All perfect praise be to Allah the Lord of the Worlds. May His peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Mohammad and upon all his family and companions.

 

Donating to establish a family diwan is considered cooperating in righteousness and piety, and people opt for this. This is because Allah the Almighty says {What means}: "Help ye one another in righteousness and piety, but help ye not one another in sin and rancor." {Al-Ma'idah, 2}. We pray that Allah accepts this as a continuous charity for the donors who intended it as (Waqf/religious endowment). This is since the charity itself is given for the construction of this building (Diwan), which is dedicated to host the happy and sad occasions of the various members of the family and tribe, in addition to other acts of righteousness and charity. Moreover, there is a continuous reward for this righteous deed. Abu Huraira (Allah be pleased with him) reported Allah's Messenger (PBUH) as saying: "When a man dies, his acts come to an end, but three, recurring charity, or knowledge (by which people) benefit, or a pious son, who prays for him (for the deceased)." {Transmitted by Muslim}.

 

Al-Khateeb al-Shirbini al-Shafi'I (May Allah have mercy on him) said: "In Islamic law, Waqf  is the act of withholding property that can be used, with the preservation of its substance by stopping the disposal of it, for an existing permissible purpose…….Scholars consider continuous charity (Sadaqah jariyah) a Waqf, as stated by al-Rafi'i. This is because other forms of charity are not continuous. Rather, the one who is given the charity owns its substance and benefits immediately. As for bequeathing benefits, even though it is mentioned in the above Hadith, it is rare. Therefore, it is more likely that the charity mentioned in the Hadith refers to Waqf.” {Moghni al-Mohtaj, V.3:523}.

 

One of the things that a Muslim should be aware of in order to receive a reward from Allah the Almighty for this Waqf is that the intention must be purely to please Allah the Almighty and help others in permissible matters. However, the donated money can`t be intended as Zakat money. And Allah the Almighty knows best.