Short answer
No. A prayer in the Sacred Mosque in Mecca is better than 100,000 prayers elsewhere, and one in the Prophet's (ﷺ) mosque in Medina better than 1,000. That reward is real, and it is worth seeking. But no one buys Paradise with it. The Prophet (ﷺ) said no one's deeds will save him, not even his own, unless Allah (﷾) covers him with His mercy. Allah (﷾) looks at hearts and deeds, not at wealth. Hajj is a duty only for those who can afford the journey. When poor companions complained that the rich could do Hajj and give charity, the Prophet (ﷺ) gave them words of praise to say after every prayer, free to anyone. Those held back by a real excuse share the reward of those who went. A good deed you sincerely intend is written for you even if you cannot do it. And the poor emigrants will enter Paradise forty years before the rich. So reward matters, but it is open to everyone, and mercy decides.
Full explanation
What the hadiths say
The Prophet (ﷺ) said that one prayer in his mosque in Medina is better than a thousand prayers in any other mosque, except the Sacred Mosque in Mecca. In another report, graded authentic, he said that one prayer in the Sacred Mosque is better than a hundred thousand prayers elsewhere. Muslims believe this, and many travel to pray there. The question is what it means for the many who cannot go.
Abu Hurayra reports that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: one prayer in my mosque is better than a thousand prayers in any other mosque, except the Sacred Mosque (in Mecca).
Jabir reports that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: one prayer in my mosque is better than a thousand prayers elsewhere, except the Sacred Mosque, and one prayer in the Sacred Mosque is better than a hundred thousand prayers elsewhere.
| Where | Better than |
|---|---|
| The Sacred Mosque, Mecca | 100,000 prayers elsewhere |
| The Prophet's (ﷺ) mosque, Medina | 1,000 prayers elsewhere |
The charge: "pay-to-win"
Online, some say Islam is a pay-to-win religion. A trip to Mecca or Medina costs money. So, they say, the rich can buy a hundred thousand prayers' worth of reward while the poor stay at home. The charge sounds strong only if Paradise is a points race that the highest score wins. Islam does not teach that.
Jabir reports that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: one prayer in my mosque is better than a thousand prayers elsewhere, except the Sacred Mosque, and one prayer in the Sacred Mosque is better than a hundred thousand prayers elsewhere.
Paradise is by Allah's (﷾) mercy, not a points total
The Prophet (ﷺ) said that no one's deeds will save him. His companions asked whether that included him. He said: not even me, unless Allah (﷾) covers me with His mercy. He also said that Allah (﷾) does not look at your faces or your wealth, but at your hearts and your deeds. Wealth itself counts for nothing in His sight. No one enters Paradise by buying it.
Abu Hurayra reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) said no one's deeds will save him. Asked whether that included him, he said: not even me, unless Allah covers me with His mercy. He then told them to do good deeds properly, sincerely and in moderation.
Abu Huraira reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) said: Allah does not look at your faces or your wealth, but He looks at your hearts and your deeds.
Allah's (﷾) mercy
The heart and its deeds
How much money you have
A total of reward that buys a place
How is a Muslim saved? Do Muslims earn Paradise by good works?
Then why does reward matter?
Reward is still real, or the Prophet (ﷺ) would not have spoken of it. Allah (﷾) writes every good deed, from ten to seven hundred times over or more. The Qur'an says that whoever does an atom's weight of good will see it. In the same hadith that says deeds cannot save anyone, the Prophet (ﷺ) told his companions to do good deeds properly and sincerely. Reward is a gift from Allah (﷾), and seeking it is part of worship. It is not a price tag on Paradise.
Ibn Abbas reports that the Prophet (ﷺ), telling what his Lord said, taught: a good deed intended but not done is written as one full good deed; if it is done, it is written as ten to seven hundred times over, or more; a bad deed intended but not done is written as a full good deed; if it is done, it is written as one bad deed only. Also in Sahih Muslim 131.
“Then shall anyone who has done an atom's weight of good, see it! And anyone who has done an atom's weight of evil, shall see it.”
Abu Hurayra reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) said no one's deeds will save him. Asked whether that included him, he said: not even me, unless Allah covers me with His mercy. He then told them to do good deeds properly, sincerely and in moderation.
Allah (﷾) asks only what you can do
The Qur'an makes Hajj a duty only for "those who can afford the journey". When a man asked whether Hajj was every year, the Prophet (ﷺ) said no, and told the people to do what he commanded as far as they were able. Hajj is once in a lifetime, and only for those who can go. The Qur'an says: "On no soul doth Allah Place a burden greater than it can bear." And: "So fear Allah as much as ye can". A poor Muslim who never sees Mecca has missed no duty.
“In it are Signs Manifest; (for example), the Station of Abraham; whoever enters it attains security; Pilgrimage thereto is a duty men owe to Allah,- those who can afford the journey; but if any deny faith, Allah stands not in need of any of His creatures.”
