Entertaining a guest in one's home for more than 3 days

Question

A guest visits a home and is invited to stay over for the night. However, she continues to stay for several nights. The host, out of sympathy is tolerant of this behavior, because the guest is an elderly lady, and the host feels shy to refuse her request. However, the protracted stay of this guest though infringes on the family's privacy. Is there, in Islamic practice, any stated length of time one should offer to a guest who is in need of a place to stay? Or is it purely left to the good judgment of the host?

Answer

Abu Shurayh al-`Adawî relates that the Prophet said, "Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day should honor his neighbor. And whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day should honor his guest and give him his due." 

It was asked, "Messenger of Allah, what is his due?" 

He said, "His due is a day and, and he should entertain his guest for three days. Whatever exceeds that is charity for him. 

And whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day should speak a good word or remain silent." [Sahîh al-Bukhârî (5560)] 

Scholars differ regarding what is meant by this "due". Some say it refers to giving the guest the best food and hospitality for that first day. During the other days, the hospitality should be according to the norms of the household. 

Scholars who hold this view differ as to whether the first day is inclusive in the three or if the three days are additional to it. Al-Khattâbî and many others regard the hadîth to refer to three days in total. 

Other scholars say the due is something unrelated to the hospitality. It is to give the guest provisions of a day and night when he continues on his journey. The hospitality is for the guest to be able to stay for three days. 

This is in accordance with some narrations of the hadîth which read: "His hospitality is for three days, and his due is a day and a night." 

Ibn Hajar al-Asqalânî gives the following interpretation in Fath al-Bârî (17/324):

The hadîth could be describing two different situations. A traveler sometimes intends to stay at the house. This does not have to be for more than three days. With the first day being better. In other cases, a traveler does not intend to stay the night. In this case, he should be given provisions for a day and a night. This could be the most balanced interpretation.

This shows us that three days is the minimum recommendation for entertaining a guest. Doing so for longer is commendable as charity, but it is not to be regarded as the host's duty. 

Of course, individual circumstances need to be taken into consideration, and the host should act according to his or her best discretion and judgment. 

And Allah knows best.

-islamtoday.net

Calling the adhân twice for the morning prayer

Question

Why do people call the adhân for the Fajr prayer twice?

Answer

It is preferrable, according to the Sunnah, to have two calls made for Fajr prayer. The first of these should be offered before the time of the Fajr prayer and the other at the time when the Fajr Prayer comes in.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “Bilâl calls (the adhân) while it is still night, so eat and drink until you hear the calling of Ibn Umm Maktûm.”

The narrator of the hadîth said: “Ibn Um Maktûm was blind, so he would not make the call to prayer until someone informed him that morning had arrived.

And Allah knows best.

-islamtoday.net

Postponement of the dowry

Question

I am about to get married, but I am confused about what is called the mu`akhkhar (postponed dowry). I heard that it is like a debt that I have to pay to my wife. Can I agree with her that I pay it only if divorce occurs?

Answer

The dowry should ideally be paid fully in advance. It should be a sum that is easy for the husband to pay.

It is permissible, however, to postpone all or some of the dowry until a specified or unspecified period of time.

The postponed dowry is definitely considered a debt. If a specific time is given, then the dowry must be paid on or before that time. If the time is unspecified, then it does not become due until the two part company by way of divorce, annulment of the marriage, or death.

May Allah bless you with a happy marital life.

-islamtoday.net

Picking fruit on public lands

Question

We recently went to a public park, and in it we found trees that bore plums and cherries. We picked them thinking that the park is public property and that as tax payers, we have a right to it. We also did not see at the park any sign stating that we could not eat of its fruits. However, since then we have been worried that perhaps what we did was wrong Islamically. Please clarify this issue for us.

Answer

If these public parks or other public lands having fruit trees are not subject to official regulations that eating from those trees is prohibited, and if no prohibition is implicitly understood by the people of the area, then we see no legal objection to what you have done by eating fruit from those trees. 

However, this permission is conditional. No fruit is to be picked at a park and then taken away to be eaten later. 

This is because the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “Whoever enters a garden may eat from it but should not take anything away in his shirt.” [Sunan al-Tirmidhî (1287)] 

We should be aware that some people of knowledge have understood this permission to be for travelers only. 

Others have opined that it is disliked to eat of fruit without paying for it. 

However, it appears that the differences of opinion expressed by some scholars on this matter refers to privately owned gardens. This is understood from the context of their statements and from the fact that public parks were not prevalent in the past when those statements were made. Therefore, we must understand those divergent views in the context in which they were expressed. 

As for the hadîth itself, it is general and applies to public parks as well as private gardens, and naturally, greater leniency is to be applied to public parks. 

Of course, if there are written regulations prohibiting the picking of fruit off the trees in public parks or if this is customarily understood in society as being prohibited, then it is Islamically not allowed. 

And Allah knows best.

-islamtoday.net

Belief in Allah's decree Question

Question

Explain to me the creed of Divine Decree in detail according to Islamic teachings.

Answer

Our faith in Divine Decree must be inclusive of the following four tenets: 

1. We must believe that Allah has knowledge of everything that is going to happen. Allah says: “Know that Allah is capable of all things and that Allah comprehends everything with His knowledge.” 

2. We must believe that Allah has recorded everything that will happen in creation in the Preserved Tablet (al-Lawh al-Mahfûz). Allah’s Messenger (peace be upon him) said: “Allah recorded everything that will happen in Creation fifty thousand years before He created the heavens and the Earth.” [Sahîh Muslim]. Allah says: “And of everything we have taken account in a clear book.” 

3. We must believe that nothing happens in Creation except as Allah wills. Allah says: “And you do not will except that He wills.” Allah says: “Whomever He wills He misguides and whoever He wills he places on a straight path.” He also says: “If Allah had willed, they would not have engaged in polytheism.” 

4. We must believe that Allah has created everything in existence. There is no creator, sustainer, or god besides Him. Allah says: “Allah is the creator of everything.” Allah says: “Allah created you and what you do.” 

There are two groups of Muslims who held beliefs contrary to this truth: 

1. The Qadariyyah: They denied Divine Decree. The Companions declared them unbelievers because by doing so they denied Allah’s eternal knowledge. They said that people create their own actions. They do not exist as a sect today, but there are still people around who claim that people create their own voluntary actions. 

2. The Jabriyyah: They denied human free will and claimed that the actions of people are really nothing more than Allah’s actions. They conclude that people are not responsible for their own actions. 

Ahl al-Sunnah takes a middle path between these two extremes. We believe in Divine Decree and we believe at the same time in human free will.

-islamtoday.net

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