Part 6
2847: Wants to become Muslim but lives in drug country
Question:
Dear Sir,
For a muslim, is it allowed to use drugs like cocaine . Here
in Columbia 70 % of the people use it . When I want to become
a muslim, must I stop it ? I am waiting for your answer.
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah. It is a great thing to learn that you are
thinking of embracing Islam, although you live in a country where
drugs are rife and are not following any religion at present. We
were amazed and impressed to know that a man living in
such circumstances has reached the point where he wants to
become Muslim, but Allaah is able to do all things, and He guides
whom He wills to the Straight Path. Perhaps the Divine care has
been preparing you to embrace the true religion in spite of the
intense darkness, kufr (disbelief) and drug-ridden atmosphere
that surround you. The unbelieving man is dead at heart even
though his body is alive, but when Allaah guides him to the light
of Islam, his heart awakens and he sees a whole new meaning
to life as he starts to follow the guidance of his Lord. Allaah says
in His Holy Book (interpretation of the meaning):
"Is he who was dead (without Faith by ignorance and disbelief) and We
gave him life (by knowledge and faith) and set for him a Light
(belief) whereby he can walk amongst men, like him who is in the
darkness (of disbelief, polytheism and hypocrisy) from which he can
never come out?…" [al-An'aam 6:122]. So come to true life, and
follow the Light which Allaah has revealed, and you will find that
which will delight you and bring you peace of mind, when you
worship Allaah.
As regards the issue of drugs, no doubt you would expect
this great religion to forbid everything that is harmful and to
permit everything that is beneficial, and not to allow man to lose
his mind and go crazy, doing all kinds of foolish things without
any awareness and destroying his body. This is what happens
when people take drugs and prevent themselves from thinking
about or worshipping Allaah. This poison opens the door to
hostile aggression, and destroys religion, lives, minds, honour and
wealth. And so no wise person can doubt that drugs are totally forbidden.
We fully understand that addiction is no straightforward
matter and that recovery is no simple process, but this should not
prevent you from entering Islam and embracing the way of truth
with which Allaah has sent His Prophet Muhammad (peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him). Rest assured that when
you embrace Islam, this will give you strength and will-power
to overcome this addiction and rid yourself of this disease and
sin. All of this may take some time, but this should not make
you hesitate to embrace Islam. Become Muslim and you will be
safe from the problems of this world and the punishment of
the Hereafter. We are prepared to stand by you and help you with
any difficulty that you may face. We thank you for your question
and ask Allaah to guide you soon. Peace be upon those who
follow the truth.
Islam Q&A
Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid (www.islam-qa.com)
Search Inside This Book At Google Book Search - (180 pages)
212: Accepting donations from non-Muslims
Question:
Can muslims accept donations from non-muslims to use
in Islamic Cause?
Answer:
Imaam al-Bukhaari (may Allaah have mercy on him) gave one
of the chapters in his Saheeh the title of
"Baab qabool al-hadiyah min
al-mushrikeen (Chapter on accepting gifts from
the polytheists)," under which heading he listed a number
of ahaadeeth indicating that this is permitted.
Al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar commented: "On this topic, Abu
Dawood and al-Tirmidhi narrated from `Ayyaad ibn Himar [??] who
said: `I gave the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) a gift of a she-camel. He asked me, "Have you become
Muslim?" I said, "No." He said, "I have been forbidden to accept the
gifts of the mushrikeen."' Then al-Haafiz (may Allaah have mercy
on him) quoted some of the comments made by the scholars
to reconcile the texts which indicate that such gifts should be
refused with those which indicate that they should be accepted.
(The scholars said that) gifts should be refused when the
intention behind them is to win the Muslim over (by softening his
heart towards them), and they should be accepted when by doing
so there is the hope of befriending that person and opening his
heart to Islam.
There is nothing wrong with accepting unsolicited gifts
and donations from non-Muslims, and it is permissible to spend
them on Islamic projects and in other ways.
But asking for donations from non-Muslims carries several
risks, such as being humiliated in front of them or being controlled
by them.
If there is no danger of such things happening, there is
nothing wrong with asking. When he was still in Makkah, the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) used to ask for
help for the sake of da'wah, without any humiliation involved,
from some of the mushrikeen, such as his uncle Abu Taalib and
others. There is no humiliation involved in putting out charity boxes
or circulating flyers giving account numbers for donations, and
so on. And Allaah knows best.
