Qn1: There’s a company which gives out loans to its employees but these loans are taken from a bank which deals with interest. Is it permissible for the employees to take out these loans?
Qn2: My brother took his shahadah last year but I have since found out that when he is with me he acts one way, and when he is with his non-Muslims friends he acts another way. For example, he celebrates Christmas and their festivals and he complains that he can’t drink alcohol and he also has a dog in his house. He has been advised about this many times. How do I treat him knowing that he sometimes treats our religion as a joke?
Qn3: My brother has a daughter that he has raised on his own since she was a baby, but he has never married the mother. What rights does he have regarding this child? Can he act as her Wali (guardian) knowing that he doesn’t look after her according to the Quran and Sunnah and she’s nearly twelve years old?
Qn5: I live in America, and I work for a non-Muslim company. At Christmas and other such festivals we are given a bonus; should I accept this bonus, or should I give it away in charity?
Qn.6: We are a small group of Salafis in Denmark and in our city we have a few mosques and most of them are far from where we are. There is one mosque that Muslims from different nationalities attend however it is run by some Takfiriyoon and Qutbiyoon and many of the general people attend this masjid. But in nearly every khutbah, they make takfeer of the rulers and speak bad of our scholars. There is another mosque where the people are Ahnaf (from the Hanafee madhab), there are no Takfirees there but there are the people who are upon innovations, extremism and Sufiyyah.
Qn8: If a father hasn’t distributed the Zakat-al-Fitr of Ramadhaan for his wife and children in the days before and during 'Eid, is it permissible for him to do so later after 'Eid, or is it a sin?
Qn7: Is it permissible for a female student of knowledge to have her voice heard in a gathering with a Shaykh knowing that this gathering also has male students?
Qn9: I suffer from kidney disease and I have my kidneys cleaned from the time of Dhuhur to the time of Maghrib. So how can I pray ‘Asr, even though I am awake and aware, I cannot move or make wudhu (ablutions) while my kidneys are being cleaned?
Qn10: I am an American living in America and I wondered if the du’aa in Sajdah (prostration) has to be in Arabic and in any specific words or can I supplicate as I please in my own language knowing that I don’t speak any Arabic?
Qn11: I am from India and wondered if we could accept food and gifts from the kuffar (disbelievers) during their festivals?
Ans.11: I say that these celebrations and these festivals of theirs are haram, they are not permissible; and whatever they give you of that food then it is not permissible and whatever else comes as a gift from these festivals, it is not permissible. So do not accept from their food, gifts, clothing or anything because their festivals are not permissible according to us.
Qn13: Regarding a narration of ‘Umar (radhi Allaahu ‘anhu) where it is mentioned that he said, ‘Indeed I cannot achieve the answer for the supplication but I can achieve the importance or the concern for the actual supplication.’ So what is the meaning of this ‘achieving of this du’aa and the answer for it.’
Qn12: I am from Pakistan and here a man marries a woman (sign the contract for the nikah) but can’t be with her or consummate the marriage because there is a period of time when the bride’s family must bring her furniture and belongings. So until this is done, the groom cannot spend time with his wife or be with her or anything like this.
Qn16: We live in England in a city which has no Muslim schools. We intend to make hijrah but this won’t be possible for another year so. Is it permissible for us to send our eleven year-old son to a non-Muslim school until we make Hijrah (emigrate to a Muslim land) as we fear he will fall behind in his education and it is not possible for us to homeschool him properly?
Qn17: I live in America and my husband is suffering from a pain in his back and I even suspect he may be diabetic. He refuses to get treatment as he fears the non-Muslim doctors may not treat him in the best interest. He claims that we should just leave his state in the Hands of Allaah ‘Azza wa Jal. What is your opinion?
Qn18: There’s a young Salafi who’s suffering from epilepsy and has been seeking treatment so he hasn’t suffered any symptoms for the last two years. He has proposed to a sister for marriage. Should her family accept this proposal for their daughter?
