be replaced with another direction, nor the month of Ramadan with another month, nor the time and place of Hajj with another time and place. Indeed, when the people of the pre-Islamic age introduced postponement, which involved moving Hajj to another time, Allah, Exalted is He, said:

“Postponement is only an increase in disbelief, by which those who disbelieve are led astray. They permit it one year and forbid it another, to match the number of months Allah has made sacred, thereby permitting what Allah has forbidden.”

As for the three mosques built by the prophets—peace be upon them—to which journeys are prescribed and travel becomes obligatory through a vow, their sites may not be exchanged for other sites. They may, however, be expanded, and their layout and buildings may be changed, as established by the Sunnah and the consensus of the Companions. Other mosques, by contrast, do not become binding destinations through a vow, nor are they destinations for such journeys. They may therefore be replaced where this serves a beneficial purpose, as explained above. And Allah knows best.

This is further clarified by the scholars’ disagreement concerning an endowment designated for a particular beneficiary: does it belong to the beneficiary, remain the property of the donor, or belong to Allah, Exalted is He? These are three well-known views within the schools of al-Shāfiʿī, Ahmad, and others. Most of Ahmad’s followers, including al-Qādī and Ibn ʿAqīl, favour the view that it belongs to the beneficiary.

A mosque and similar endowments, however, do not belong to any particular individual, by agreement of the Muslims. Rather, they are said to belong to Allah. They may also be said to belong to the Muslim community, since its members are entitled to benefit from them. If such an endowment may be replaced with something better where this serves a beneficial purpose, then replacing the former kind is all the more permissible, either through a direct exchange or by selling it and purchasing a replacement with the proceeds. As explained above, the replacement is to be something of the same kind that is more beneficial to the beneficiary.