then what is the meaning of the ḥadīth narrated by the Mother of the Believers, ʿĀʾisha (may Allah be pleased with her)? She said, “Messenger of Allah, I do not see any deed better than jihād; shall we not therefore go out and fight?” He replied, “But the best jihād is an accepted pilgrimage.” Reported by al-Bukhārī⦗1⦘.

Pilgrimage is the jihād of women

127 – Al-Nasāʾī⦗2⦘ also transmits it with the wording: “Shall we not go out and fight alongside you, for I consider no deed superior to jihād⦗3⦘?” He answered, “No. The finest and most excellent jihād⦗4⦘ is the pilgrimage to the House—an accepted pilgrimage.”

128 – It is likewise said: “The best jihād for women is an accepted pilgrimage.”

129 – Thus the Prophet ﷺ informed us that the best jihād for women is an accepted pilgrimage.

130 – The same clarification occurs in another report: al-Nasāʾī transmits from Abū Hurayrah that the Prophet ﷺ said, “The jihād of the elderly, the young, the weak, and of women is the pilgrimage and the lesser pilgrimage.”

131 – And in yet another ḥadīth: “The pilgrimage is the jihād of every weak person.”⦗5⦘