Abu Hurayra reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) told the people that Allah had made the pilgrimage a duty for them. A man asked three times whether it was every year. The Prophet said that if he said yes it would become a duty every year and they would not manage it, and told them to do what he commanded as far as they were able.
“On no soul doth Allah Place a burden greater than it can bear. It gets every good that it earns, and it suffers every ill that it earns. (Pray:) "Our Lord! Condemn us not if we forget or fall into error; our Lord! Lay not on us a burden Like that which Thou didst lay on those before us; Our Lord! Lay not on us a burden greater than we have strength to bear. Blot out our sins, and grant us forgiveness. Have mercy on us. Thou art our Protector; Help us against those who stand against faith."”
“So fear Allah as much as ye can; listen and obey and spend in charity for the benefit of your own soul and those saved from the covetousness of their own souls,- they are the ones that achieve prosperity.”
A Muslim thinks about Hajj.
Can he afford the journey?
If yes, Hajj is a duty once in his life.
And if he cannot?
There is no duty and no sin. Allah (﷾) asks only what a soul can bear.
And if he longs to go?
A good deed he sincerely intends is written for him.
The poor companions asked the same question
This is not a new complaint. Poor companions came to the Prophet (ﷺ) and said the rich would get the higher ranks. They pray and fast as we do, they said, and they also have money for Hajj, Umrah and charity. The Prophet (ﷺ) did not tell them to find money. He taught them to say Subhan Allah, al-Hamdu lillah and Allahu Akbar thirty-three times each after every prayer. He said no one would overtake them except those who did the same. When rich companions heard of it and did it too, the Prophet (ﷺ) said this is the grace of Allah (﷾), which He gives to whom He wills. Wealth is no sin. But the way to the highest ranks costs nothing.
Abu Hurayra reports that some poor people came to the Prophet (ﷺ) and said the rich would get the higher ranks: they pray and fast like us, and they have money for Hajj and Umrah, for striving in Allah's cause and for charity. The Prophet (ﷺ) said: shall I not tell you something by which you would catch up with those ahead of you, and no one would overtake you except those who do the same? Say Subhan Allah, al-Hamdu lillah and Allahu Akbar thirty-three times each after every prayer.
Abu Hurayra reports that the poor emigrants came to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and said the wealthy had the highest ranks, because they gave charity and freed slaves and the poor could not. He taught them to glorify, praise and magnify Allah thirty-three times after every prayer. Later the poor emigrants came back and said their wealthy brothers had heard of it and did the same. The Prophet (ﷺ) said: this is the grace of Allah, which He gives to whom He wills.
Intention and a real excuse
Allah (﷾) writes a good deed that you intend, even if you cannot do it, as one full good deed. On one journey the Prophet (ﷺ) said that some people had stayed behind in Medina, yet they were with the travellers in every valley they crossed. They shared the reward, because a real excuse had held them back. A poor Muslim who longs to pray in Mecca, and cannot, is not shut out of its good.
Ibn Abbas reports that the Prophet (ﷺ), telling what his Lord said, taught: a good deed intended but not done is written as one full good deed; if it is done, it is written as ten to seven hundred times over, or more; a bad deed intended but not done is written as a full good deed; if it is done, it is written as one bad deed only. Also in Sahih Muslim 131.
Anas reports that the Prophet (ﷺ), on an expedition, said: some people stayed behind us in Medina, yet we never crossed a mountain path or a valley but they were with us in reward, because a real excuse held them back.
The poor go first
If anything, the hadiths favour the poor. Abdullah ibn Amr told three poor men who came to him with nothing what he had heard from the Prophet (ﷺ). The poor among the emigrants will go ahead of the rich into Paradise by forty years. The men chose to be patient and asked for nothing. The Qur'an says the most honoured in Allah's (﷾) sight is the most righteous, not the richest.
Abdullah ibn Amr ibn al-As told three poor men who came to him with nothing that he had heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say: the poor among the emigrants will go ahead of the rich into Paradise by forty years on the Day of Resurrection. The men chose to be patient and asked for nothing.
“O mankind! We created you from a single (pair) of a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes, that ye may know each other (not that ye may despise (each other). Verily the most honoured of you in the sight of Allah is (he who is) the most righteous of you. And Allah has full knowledge and is well acquainted (with all things).”
Rewards open to everyone
The greatest rewards in Islam cost nothing. The Prophet (ﷺ) said the five daily prayers are like a river at your door that you bathe in five times a day: they wash away sins. He said that whoever says Subhan Allah wa bihamdihi a hundred times a day is forgiven his sins, even if they were as much as the foam of the sea. About the animals of sacrifice the Qur'an says: "It is not their meat nor their blood, that reaches Allah: it is your piety that reaches Him". Piety is free.