Qn19: I have become pregnant from illegal intercourse and I am suffering some complications with this pregnancy. Is it permissible for me to enquire about the fetus because I am not yet forty days pregnant. If it is not permissible and Allaah has willed for me to remain pregnant and give birth, who is this child attributed to? Should he be named after the father despite the fact that the father doesn’t want to marry me? If not, who? If the father marries me, is the child ascribed to the father?
Qn20: My teeth are crooked, some have grown over others and I will like to have them straightened by using a certain tool. What is the ruling regarding this?
Qn22: I am from Holland and want to study in a new institute in Shihr (Hadramot) with the Shaykh ‘Abdullah Mar’ei Al-‘Adaly. Do you advise me to study there?
Qn23: We live in America and wish to know what is permissible for women to wear in terms of colours or decorations on their outer garments such as the ‘abayas (cloak)?
Qn21: My father has abandoned the prayer, commits illegal intercourse, comes home late and doesn’t speak to us or my mother. I saw him come home once and arguing with my mother; I entered upon them and sided with my mother which angered him. Am I sinful in this?
Qn25: What is the advice to a brother from France who refuses to wear clothes which cover his ‘awrah (the parts which must be covered) – he claims that if he wears a thowb which is according to the shari’ah it will cause the kuffar (disbelievers) to look at him.
Qn26: I am in Canada and my father used to give zakat to my relatives because they are poor but he has stopped doing this because they have stopped praying and he doesn’t regard them as Muslims. What is the ruling regarding this?
Qn27: I live in America and my husband lives in Algeria. We have been separated for three years. Can I seek khula (type of divorce requested by the wife) since neither of us can fulfil the rights of the other? Would I be sinful in doing this?
Qn28: Some of the people by what’s been called by ‘Interfaith Dialogue’ and they are claiming that those who Islaam hasn’t yet reached cannot be called kuffar (disbelievers) because the evidence hasn’t been established upon them. So, we ask you Shaykh, if you can explain this issue of making takfeer on those who haven’t embraced Islaam yet because the message hasn’t reached them.
Qn39: We are in Germany, and want to know what the ruling is regarding driving a taxi knowing that we sometimes have to take female passengers and women who are not correctly dressed.
Qn35: We have received a sum of money for the mosque and thereafter, we found out that the money is related to interest (riba’). What should we do with the money?
Qn37: We are preparing a website for our school and I have been requested by the Headmistress to take pictures of the girls during their activities to use on the website. We are intending to take pictures of the girls from the back without showing their faces. Is it permissible for us to do this and knowing that I am the IT (computer) teacher in a Girls’ school?
Qn40: I am in France and I have accepted Islaam. When I listen to Surah ad-Dhuha, I feel as though this Surah is directed at me and that Allaah intends me in this Surah. So what is the correct understanding for this?
Qn36: Is it permissible for me to take money from my husband’s wealth to spend on household matters and the children?
Ans.36: Taking this money from her husband for the benefit of the house and the children is acceptable. From this question, I understood that the father of this household doesn’t take care of his responsibilities as he should, so if this is the case and his wife takes money to spend on benefitting the children and his home, then there is no problem with this insha’Allaah.
Qn38: There is a new-Muslim sister in Germany who wants to get married but her father is a disbeliever (Kaafir) and we know that there is no guardianship of a Kaafir over a Muslim. She has a brother who has accepted Islaam, but he doesn’t pray and hasn’t accepted the angels and he doesn’t recognise his duty / responsibility of guardianship over her and has refused to be her Walee. Is this correct and what should she do? Also, she possesses wealth, can she ask someone to look after it?
Qn45: An old woman took something which didn’t belong to her for another woman. She kept it for a long time and later found out that it wasn’t permissible but when she wanted to return it, she found out that the other woman had passed away. What should she do?
Qn50: I am in Holland and want to know what the ruling is regarding studying Gynaecology and Midwifery knowing that while I’m doing this I have to attend lessons given by a male teacher twice a week? The reason I am studying this is because the Muslims are in great need of a female Muslim doctor as we currently have non-Muslim male doctors working in this field. So what is your advice O Shaykh?
