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Meditations on Virtues of Voluntary Charity (Sadaqa)
Author : Dr. Nidal Sultan
Date Added : 30-04-2014

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the Worlds. Peace and blessings be upon Prophet Mohammad and upon all his family and companions and upon whoever followed his guidance until the Day of Resurrection:

Allah, The Almighty, has made supererogatory acts of worship a means of gaining his love and support. The most rewarding of these acts is voluntary charity, and following are some meditations on its virtues, which I wanted to share with my Muslim brethren. I beseech Allah to make us among those who listen and follow the most righteous of what is said.

Meditation No. (1): None of Man`s Wealth Remains Except That Which He/She Has Given in Charity.

Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) said: "Man says: "My wealth! My wealth!" The Prophet (PBUH) responds: "None of your wealth remains except that which you had given in charity."  [Moslim].

The meaning intended by the Prophet (PBUH) in this Hadith is that whatever man eats perishes whatever he puts on wears out, and whatever he gives in charity remains.

Moreover, Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) reported that when the Prophet`s companions slaughtered a goat, he said: "What is left of it?" she said: "its shoulder." He said: "All of it is left except its shoulder." [Al-Tirmizi].

Accordingly, there is no way that a person could reap the fruits of his wealth after death except through charity that he had given. 

Meditation No. (2): Charity is Like Seeds of Good Deeds, Preserved and

Grown by Allah for their Owner.

Allah, The Almighty, doesn`t only preserve the charity for its giver, but also multiplies and grows it for him/her out of His grace and mercy until it becomes as big as a mountain. He Says in the Holy Quran (What means): "The parable of those who spend their substance in the way of God is that of a grain of corn: it groweth seven ears, and each ear Hath a hundred grains. God giveth manifold increase to whom He pleaseth: And God careth for all and He knoweth all things." [Al-Baqarah/261]. He also Says (What means): "Who is he that will loan to God a beautiful loan, which God will double unto his credit and multiply many times? It is God that giveth (you) Want or plenty, and to Him shall be your return." [Al-Baqarah/245].

Moreover, Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) says: "If one give in charity what equals one date-fruit from the honestly-earned money and Allah accepts only the honestly earned money --Allah takes it in His right (hand), then enlarges its reward for that person (who has given it), as anyone of you brings up his baby horse, so much as that it becomes as big as a mountain." [Bukhari].

Meditation No. (3): The Charity Giver Benefits From it More Than the Poor Recipient Does.

Following are some fruits of charity, which are reaped by its giver:

-It extinguishes sin as the Prophet (PBUH) says: "Charity extinguishes sin as water does fire." [Al-Tirmizi].

-It is a shade for its giver on the Day of Judgment as the Prophet (PBUH) says: “Everyone is protected by the shade of their charity until people are being separated “{Ahmad}.

-It heals the sick as the Prophet (PBUH) says: “Treat the sick with giving charity." [Baihaqi&Tabarani].

-It cleanses wealth from wrongdoings as the Prophet (PBUH) said to the merchants: "Oh! Merchants! Your dealings involve a lot of swearing, so cleanse them with charity." [Abu Dawood].

Whoever closely examines the fruits of charity realizes that the reward of its giver is greater and larger than the benefit received by the poor recipient.

Meditation No. (4): Allah and His Messenger Pledged to Replace Charity.

Allah, To Him belongs Might and Majesty, Says (What means): "Say: "Verily my Lord enlarges and restricts the Sustenance to such of his servants as He pleases: and nothing do ye spend in the least (in His cause) but He replaces it: for He is the Best of those who grant Sustenance." [Saba/34].

Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) said: "I swear on three: Wealth doesn`t decrease by giving charity, an injustice which a person endures, Allah grants him more honor, and a person who asks to be given charity while not in need becomes poorer." [Al-Tirmizi].

A true believer must realize the truthfulness of Allah`s and His Messenger`s promise.

Meditation No. (5):  The Fruits of Charity are Only Annulled by its Giver.

Despite the virtues and fruits of charity, its giver could annul them in two ways:

1. Showing off

2. Reproach and injury

Therefore, Allah has warned us against that in the following verse (What means): "O you, who believe, annul not your voluntary almsgivings with reproach and injury, as one who expends of his substance to show off to men and believes not in God and the Last Day. The likeness of him is as the likeness of a smooth rock on which is soil, and a torrent smites it, and leaves it barren. They have no power over anything that they have earned. God guides not the disbelieving folk." [Al-Baqarah/264].

