performed it will be resurrected and brought forth on the Day of Judgment as a Jew or a Christian. It is narrated that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s blessings be upon him and his purified family), said:
He who delays the Hajj ‘till he dies, Allah will resurrect him on the Day of Resurrection as a Jew or a Christian
Wasa’el al-Shi’a, by Al-Horr al-Amili, volume 11, page 32
The following narration of Imam al-Sadiq (may peace be upon him) details the circumstances that can excuse a Muslim from not performing Hajj:
‘He who dies and does not perform the Hajj of Islam – as long as he was not prevented from doing so due to matters that constrained him, a sickness he could not endure, or a ruler who prevented him from performing it – then let him die as a Jew or a Christian.
Ibid. Volume 11, page 30
The Office of Sheikh al-Habib