Islam Q&A
Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid
(www.islam-qa.com)
Search Inside This Book At Google Book Search - (180 pages)
947: Ruling on celebrating non-Muslim holidays
and congratulating them
Question:
Can a muslim celebrate a non muslim holiday like Thanksgiving?
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
Greeting the kuffaar on Christmas and other religious
holidays of theirs is haraam, by consensus, as Ibn al-Qayyim, may
Allaah have mercy on him, said in Ahkaam Ahl
al-Dhimmah: "Congratulating the kuffaar on the rituals that belong only to
them is haraam by consensus, as is congratulating them on their
festivals and fasts by saying `A happy festival to you' or `May you
enjoy your festival,' and so on. If the one who says this has been
saved from kufr, it is still forbidden. It is like congratulating
someone for prostrating to the cross, or even worse than that. It is as
great a sin as congratulating someone for drinking wine, or
murdering someone, or having illicit sexual relations, and so on. Many
of those who have no respect for their religion fall into this
error; they do not realize the offensiveness of their actions.
Whoever congratulates a person for his disobedience or bid'ah or
kufr exposes himself to the wrath and anger of Allaah."
Congratulating the kuffaar on their religious festivals is
haraam to the extent described by Ibn al-Qayyim because it implies
that one accepts or approves of their rituals of kufr, even if one
would not accept those things for oneself. But the Muslim should
not aceept the rituals of kufr or congratulate anyone else for
them, because Allaah does not accept any of that at all, as He
says (interpretation of the meaning):
"If you disbelieve, then verily, Allaah is not in need of you,
He likes not disbelief for His slaves. And if you are grateful (by
being believers), He is pleased therewith for you. .
."
[al-Zumar 39:7]
". . . This day, I have perfected your religion for you,
completed My favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islaam as
your religion . . ."
[al-Maa'idah 5:3]
So congratulating them is forbidden, whether they are
one's colleagues at work or otherwise.
If they greet us on the occasion of their festivals, we should
not respond, because these are not our festivals, and because
they are not festivals which are acceptable to Allaah. These
festivals are innovations in their religions, and even those which may
have been prescribed formerly have been abrogated by the religion
of Islaam, with which Allaah sent Muhammad (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) to the whole of mankind. Allaah
says (interpretation of the meaning):
"Whoever seeks a religion other than Islaam, it will never
be accepted of him, and in the Hereafter he will be one of the
losers." [Aal `Imraan 3:85]
It is haraam for a Muslim to accept invitations on such
occasions, because this is worse than congratulating them as it implies
taking part in their celebrations.
Similarly, Muslims are forbidden to imitate the kuffaar by
having parties on such occasions, or exchanging gifts, or giving
out sweets or food, or taking time off work, etc., because the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said:
"Whoever imitates a people is one of them." Shaykh al-Islaam Ibn
Taymiyah said in his book Iqtidaa' al-siraat al-mustaqeem
mukhaalifat ashaab al-jaheem: "Imitating them in some of their
festivals implies that one is pleased with their false beliefs and
practices, and gives them the hope that they may have the opportunity
to humiliate and mislead the weak."
Whoever does anything of this sort is a sinner, whether he does
it out of politeness or to be friendly, or because he is too shy
to refuse, or for whatever other reason, because this is hypocrisy
in Islaam, and because it makes the kuffaar feel proud of
their religion.
Allaah is the One Whom we ask to make the Muslims feel
proud of their religion, to help them adhere steadfastly to it, and to
make them victorious over their enemies, for He is the Strong
and Omnipotent.
Majmoo'ah Fataawa wa Rasaa'il al-Shaykh Ibn `Uthaymeen,
3/369) (www.islam-qa.com)
Search Inside This Book At Google Book Search - (180 pages)
1015: Ruling on helping a Muslim move to a
non-Muslim country
Question:
I need your help in a fiqh issue. My friend wants me to help
him in finding a job here in the US. The process as we all know
would be that he'll get a job here the company will sponsor him with
an H-1. That could in the future convert to Green card with the
due process. I know I'm not be in the process of his applying for
the Green Card, but the initial step of his landing here I would
be part of it. So, is it Islamically okay for me to help someone
to land here in the US (I think he wants to move to US & not
move back again to Pakistan)- a non-Islamic/Muslim state? I think
I would be responsible for that if something goes wrong with
him or his family - aqeedah wise?
