Resolutions of Iftaa' Board



Resolutions of Iftaa' Board

Resolution No.(82): “Commentary on the Recording Attributed to Sheikh AbdulMajeed Al-Zandani as Regards the life of Barzakh“

Date Added : 02-11-2015

 

Resolution No.(82) by the Board of Iftaa`, Research and Islamic Studies:

“Commentary on the Recording Attributed to Sheikh AbdulMajeed Al-Zandani as Regards the life of Barzakh“

Date: 11/2/1426 AH, corresponding to 22/3/2005 AD.

 

 

Question:

What is the ruling on what was mentioned on the recording attributed to Sheikh AbdulMajeed Al-Zandani as Regards the life of Barzakh (Barzakh: a partition, a bar or barrier; the place or state in which people will be after death and before Judgment. Cf. xxv. 53 and Iv. 20. Behind them is the barrier of death, and in front of them is the Barzakh, partition, a quiescent state until the judgment comes.)?

The Board has listened to the above recording attributed to Al-Zandani, claiming that the “Barzakh” mentioned in the verse: “In order that I may work righteousness in the things I neglected." - "By no means! It is but a word he says."- Before them is a Partition till the Day they are raised up.”{Al-Mu`minun/100} exists in the deep layers of earth at 2000 degree Fahrenheit equal to a third of the Sun`s heat, and that the disbelievers are tortured in this Barzakh based on the following verses: “Day! Surely the record of the wicked is (preserved) in Sijjin.” {Al-Mutaffifin/7}, “Do ye feel secure that He Who is in heaven will not cause you to be swallowed up by the earth when it shakes (as in an earthquake)?{Al-Mulk/16}, and “Because of their sins they were drowned (in the flood), and were made to enter the Fire (of Punishment): and they found- in lieu of God- none to help them.” {Nuh/25}.

He founded his  claim on the fact that a Russian team has reached a deep underground layer engulfed with flames, and that they sent down a device parallel to the vibrations of the human ear, and that it recorded sounds of human beings being tortured. He also claimed that Sijjin is the core of the earth engulfed with fire,  the Earth`s violent commotion is the movement of its underground layers,  the fire in which the disbelievers fell is the Barzakh, and that the sounds of torture recorded by the Russian team belong to the disbelievers.

After the Board has listened to the above recording, it deemed the following:

1- From the view of language, Barzakh is the barrier between two things and its meaning in the verse: “Before them is a Partition till the Day they are raised up. “ {Al-Mu`minun/100}, according to exegesis, is: “a partition, a bar or barrier; the place or state in which people will be after death and before Judgment. Cf. xxv. 53 and Iv. 20. Behind them is the barrier of death, and in front of them is the Barzakh, partition, a quiescent state until the judgment comes.” And it is amongst the unseen matters, only known to Allah, and proofs of it are audio, so we believe in them as they were transferred to us from the Quran and the Sunnah.

2- The interpretation of Barzakh mentioned in the recording deviates completely from the principles observed in Quranic interpretation, and so it isn`t acceptable.

3- The above interpretation is invalid and the evidences given don`t support what that person has claimed, because he has interpreted unseen matters which are only known to Allah: Barzakh life, torture in the grave, Hell, Heaven and Resurrection, and we are commanded to believe in them  as they are prescribed in Islamic Sharia since they aren`t tangible and their evidences are based on correct transfer.

Therefore, it is strange for Al-Zandani to interpret (Sijjin) mentioned in the verse: “! Surely the record of the wicked is (preserved) in Sijjin“ {Al-Mutaffifin/7} as the underground layers engulfed with flame, for it is a record in which the deeds of the disbelievers are preserved, and it is clearly written.

It is also strange that he interpreted the verse: “Do ye feel secure that He Who is in heaven will not cause you to be swallowed up by the earth when it shakes (as in an earthquake)?”{Al-Mulk/16}, as the movement of the underground layers, for it shows the greatness of Allah`s Powers in causing the earth to swallow up the disbelievers when it shakes, and whenever He wants to inflict torture upon them. The same applies to his interpretation of the verse: “Because of their sins they were drowned (in the flood), and were made to enter the Fire (of Punishment): and they found - in lieu of God- none to help them.” {Nuh/25} as the underground fire, for the punishment of disbelievers mentioned in this verse is due on The Day of Resurrection.

As regards basing his opinion upon the work of the above mentioned Russian team, it requires an independent scientific verification, and when proven, it requires scientific explanation and analysis, so it is impermissible to be adopted as an evidence to project weird concepts on the Book of Allah The Almighty,  pertaining to unseen matters that rest upon correct transfer from Divine Revelation. And Allah, The Almighty Knows Best.

