Refuting allegation that women are unintelligent and untalented

Question

Is it unusual for women to be intelligent and talent? Is it totally impossible for women to be intelligent and talented? Are they completely and totally deficient in intelligence according to Islam? Or it that confined to being witness and leadership? It would be easy if you could clarify it. It would be easy to understand if you would give a direct answer instead of showing other fatwas.

Answer

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah and that Muhammad  is His slave and Messenger.

There is nothing that prevents a woman from being intelligent or talented. Indeed, ‘Aa’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, was knowledgeable of the rulings of the Shariah, and the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them, and the Taabi’is (generation following that of the Companions) learned from her. She was also knowledgeable of medicine and the lineages of the Arabs.

In brief, the meaning of the statement that women are deficient in mind and religion is clarified in the hadeeth itself, in which the Prophet  said that the deficiency in mind is that the testimony of two women is equal to the testimony of one man and that the deficiency in religion is that a woman spends several days without praying or fasting when she has her menses or is in post-partum bleeding after childbirth.

However, there is no blame on the woman in all this, and it is out of her control; the first matter is because she was created like this, and the second is because she is commanded with it by the Shariah.

These rulings that were mentioned in the hadeeth are in fact a relief and alleviation for women, because testimony is a responsibility, as well as the prayer and fasting. So when Allah eases the matter for the woman in all that, it is an honor from Allah to her. At the same time, it is evidence of the Justice of Allah, as He gives each of the genders the rulings that suit their respective creation upon which Allah created them.

You will find more details in this regard in the fatwas cited above, so please refer to them.

Allah knows best.

-islamweb.net

Mistakes made by people while praying - II

The following are states and positions of the Imam and his followers in congregational prayer:

The first state: Preceding the Imam

This means that the follower precedes the Imam in performing Takbeer (i.e., saying, ‘Allahu Akbar’) Rukoo‘ (bowing), prostration or ending the prayer and this is impermissible as the Prophet, , warned us against it, saying: “Is not the one who raises his head before the Imam afraid that Allah may transform his head into that of a donkey or his figure (face) into that of a donkey?”[Al-Jama‘ah] 

The Imam is the leader, so it is impermissible to precede him. The Prophet, , said: “The Imam should perform Rukoo‘ before you and get up before you.” [Muslim] The Prophet, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, also said: “Do not precede me in Rukoo‘, prostration, getting up, sitting or leaving.” [Muslim and Ahmad] 

It is agreed upon that preceding the Imam intentionally invalidates the prayer. Imam Ahmad  quoted Ibn Mas‘ood  as saying to the one who preceded his Imam, “You neither prayed alone nor followed your Imam.”Ibn ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated that Ibn Mas‘ood  said to this man, “You have not prayed alone or with your Imam.”Then, he struck him and ordered him to repeat his prayer.

If preceding the Imaam was done unintentionally and in performing aRukoo‘ or prostration before the Imaam, the follower should return and perform Rukoo‘ after his Imam performs it. If the follower did this intentionally, his prayer would be invalid, but if he forgot to do this or was ignorant regarding this, he would be excused according to the opinion of the majority of scholars who stated that the prayer would be correct as he is excused for his ignorance and forgetfulness, and they obliged him to follow his Imaam. However, Imaam Ahmad  said that his prayer is invalid even if this was done out of forgetfulness because of the general indication of the Hadeeths. 

The second state: Coincidence

This means that the movement of the Imam and the follower takes place at the same time when they are performing Rukoo‘, prostrating themselves and so forth. This is incorrect as the Imam should be followed. The Prophet, , said: “The Imam is to be followed, so when he performs Takbeer, you should perform Takbeer and when he performs Rukoo‘, you should perform Rukoo’ - and do not perform Rukoo‘ before he does…”[Ahmad and Abu Dawood] 

If the follower performed Takbeerat Al-Ihram (the opening, ‘Allahu Akbar’) at the same time as the Imam or before the Imam finishes his Takbeer, his prayer would be invalid regardless of whether this was done intentionally of out of forgetfulness. If the follower did this in any other Takbeer, his prayer would be correct, but with an unfavorable act and an improper following of the Imam. Muslims should avoid any thing that makes their prayer incomplete or invalidates it. 

The third state: Following

This is what the follower in prayer should do as it achieves the required following in prayer. This is achieved when the follower does all the movements immediately after the movement of the Imam as the Prophet, , ordered us to do this by saying: “When the Imam performs Takbeer, perform Takbeer; when the Imam performs Rukoo‘, perform Rukoo‘; when the Imam raises his head and says: ‘Sami‘a Allahu liman Hamidah’ (Allah hears he who praises him), raise your head and say: ‘Rabbana wa laka Al-Hamd’ (O Allah, praise be to you). When the Imam prostrates himself, prostrate yourselves.” [Muslim] This Hadeeth means that the followers should wait for the Imam until he performs the Takbeer and finishes it, then perform the Takbeer after him. The Imam should not prolong hisTakbeer as the one who is praying after him may hasten and perform theTakbeer before him, thus invalidating his prayer. 