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah. If your friend concerning whom you
asked this question is a man of religion and insight, who has
enough knowledge to protect himself from confusion and doubts,
and enough wisdom to protect himself from desires, there is
nothing wrong with helping him to move to the non-Islamic country
where you live, so that he might gain employment or complete his
studies or gain experience, and other similar permissible aims.
But if he is a man for whom you fear that he may fall into
error, then it is not permissible for you to help him. Allaah
says (interpretation of the meaning): ". . .
Help one another in al-birr and al-taqwa (virtue, righteousness and piety), but do not
help one another in sin and transgression. . ." [al-Maa'idah 5:2]
This is what we have learnt from our shaykh, Shaykh `Abd
al-'Azeez ibn `Abdullah ibn Baaz, with whose knowledge
Allaah has benefitted us. Allah is the Source of help.
Islam Q&A
Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid
(www.islam-qa.com)
Search Inside This Book At Google Book Search - (180 pages)
1204: Rules Related to Befriending Non-Muslims
Question:
What is the view of Islam towards friendship with followers
of different religions
Answer:
Praise be to Allah;
Reply for this question would be the same as the reply to
question #23325.
In addition, the following should be noted:
* We should differentiate between good treatment of
non-Muslims and befriending them.
* We should differentiate between establishing a
relationship with a non-Muslim for the purpose of da'wah (i.e. teaching
him and inviting him to Islam) and befriending him for no valid
Islamic purpose.
* We should differentiate between establishing a
relationship with a non-Muslim for trading and/or education reasons
and befriending him, as friendship would mean deeper feeling
of affection and fondness, comradeship, and being influenced
by him.
Islam Q&A
Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid (www.islam-qa.com)
Search Inside This Book At Google Book Search - (180 pages)
1052: Muslim working in law enforcement in a
non-Islamic country
Question:
I have a question regarding the permissibility of becoming a
law enforcement officer in this country that does no follow
sharee `ah. Is it haraam to be enforcing laws that have not been
developed by our Creator Allaah and His holy Prophets (upon whom
be peace)? Even if it means enforcing laws on non-Muslims?
Partciluarly, is it permissible to enforce a law like
punishing someone for speeding on the highway? What about
allowing someone to drink alcohol if he is over 21 but not if he is
under 21? Even though this is not Islamic, should a Muslim allow
such behaviour among non-Muslims? Of course, Muslims will
be accountable for these haraam actions in the Hereafter, but is
it okay to let non-Muslims do this?
Answer:
Praise be to Allah.
If a Muslim is able, through such work, to fight evil
and oppression, or to prevent or reduce it by using the existing
laws which may contain something of justice and decency, then it
is permissible if his intention is to seek the pleasure of Allah.
He may do this work even if it involves preventing only some
people - but not all - from getting drunk, for example.
But if it involves enforcing laws that are unjust to people -
whether they are Muslim or not - or enforcing something that goes
against the Sharee'ah, like preventing people from wearing hijaab
or praying, or giving some kind of protection to criminals, and
so on, then this is not permitted at all.
The wise and clever Muslim knows from experience to
what extent his work is in accordance with the Sharee'ah that is
based on the common good and on preventing corruption. And
Allaah knows best.
Islam Q&A
Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid (www.islam-qa.com)
Search Inside This Book At Google Book Search - (180 pages)
782: Selling greeting cards for Christian holidays
Question:
At work - I am a cashier, and there are Christmas cards
with shirk on them "Jesus is God - and Loves You" etc...
If a customer brings these to me, and I ring him up and put
the money in the register - am I a kaafir?
I hate the shirk, ......., ......, am I a kaafir?
Answer:
Al-hamdu lillaah
As long as you are a true believer, who believes in the oneness
of Allah, the Most Gracious, and who has not committed any
act that would expel you from the religion of Islam, and as long
as you hate ! shirk and (the blasphemy of) Christianity, then you
are a Muslim and not a kaafir. However, you must realize that it
is unacceptable for a Muslim to aid or abet the kuffaar
(non-believers) by any means or medium relating to the celebration
of their holiday occasions. This would encompass selling items
that are used in their celebrations. Sheikh ul-Islam Ahmad ibn
Abdul-Haleem ibn Taymiya (may Allaah have mercy upon him) in
his classic and monumental book entitled Iqtidaa' Al-Siraat
Al-Mustaqeem Mukhalafat As-haab Al-Jaheem (In Pursuit of
the Straight Path by Contradicting the People of the Hellfire) said:
"As for a Muslim selling to them (the non-believers) items
that they use to celebrate their holiday occasions, such as food,
clothes, perfumes, etc., or offering such items as gifts, is a way of
helping them celebrate their "unlawful" holidays. This idea is based
on the fundamental principle that states that it is unacceptable (for
a Muslim) to sell the kuffaar grapes or juice which they will use
to produce wine or alcoholic beverages. By the same token it
is also unacceptable (for a Muslim) to sell them weapons that
will be used to fight Muslims.