 

Iftaa` Board
Chairman of the Iftaa` Board, Chief Justice, Izzaldeen Al-Tamimi
Dr. Abdulsalam Al-Abbadi
Dr. Yousef Ghyzaan
Dr. Wasif Al-Bakhri
Dr. Abdukareem Al-Khasawneh
Sheikh Sae`id Hijjawi
Sheikh Nae`im Mujahid

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Summarized Fatawaa

What is the ruling of Islamic Law on a fictitious marriage for the purpose of obtaining citizenship?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
There is no such thing in our noble sharīʿah as a "nominal" or "fictitious" marriage or divorce. Marriage and divorce are among the sacred ordinances of Allah, and it is not permissible to manipulate them or use them as a stratagem to obtain worldly gains.
The foundational purpose of a marriage contract is the permanence and continuity of the relationship between the spouses — to establish a family, and to bring forth righteous offspring. So sacred is this bond that Allah the Almighty Himself described it as a solemn covenant (mīthāq ghalīẓ), saying {what means}: "And if you wish to replace one wife with another and you have given one of them a great amount of wealth, do not take any of it back. Would you take it in injustice and manifest sin? And how could you take it while you have gone in unto each other and they have taken from you a solemn covenant?" [Al-Nisāʾ/ 20–21]
Accordingly, it is not permissible to resort to manipulation and deception in contracts that Allah, Mighty and Majestic, has described as a "solemn covenant" — all for the sake of material and worldly benefit. Marriage is built upon permanence and does not admit of a fixed time limit. If a time limit is stipulated in the contract, the contract is rendered invalid by the consensus of the jurists. Similarly, marriage is impermissible when there exists a mutual, concealed intention to limit its duration — even if no time limit is explicitly mentioned in the contract — for this constitutes a form of unlawful circumvention of the sharīʿah. This is to say nothing of the lying and deception that such conduct involves, the prohibition of which needs no elaboration. Lying, deception, and fraud for the purpose of obtaining worldly gains are among the gravest of sins.
If, however, the marriage contract is first concluded in a valid sharʿī manner and then registered civilly, it is sound and fully valid. And Allah the Almighty knows best.

How should a person who is afflicted with continued major ritual impurity (incontinence of urine, bleeding outside the monthly period) perform ablution?

Such a person should make ablution for every prayer after its due time and after removing impurities from their body and outfit, and should place a fresh diaper whenever needed so as for the impurity not to spread out. They should also perform prayer immediately even if incontinence of urine continued, and should repeat the aforementioned for every obligatory prayer, then perform optional prayer as much as they want.

What are the valid excuses for abstaining from congregational prayer in the mosque?

 
Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our Master, the Messenger of Allah.
 
Concessions (Rukhsah) are granted to abstain from congregational prayer in the mosque due to general excuses, such as: rain that causes hardship in going out, strong winds at night, heavy mud that cannot be traversed without the risk of soiling oneself, hot winds, and extreme heat or cold. There are also specific individual excuses, such as: illness that makes walking as difficult as walking in the rain, severe drowsiness, evident hunger or thirst, the suppression of bodily wastes (urine, stool, or gas), and fear for one's life, limb, physical faculty, wealth, or honor, among other valid excuses. And Allah the Exalted knows best.

What is the ruling of Islamic Law on leaving the Sunnah prayer of Dhuhr due to fatigue?

Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings upon our master, the Messenger of Allah.
According to the general rule, a Muslim should strive to maintain the Sunnah prayers before and after the obligatory prayers (al-sunan al-qabliyyah wa al-ba'diyyah). One is permitted to pray them sitting from the outset, but if one leaves them due to severe fatigue, there is no objection to doing so. It is recommended (mustahabb) to make up (qadā') a time-bound supererogatory prayer (nafl mu'aqqat) at any time if it was missed.
Al-Shirbīnī (may Allah have mercy on him) said: "If a time-bound supererogatory prayer is missed, it is recommended to make it up according to the more authoritative view (al-azhar), based on the hadith recorded in the two Ṣaḥīḥs: 'Whoever sleeps through a prayer or forgets it should pray it when he remembers it.' This is also supported by the fact that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) made up the two rak'ahs of Fajr when he and his companions overslept in the valley and missed the dawn prayer until the sun had risen [narrated by Abū Dāwūd with an authentic chain]." And Allah, the Most High, knows best.