This division is mistaken, for the matters they mentioned are conditions for an obligation to arise. The obligation cannot be fulfilled without them, and whatever is indispensable to fulfilling an obligation must, by agreement of the Muslims, be undertaken by the servant, whether it is within his ability or not—such as possessing the means for Hajj and acquiring the minimum amount of wealth liable to zakat. When a person possesses the means for Hajj, Hajj becomes obligatory upon him; and when he owns the minimum amount liable to zakat, zakat becomes obligatory upon him. The obligation does not arise without these conditions, but he is not required to acquire the means for Hajj or ownership of that minimum amount.

Hence, those who hold that possessing the means for Hajj means possessing sufficient wealth—as is the position of Abū Hanīfah, al-Shāfiʿī and Ahmad—do not require a person to earn that wealth. Their disagreement concerns only the case in which the means are offered to him: either an offer to perform Hajj on his behalf or an offer of money from his child. There is a well-known disagreement over this in the schools of al-Shāfiʿī and Ahmad. The well-known position in Ahmad’s school is that it is not obligatory. Only a group of his followers held it obligatory, because, according to his underlying principle, a father is entitled to take ownership of his child’s wealth; accepting it would therefore be like taking possession of things freely available for ownership. The well-known position in al-Shāfiʿī’s school is that it becomes obligatory when the son offers to perform the act.

The point here is to distinguish between what is indispensable to fulfilling an obligation and what is indispensable for that obligation to arise. The discussion of the second category concerns only what is indispensable to fulfilling an obligation, such as travelling the necessary distance for Friday prayer, Hajj and the like. The legally accountable person must do this, by agreement of the Muslims. However, someone who neglects Hajj while living far from Mecca, or neglects