Thus, the follower should keep standing until his Imam performs Rukoo‘and finishes the Takbeer of Rukoo‘, then he should perform Rukoo‘ and keep in his Rukoo‘ until his Imam gets up and says, “Sami‘a Allahu liman Hamidah,” then he should get up and keep standing until the Imam says the Takbeer and puts his face on the ground, then prostrate himself after his Imam does. This applies to all the acts of prayer. Al-Baraa’ ibn ‘Aazib  said, “When the Prophet  would bend to perform prostration, none of us would bend his back until the Prophet  would place his forehead on the ground.”[Muslim] This is the true following with which the prayer is perfected. 

The fourth state: Lagging

This means that the follower lags behind his Imam. Scholars considered this state just like preceding the Imam as it also entails negligence in the required immediate following of the Imam. If the follower lags behind intentionally until the Imam performs Rukoo‘ and gets up, his prayer would be invalid, but if there is a reason such as drowsiness, forgetfulness or because of the quickness of the Imam, then he should perform Rukoo‘after the Imam and his prayer will be valid. If the person lags behind on purpose until the Imam performs Rukoo‘, gets up and prostrates himself, then his prayer would be invalid. If this is done out of forgetfulness or ignorance, he should repeat this Rak‘ah during which he did not follow his Imam. 

The follower should be alert and should concentrate on what he says and does so that he would achieve following his Imam - something which is required for the perfection of the prayer. -islamweb.net

READ PART ! - Mistakes made by people while praying - I

Saving money – does Islam permit it?

Question

What does Islam say about saving money? Should we save money for the future? I read that some of the prophet's Companions died with no wealth, not even a cloth to shroud their bodies for burial. I also read that Abu Bakr gave all his wealth to the Prophet for distribution in charity. So, where does the concept of saving come in?

Answer

For proof that it is permissible to save for the future, we need look no farther than the Zakâh on monetary wealth. We do not pay Zakâh on our income. We only pay Zakâh upon our savings and only if those savings have reached a certain level and have remained at or above that level for a full year. 

`Aishah said: the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “No Zakâh will be levied on money until a year passes from the time of its possession.”[Sunan Ibn Mâjah (1792) with an authentic chain of transmission as stated by al-Zayla`î in Nasb al-Râyah (2/328), al-Nawawî in al-Khulâsah, and al-Albâni in Irwâ’ al-Ghalîl (3/254)] 

It was related by `Ali that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “If you have 200 durhams and a year passes then you have to pay five dirhams. You do not have to pay anything for the gold you possess until it reaches twenty dinars. If you possess twenty dinars and a year passes a year then you have to pay half a dinar.” [Related by Abû Dâwûd and authenticated by al-Albânî in Sahîh al-Sunan] 

A person without savings will never pay Zakâh on monetary wealth. It is the Zakâh that purifies one's savings, by giving the poor ad needy their due from it. 

Inheritance is another proof of this. The inheritance laws in Islam are quite detailed and allot percentages of the entire estate to various relatives of the deceased. This pre-assumes that there is an estate which the deceased left behind, which in other words is wealth that he or she had accumulated. 

Indeed, due to the importance of leaving behind something to one's needy dependants to provide for them in the event of one's death, the Prophet (peace be upon him) restricted charitable bequests to no more than a third of one's estate. 

The following is related about the steemed Companion, Sa`d b. Abi Waqqas, who wanted to make out a will giving away in charity everything that he owned:

He went to the Prophet (peace be upon him) and said to him: "O Messenger of Allah! I have a lot of wealth and only my daughter to inherit it from me. Should I bequeath all of my wealth in charity?" 

The Prophet (peace be upon him) told him that he should not do so. Then Sa`d suggested bequeathing two-thirds of his wealth to charity. When the prophet again refused, Sa`d then suggested half of his wealth. 

At this point the Prophet (peace be upon him) replied: "One-third, and that is still too much. It is better for you to leave your heirs wealthy, rather than leaving them dependent and begging from others.” 

[Sunan al-Tirmidhî (2042), Sunan Abî Dâwûd (2480), Sunan al-Nasâ'î (3567) and Sunan Ibn Mâjah (2699)]

Also, in the story of Joseph (peace be upon him), we see a good reference to saving. 

Allah tells us in the Qur'ân: “(Joseph) said: 'For seven years you should cultivate the land as usual, but leave the harvest that you reap in the ear except for a little that you eat. Then after that will come seven difficult years in which you will eat all that you have set aside except for a little of what you have stored. Then will come a year of abundance in which you will press wine and oil'." [Sûrah Yûsuf: 47-49] 

This is a clear recommendation to save for future need. 