He then presented an argument presented by Abdul-Malik
bin Habeeb (among the scholars of Al Malakiyya madh-hab) in
which he said "Do!n't you see that it is forbidden for a Muslim to
sell Christians any item that benefits or concerns their holidays?
Not meat, nor food (eaten with bread), nor clothes, nor should
they even be lent an animal (to ride on). They should not be helped
in any way that relates to their holidays because this would
be considered a form of glorifying their shirk (blasphemy)
and supporting them in their apostasy and disbelief…."
Al-Iqtidaa' p. 229, 23, Dar Al-Ma'rifah printing, tahqeeq (verified and
edited by) Al-Faqiy.
We ask Allaah to help you be firmly established on the truth,
and to ward you away from wrong and falsehood, and to provide
you with good and righteous means of living.
May the peace and blessings of Allaah be upon our
Prophet Muhammad .
Islam Q&A
Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid
(www.islam-qa.com)
Search Inside This Book At Google Book Search - (180 pages)
182: Ruling on loving non-Muslims
Question:
Assalamu'alaikum. I am very in love with my girlfriend, a
Chinese non-Muslim.We've been together for 5 years and planned to
be wed soon. The problem is she is the eldest in her family and
by tradition has to look after her parents who are non-Muslim.I
have tried to convert them to the Islamic faith but they refused to
submit to Islam. As a Muslim, I respect their decision but will I be
doing a sin if they continued to live with my girlfriend and I after
we wed. I deeply love and respect them even though they
rejected our religion as they are my girlfriend's parents. They
however were understanding enough to not keep idols and deities in
the house after we wed but they love to eat pork (just like any
other Chinese) What am I supposed to do? My girlfriend doesn't
eat pork anymore and she has submitted to Islam willingly but she
is concerned about changing her name as her parents want her
to keep her original name(i.e. Wong Wan Pei). Can this be allowed?
Answer:
All praise is due to Allah. First of all, we praise Allah the
most glorified that He guided this woman to Islam and that you
are now allowed to marry her under Islamic law (shari'ah). May
Allah the Almighty help you to remain firm toward your faith. Out
of compassion and caring for your sake, please allow me to
reproach a particular aspect of your question, which is that you did
not indicate any regret on your part regarding the sinful and
forbidden relationship of taking a girlfriend and continuing with her in
a friendship that angers and displeases Allah regardless of the
extent of that friendship.
Your question focused on a secondary issue regarding the
ruling on changing one's name which is not as serious as what you
have practiced for the past five years. Allah the most glorified
has forbidden such an indecent relationship in the
Qur'an (interpretation of the meaning, )
"…not committing fornication, nor taking them as lovers
(i.e. girlfriends)…"
(Al-Maa'ida, 5:5)
So, it is obligatory upon you to repent to Allah and to regret
what has passed and to have the firm will not to return to the
same action again, and to do good deeds and perform acts of
worship to expiate the evils of that sin, and Allah is surely forgiving
and merciful. (Please see also similar discussion of this issue
in question #61)
As for your statement: "I deeply love my girlfriend's parents
even though they rejected our religion," by Allah it is
extremely astonishing how a Muslim man that believes in Allah and
the last day can love people who are non-believers that don't
believe in Allah and the last day and don't forbid what Allah forbids
and don't practice the religion of truth and also refuse the religion
of Islam??! Is this not a clear violation of Allah's statement in
the Qur'an in surat al-Mujadlilah 58:22 (interpretation of
the meaning):
"You will not find any people who believe in Allah and the
Last Day, making friendship with and loving those who oppose
Allah and His Messenger (Muhammad- Peace and Blessings of
Allah be Upon Him), even if they are their fathers or their sons or
their kindred…"
We are not saying to you curse them or pick up arms
against them; however, it is obligatory upon you to abhor them for
their disbelief and their denial of the Lord of the worlds and to
hate the invalid and untruthful religion that they are practicing.
