If husband doesn`t pray, but wife does, is their marriage contract considered valid or not?
All perfect praise be to Allah the Lord of the Worlds. May Allah`s peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Mohammad and upon all his family and companions.
Not observing daily prayers is a grave sin, but doesn`t invalidate a person`s marriage contract. However, we advise you to save your husband from hellfire by convincing him to observe the prescribed prayers. And Allah The Almighty Knows Best.
After I had prayed, I found a drop of menstrual blood and was unsure when that happened; what is the ruling on my prayer and fast?
All praise is due to Allah, peace and blessing be upon the Messenger of Allah.
Your prayer and fast are correct ,and you should not make up for them, and we ask Allah, The Almighty, to duely reward you for these acts of worship. Your menses start once you see blood because the situation remains as such unless there is certainty or predominant conjecture, as per the Fiqh maxim: "Certainty is not removed by doubt". And Allah Knows Best.
Is it obligatory for a wife who has been abandoned for many years to observe the waiting period (iddah) after her husband passes away?
If her husband passes away, the wife is required to observe the waiting period (Iddah), even if he had abandoned her, because she is his wife and inherits from him, so she must observe the iddah after his death. And Allah Knows Best.
I am an author, and I have books stored with me. Is it permissible to pay my zakat in the form of books containing beneficial knowledge for poor students, such as chemistry and mathematics, or religious books that spread Islamic sciences?
Zakat on wealth must be paid in cash from the wealth itself. Therefore, you should pay your zakat in monetary form so that the poor can purchase what they need. And Allah Knows Best.