Abu Hurayra heard the Prophet (ﷺ) ask whether any dirt would be left on someone who bathed five times a day in a river at his door. They said not a trace would be left. He said that is the example of the five prayers, by which Allah wipes out evil deeds. Also in Sahih Muslim 667.
Abu Hurayra reports that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: whoever says Subhan Allah wa bihamdihi (glory and praise be to Allah) a hundred times a day will have his sins forgiven, even if they were as much as the foam of the sea.
“It is not their meat nor their blood, that reaches Allah: it is your piety that reaches Him: He has thus made them subject to you, that ye may glorify Allah for His Guidance to you and proclaim the good news to all who do right.”
| Deed | What the Prophet (ﷺ) said |
|---|---|
| The five daily prayers | Like bathing five times a day in a river at your door |
| Praise 33 times each after prayer | No one overtakes you except those who do the same |
| Subhan Allah wa bihamdihi, 100 times a day | Sins forgiven, even as much as the foam of the sea |
| A good deed you intend | Written as one full good deed |
| Held back by a real excuse | You share the reward of those who went |
So is Islam pay-to-win?
No. The extra reward for praying in Mecca and Medina is real, and Muslims who can go are glad of it. But Paradise is not bought with reward. It comes by Allah's (﷾) mercy, to hearts that believed and did good. Hajj is asked only of those who can afford it. The poor were given words of praise that keep pace with the rich, the reward of what they intend, and a place in Paradise before them. Reward matters, because Allah (﷾) honours every good deed. But no one is shut out for being poor.
Abu Hurayra reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) said no one's deeds will save him. Asked whether that included him, he said: not even me, unless Allah covers me with His mercy. He then told them to do good deeds properly, sincerely and in moderation.
“In it are Signs Manifest; (for example), the Station of Abraham; whoever enters it attains security; Pilgrimage thereto is a duty men owe to Allah,- those who can afford the journey; but if any deny faith, Allah stands not in need of any of His creatures.”
Abu Hurayra reports that some poor people came to the Prophet (ﷺ) and said the rich would get the higher ranks: they pray and fast like us, and they have money for Hajj and Umrah, for striving in Allah's cause and for charity. The Prophet (ﷺ) said: shall I not tell you something by which you would catch up with those ahead of you, and no one would overtake you except those who do the same? Say Subhan Allah, al-Hamdu lillah and Allahu Akbar thirty-three times each after every prayer.
Ibn Abbas reports that the Prophet (ﷺ), telling what his Lord said, taught: a good deed intended but not done is written as one full good deed; if it is done, it is written as ten to seven hundred times over, or more; a bad deed intended but not done is written as a full good deed; if it is done, it is written as one bad deed only. Also in Sahih Muslim 131.
Abdullah ibn Amr ibn al-As told three poor men who came to him with nothing that he had heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say: the poor among the emigrants will go ahead of the rich into Paradise by forty years on the Day of Resurrection. The men chose to be patient and asked for nothing.
Prayer in Mecca and Medina earns more reward
Reward still matters
Paradise is bought with reward
The poor must travel to Mecca
The poor are left behind
Perspectives
Critics say Islam is pay-to-win
Some critics say that because prayer in Mecca and Medina earns far more reward, and the journey costs money, the rich can buy a better place in Paradise than the poor.
A prayer in Mecca is worth 100,000 prayers, and only those with money can travel there.
Rebuttal
The reward is real, but Paradise is by Allah's (﷾) mercy, not a total of reward. Hajj is a duty only for those who can afford it, and a sincere intention is written as a good deed.
The rich can do Hajj, Umrah and charity, so they will always get the higher ranks.
Rebuttal
Poor companions made this complaint to the Prophet (ﷺ) himself. He gave them words of praise after every prayer, free to anyone, and said the poor emigrants enter Paradise forty years before the rich.
A poor Muslim who never reaches Mecca loses out.
Rebuttal
Those held back by a real excuse share the reward of those who went, and Allah (﷾) burdens no soul beyond what it can bear.
The Islamic perspective
Prayer in Mecca and Medina carries a real and greater reward, but no one enters Paradise by his deeds alone. Allah (﷾) asks each person only what he can do, looks at hearts rather than wealth, and opens the greatest rewards to everyone.
One prayer in the Prophet's (ﷺ) mosque is better than 1,000 elsewhere, and one in the Sacred Mosque better than 100,000.
No one is saved by his deeds alone, but by Allah's (﷾) mercy.
Allah (﷾) looks at hearts and deeds, not at wealth.
Hajj is a duty only for those who can afford the journey, once in a lifetime.
The Prophet (ﷺ) gave the poor words of praise after prayer by which they would keep pace with the rich.
A sincere intention and a real excuse bring the reward of the deed.
The poor emigrants enter Paradise forty years before the rich.