And Allah knows best.

-islamtoday.net

Meaning of statement: Women are captives with men

Question

Assalaamualaikum, In a hadith, it is told that the wife is the captive/prisoner of the husband. Even ‘Umar  said, "Marriage is enslavement." These statements make me panic. And crying in panic is all that is left. This means that husband-wife relation is a owner-slave relation? Or is it an owner-servant relation? Or is it a boss-employee relation? And is the husband's house a prison for the wife? I need an authentic explanation so that it would be easy to understand.

Answer

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah and that Muhammad  is His slave and Messenger. 

Describing women as captives (in the marriage bond) is confirmed in an authentic hadeeth reported by At-Tirmithi within the speech of the Prophet  in the Farewell Pilgrimage, in which he said, “I enjoin you to treat women well, for they are like captives with you, and you may not treat them otherwise unless they commit flagrant immorality…”

As regards the statement, “Marriage is enslavement,” it was narrated both as a direct statement attributed to the Prophet  (a Marfoo' hadeeth) and as a statement attributed to ‘Umar, ‘Aa’ishah, and Asmaa’, may Allah be pleased with them all (a Mawqoof hadeeth). The Mawqoof hadeeth (the narration attributed to the three Companions) is the one judged as authentic, as was stated by Al-Iraaqi while quoting Al-Bayhaqi.

However, these statements and the like do not mean that women are degraded or that they are like female slaves and that their husbands are their masters; rather, they mean that by virtue of a valid marriage contract, the woman is joined to her husband with a bond that makes her obliged to obey him in what is permissible and prevents her from desiring a man other than him. So the wife is obliged to obey her husband in matters of their intimate relationship and she should fulfill his rights upon her, just as he is obliged to fulfill her rights upon him; Allah says (what means): {And due to the wives is similar to what is expected of them, according to what is reasonable.} [Quran 2:228]

The relationship between them is closer to the relationship that you mentioned between the employee with her superior at work. This is the meaning of Qiwaamah (guardianship/responsibility) that Allah entitled the husband to have over his wife, as Allah says (what means): {Men are in charge of women by [right of] what Allah has given one over the other and what they spend [for maintenance] from their wealth..} [Quran 4:34]

It is a responsibility of management of affairs, and it is for this reason that the wise Sharia warned the husbands against exploiting this responsibility in being authoritative over the wives. This was mentioned in the continuation of the previous verse, as Allah says (what means): {But if they obey you [once more], seek no means against them. Indeed, Allah is ever Exalted and Grand.} [Quran 4:34]

Ibn Katheer  said, “The saying of Allah {Indeed, Allah is ever Exalted and Grand} is a warning to mean that if they transgress against women without justification, then Allah, The Exalted and Grand, is their (women's) Protector, and He will exert revenge on those who transgress against women and deal with them unjustly.”

The most important thing that should be known is that marriage is an integration between the husband and wife; each of them fulfills the role that the other may be unable to fulfill. Just as she may serve him by organizing the affairs of his home and taking care of his children, he serves her by going about in the land in order to earn a living.

‘Aa’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, narrated that the Prophet  said, “Women are but counterparts of men.” [Ahmad, Abu Dawood, At-Tirmithi].

In conclusion, hearing these ahaadeeth and the like should not be a reason for worry, and a Muslim must understand them within the full context of the principles of Islam which take care of women and give them their rights and order men to be kind to them and warn against harming them and so forth, because if these statements are taken out of this context, then they could be misunderstood to mean the opposite.

Allah knows best.

-islamweb.net

Saying to wife: I divorce you five times

Question

Shaykh, I am in so much distress and pain. I was slightly mad and I texted my wife that I wanted to end the relationship - just to scare her - and that I would call and tell her the words. I was hoping that she would not answer, but she did, which made me mad. I was like, "Fine, I divorce you 5 times." By Allah, I do not remember my intention, but I can take an oath on Allah's name that it was not of three or more. In my knowledge, which is very limited in this case, if you say 'I divorce you' three times, only then does it take place. By Allah, I added the words '5 times' into the sentence with the intention that that would make the sentence wrong so that it would not make sense and nullify or void the sentence, but later on, I discovered that it does come into effect. Shaykh, we both went through so much to be together; she converted to Islam after so much persuasion and left her family after being abused every day and she lives in social care because of me. We got married over the phone with an imam from my side who acted as her legal guardian and two witnesses, and now because of my one stupidity, one wrong sentence, regarding which I swear by Allah that I intended something else to make it void, our relationship comes to an end. We have not even met. Please, Shaykh, tell me what I should do? We both cry every day and night. I added '5 times' with the intention of making the statement wrong, by Allah. Please, tell us what to do.

Answer

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah and that Muhammad  is His slave and Messenger.