Qn 49: When we say ‘Salaams’ we shake hands and we say, ‘Yaghfir Allaahu lana wa lakum’ (O Allaah forgive us and you) and we regard this as being form the Sunnah. Does this have a foundation in the Sunnah?
Qn 46: We sisters in England request very small dowries (Mahr) from our prospective husbands to make it easy on them and lighten our marriages. But we find that after this, we often receive harsh treatment from some of these brothers. What can you advise them?
Qn52: I prayed with my husband and made a mistake by making the Tasleem (final salam) before my husband. When I realised this, I gave the Salaam again. Do I have to repeat this prayer or can I just do the prostration of forgetfulness at the end of my prayer?
Ans.52: As long as you have realised this in the prayer, and you gave the Tasleem with your husband, then your prayer is correct and you don’t have to repeat your prayer.
Qn 48: I want to know if it is permissible for my fiancé to speak to me over the telephone with the permission of my guardian but knowing that the guardian will not be present.
Qn41: Is it permissible to hang the supplication of the traveller (du’aa of travelling) in the car so the people who haven’t memorised it yet can read it? And what about the supplication for ending a gathering in the room where the gathering takes place, as well as the supplication for entering the bathroom?
Qn51: I live in England and I’m 26, I started practising Islaam about six years ago and I am of the Salafi ‘aqeedah and manhaj. A Salafi brother proposed to me but my parents rejected him because he isn’t from the same region and tribe as ours in Pakistan. Then, another brother came to propose; we sat with my parents but he was also rejected because he isn’t of the same tribe as ours. I tried to convince my parents for close to five months but in vain.
Qn56: A man and his wife recently accepted Islaam. What should they do knowing that they used to live together without being married before they became Muslims?
Qn57: I heard from a tape of Shaykh Ubayd’s that we shouldn’t gather in groups to listen to explanations on tape but rather only gather when taking knowledge from a scholar. Is this absolute and to women only and if so, how can we seek knowledge?
Qn55: What is your opinion regarding one taking lessons of Tajweed and Arabic language from a non-Salafee whose condition is unclear, but whose mistakes we keep away from? So is there a difference of opinion amongst the scholars regarding this issue?
Qn249: Does a woman have to wear black outdoor garments (hijab)? What colours can she wear?
Ans.249: I have not come across any narration in the Qur’aan and Sunnah which limit the colour which is legislated for hijab. However, what we have is that the cloth and clothing should not be see-through, resemble that of the disbelievers and that of men, as that which is specifically for men is haram (not permissible) for women and that which is specifically for women is haram for men.
Qn59: One of our sisters, known as Umm Abdillah, who we knew nothing but good of and who used to be patient in attending our classes on Salafi Duroos regularly for two years. She was known for strongly holding on to the Sunnah and passed away two days ago. Could you, O Shaykh, make a special supplication for her and give advice to her parents and her Salafi sisters?
Qn58: Can Khula be granted after eighteen months without relations? My husband has not had relations with me for eighteen months, so can I request a khula (divorce) and if so, how long should my period of ‘iddah (waiting period) be?
Qn61: We missed the Maghrib prayer and got to the mosque and they were praying the ‘Isha prayer. What should we have done, joined the ‘Isha prayer or prayed our Maghrib?
Qn64: If in our mosque they pray the Tahajjud (Qiyam) late at night, is it upon us to leave the Tarawih which is after ‘Isha? (Questioner form America)
Qn248: When it rains I want to say the supplication of the rain (taken from the Sunnah) but my husband prevents me to do so because we are in Germany and he says he doesn’t wish the Kuffar any good. Is my husband right?
Qn47: We are in England and want to know if it is permissible for us to allow our children to watch Nature and Wildlife programmes on television at home so they don’t get bored?
Qn65: During the Tarawih prayer, whilst the Imam is reciting supplications in the final Qunut, what is the ruling regarding saying ‘ameen’ aloud after the du’aas are uttered, the raising of the hands and the extra supplications?
Qn66: Is it obligatory on the husband to give his wife money to buy ‘Eid clothing or gifts because some husbands do not do this? Can you please explain this? (Question from England)