On the other hand, there is no objection for you to treat them
with kindness—while disliking them in your heart—and to be
amicable towards them so that perhaps Allah will guide them through
you. You will find no conflict or contradiction between these two
ideas if you consider them carefully.
Furthermore, there is no objection to her parents living with
you after marriage if they do not perform forbidden acts in the
home (e.g., eating pork, drinking alcohol, etc.)
As for the question raised at the end of your letter
regarding changing her name, the answer is: if the name of the person has
a forbidden meaning, like the name of an idol or one of their
deities or a name that means worshipping other than Allah, such as
Abdul-Maseeh (worshipper of Jesus the messiah) or
Abdul-Hussain (worshipper of Hussain) then it is mandatory to change
it. However, if its meaning is permissible and not
objectionable, e.g. if it means one of the colors such as red or green or a
vocation like carpenter or baker, then it is OK and it is not obligatory
to change it. However, if changing the name in official
documents would cause the person much distress or harm, then it suffices
to change it amongst his family and acquaintances.
Finally, I ask Allah to give you and this woman a halaal
(lawful and good) and blissful life, full of imaan (faith) and taqwa
(piety - God-fearing) and enriched with righteous posterity. All
success is from Allah.
Islam Q&A
Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid (www.islam-qa.com)
Search Inside This Book At Google Book Search - (180 pages)
180: One who lives among people who commit shirk
Question:
A man lives within a community that commits shirk
(polytheism) by appealing for help from other than Allah. Is he allowed
to pray with them with their leading the prayer? Is it obligatory
to abandon them? Is their Shirk considered shirk al-akbar
(great and serious act of disbelief by associating other beings
with Allah's supremacy)? Is alliance with them treated the same
as alliance with true non-believers?
Answer:
If the condition of those with whom you live is as you
mentioned, appealing for help from other than Allah, such as appealing
for help from the dead and the non-living or the trees or stones
or planets and the like, then they are committing the greatest
shirk which causes expulsion from the community and faith of
Islam. It is not allowed to ally with them just as it is not permissible
to ally with non-believers. Praying behind them is not valid. It
is not allowed to mix socially with them nor to reside amongst
them except for the one who calls them to the truth with
knowledge, and sees hope that they will accept and that their
religious condition will become correct due to his efforts. Otherwise,
it becomes obligatory for him to abandon them and to join a
different community in which he can work with on establishing
the fundamentals of Islam and its branches and reviving the
example of the Prophet (peace be upon him). If he is not able to find
the proper community, he should seclude himself from
all communities, even if he experiences harshness, as has been
related by Huthaifa (may Allah be pleased with him), who said:
"The people used to ask the Messenger of Allah (peace be
upon him) about goodness. And I used to ask him about evil from
fear of falling in it. So I said, O Messenger of Allah, we used to be
in ignorance and evil but Allah gave us this goodness, so is
there evil after this goodness? He said: "Yes". So I said is
their goodness after this evil? He said "Yes and it has some
darkness" I said what is its darkness? He said: "A people following
an example other than my example and calling to a guidance
other than my guidance; you would agree with some of what they
do and disagree with some." So, I said is there any evil after
that goodness? He said: "Yes, callers on the doors of Jahanam
(the Hellfire); whoever answers their call to it are thrown in it."
So, I said: O Messenger of Allah describe them to us. He said:
"They are from amongst us and they speak with our tongues" I said:
O Messenger of Allah, what do you command me to do if
this happens in my time. He said: "Adhere to the community
of Muslims and their leader." So, I said: What if there weren't
a community of Muslims nor a leader? He said: "Then
seclude yourself from all the communities, even if you were to bite on
the root of a tree until death"
Mutafaqun alayh (lit. agreed upon, i.e. narrated by both
Muslim and Bukhari). Blessings of Allah be upon our
Prophet Mohammed, his family and companions.
Islam Q&A
Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid (www.islam-qa.com)
Search Inside This Book At Google Book Search - (180 pages)
 |
|
PAGES:
180 (6 in x 9 in)
ISBN: 1861792832 |
| Click: HERE to Download the book and get two other FREE books | |  | and Get immediate access to the
full volume and the
FREE Bonuses |
|