First of all, we advise you to take it easy upon yourself. At times of distress, it is a Sunnah for the Muslim to mention Allah as much as possible and not torture himself with anxiety and grief. Abu Bakrah, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated that the Prophet  said, “The supplication of a person in distress is: Allahumma rahmataka arju fala takilni ila nafsi tarfata 'ayn, wa aslih li sha'ni kullahu, la ilaaha illa ant. (O Allah, it is Your Mercy that I hope for, so do not leave me in charge of my affairs even for the blink of an eye and rectify for me all of my affairs. None has the right to be worshiped except You.)” [Abu Daawood]

In general, there is tranquility and comfort for the heart in mentioning Allah; Allah says (what means): {Those who have believed and whose hearts are assured by the remembrance of Allah. Unquestionably, by the remembrance of Allah hearts are assured.".} [Quran 13:28]

On the one hand, writing the words of divorce is one of the metaphors of divorce, and divorce does not take place by it except with the intention of the husband;

On the other hand, divorce in the present tense - by saying "I divorce you" - is not an explicit expression of divorce, so it also depends on the intention of the husband.

You mentioned that you did not intend divorce or that you doubt your intention, but it appears from your statement "I added the words 'five times' into the sentence with the intention that that would make the sentence wrong so that it would not make sense and nullify or void the sentence" that you did intend divorce. Saying three divorces in one sentence takes effect as three divorces. The same applies if you tell her, 'I divorce you, I divorce you, I divorce you'; unless you intended with the second and third divorces to confirm the first one; in which case divorce takes place only as one divorce.

Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah  held that three utterances of divorce take place as one divorce in all cases. The view that we adopt here in Islamweb is the view of the majority of the scholars.

Since there is a difference of opinion among the scholars of Fiqh on the issue and the matter requires finding out details about your intention as well as what you really uttered, then in our view it is better to speak in person with one of the scholars of your country or to take the case to an Islamic court or whatever serves instead in the West, such as Islamic Centers.

We advise you and your wife to beware of what leads to marital disputes and not to open doors for the devil to ruin your marriage. You should always try to reach mutual understanding and respect and fulfill each other's rights. We advise you in particular to avoid anger because anger is from the devil, and it is a key to much evil.

Allah knows best.

-islamweb.net

Uncertainty regarding the number of divorces

Question

If a man is unsure wheher he has divorced his wife on two occasions or three, does he have the right to take his wife back and resume his marriage with her, or will his divorce be construed as irrevocable?

Answer

If a person doubts the number of times he has issued a divorce, he has to count only the number of times for which he is absolutely certain. This has been clearly stated by Ahmad b Hanbal, and it is also the opinion of Abû Hanîfah and al-Shâfi`î and of their respective schools of thought. 

The reason for this has to do with certainty and doubt. Any presumed divorce that exceeds the number that the man is certain to have issued is something doubtful. The marriage, on the other hand, is something affirmed, so it cannot be invalidated by something that is doubtful. Consequently, a doubtful situation regarding the pronouncement of a divorce will not be upheld as a valid divorce. 

On this basis, the ruling in this case will be the same as for the one who had divorced his wife less than three times. Thus, he is entitled to take his wife back and resume his marriage. 

In other words, whoever is certain to have issued one pronouncement of divorce and is in doubt regarding a second pronouncement, for him a single valid divorce will be legally recognized. Whoever is certain of two pronouncements of divorce and is in doubt about a third, for him two valid divorces will be legally recognized. 

And Allah knows best.

-islamtoday.net

The relatives with whom we must keep close ties

Question

Great emphasis has been laid on our maintaining close ties with our relatives. Can you please advise me on who is included in this? Is this just for people like our parents and our brothers and sisters? Does it include our uncles and aunts or our cousins? How far back does it go?

Answer

The relatives with whom we should establish close and continuous ties are all of our relatives, even our distant relations. However, our closer relations will have the greater priority commensurate with their nearness in kinship. 

As is the case with all obligations, keeping such ties is contingent on a person’s ability. Allah says: “Fear Allah as much as you can.” [Sûrah al-Taghâbun:16]. 

The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “Do as much as you can of what I have ordered you to do.” 

It is worth saying that prevailing customs have an important role to play in identifying and determining the nature of these ties. Whatever seems to be obligatory will be so. This will vary from one person to another according to how close his relationship with that other person is. This is so, because these matters have not been set forth in all their details by the Qur’ân and Sunnah. The textual evidence intentionally leaves the defining qualities of such relationships open-ended. 

However, it is known from the Sunnah that showing kindness to the friends of our parents’ after they have died is part of what it means to be kind to our parents. 

Some scholars have suggested that the relatives with whom we should establish close ties are all the people who are descended from any great-grand parent of one of our own grandparents.

In short, we should keep good ties with our relatives as much as possible. 

And Allah knows best.

-islamtoday.net