 

And All Perfect Praise Be To Allah, The Lord of The Worlds

 

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Summarized Fatawaa

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.

What is the ruling of Islamic Law regarding one who slaughters a ewe and it turns out to have been pregnant, and is it permissible to slaughter the ewe if one knows it is pregnant?

Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings upon our master, the Messenger of Allah.
If a person slaughters a ewe and it turns out to have been pregnant, the fetus becomes lawful (ḥalāl) by virtue of its mother's slaughter (tabaʿan li-ummihā).
It is stated in Mughnī al-Muḥtāj (Vol.6/P.158): "A fetus found dead [after the mother's slaughter], or found alive but in a state resembling that of a slaughtered animal [i.e., dying shortly after], becomes lawful — whether or not it had grown fur — provided it is found in the womb of a mother that was lawfully slaughtered, whether her slaughter was by cutting the throat, or by an arrow or hunting dog sent after her. This is based on the ḥadīth: 'The slaughtering of the fetus is [effected by] the slaughtering of its mother' [narrated by al-Tirmidhī, who graded it ḥasan, and by Ibn Ḥibbān, who graded it ṣaḥīḥ] — meaning that the slaughter which rendered the mother lawful renders the fetus lawful as well, by virtue of following her; and because the fetus is one of her constituent parts, and her slaughter renders lawful all of her parts."
This ruling differs, however, from the case of one who knows from the outset that the ewe is pregnant [and intends to sacrifice her specifically as the udḥiyah while pregnant] — in which case, according to the Shāfi'ī school, she does not fulfill the requirement of a valid sacrifice.
It is stated in Ḥāshiyat al-Bujayrimī 'alā al-Khaṭīb (Vol.4/P.335): "A pregnant animal does not fulfill the requirement [of a valid sacrifice], and this is the authoritative position (al-mu'tamad), because pregnancy diminishes the quality of the meat. As for why such an animal is nevertheless counted as complete [i.e., fully valid] in matters of zakāh, that is because the intent there is reproduction (nasl), not the quality of the meat.". And Allah, the Most High, knows best.

What is the ruling of Islamic Law if the follower (maʾmūm) stands up for the third rakʿah out of forgetfulness while the imam has sat for the middle tashahhud?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
If the imam sits for the tashahhud while the follower (maʾmūm), out of forgetfulness, stands up for the third rakʿah, he is obliged to return to his sitting position, since following the imam is obligatory. In this case, no prostration of forgetfulness (sujūd al-sahw) is required of him. If, however, he fails to return, his prayer is rendered invalid.
Shaykh al-Islām Imām Zakariyyā al-Anṣārī, may Allah have mercy upon him, states: "If the follower stands up alone out of forgetfulness, he is obliged to return, since following the imam is obligatory... If he does not return, his prayer is rendered invalid, due to his departure from what is obligatory." [Asnā al-Maṭālib,Vol.1/P.190] And Allah the Almighty knows best.

I work overtime after regular working hours and may become occupied with my phone or the work computer for personal matters — what is the ruling on this?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
It is obligatory upon an employee to abide by the instructions and regulations governing overtime hours, and equally obligatory to uphold honesty and avoid all forms of deception and dishonesty. Allah the Almighty says {what means}: "O you who have believed, be mindful of Allah and be with the truthful." [Al-Tawbah/ 119]
Whoever is assigned to work overtime must be present at his workplace — even if he has no specific tasks to carry out at that time. In such a case, he should strive as best he can to spend that time in a manner that benefits the institution he works for. If there is genuinely no work for him to do, there is no objection to occupying his time with something beneficial — such as reciting the Holy Qurʾān, reading, or listening to educational lessons — provided he has already completed all the responsibilities assigned to him.
If, however, he does have work to complete, he must spend that time fulfilling it. He may attend to phone calls or other personal matters to the extent that is customarily acceptable, as long as this does not result in delaying or postponing his work. If he delays his work on account of personal preoccupations, the wages he received for that wasted time are not lawfully his to keep, and he is obliged to return the equivalent amount to the institution by whatever means available to him. And Allah the Almighty knows best.

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