Articles

Islam Prohibits Violence and Transgression
Author : The General Iftaa` Department
Date Added : 14-02-2023

 

One of the objectives of Sharia for which the Master of mankind, Prophet Mohammad (PBUH), was sent and without which societies and civilizations would go astray is spreading love and mercy among people as well as combating all forms of transgression and vandalism from which Islam is innocent. These cowardly acts tarnish the beautiful image of Islam, twist its objectives and tie violence and vandalism to its compassionate principles.

Pondering upon the evidences from the Quran and the Prophetic Sunnah shows the magnitude of the texts that indicate that a human being is honored, forbidden to oppress or violate his faith, life, honor and wealth. Almighty Allah Says {What means}: "We have honored the sons of Adam; provided them with transport on land and sea; given them for sustenance things good and pure; and conferred on them special favours, above a great part of our creation." {Al-Isra`/70}.

According to Islam, it is unlawful to frighten a Muslim and spread discord amongst members of society. Narrated Abdur Rahman Ibn Abu Layla:

The Companions of the Prophet (PBUH) told us that they were travelling with the Prophet (PBUH). A man of them slept, and one of them went to the rope, which he had with him. He took it, by which he was frightened. The Prophet (PBUH) said: It is not lawful for a Muslim that he frightens a Muslim." {Abu Dawud}. Abu Huraira reported: Abu'l-Qasim (the kunya of Allah's Messenger, may peace be upon him), said: He who pointed a weapon towards his brother the angels invoke curse upon him even if he is his real brother so long as he does not abandon it (the pointing of weapon towards one's brother Muslim)." {Muslim}. Narrated `Abdullah:

The Prophet (PBUH) said: "Abusing a Muslim is Fusuq (evil doing) and killing him is Kufr (disbelief)." {Bukhari}.

The duty of advising others dictates that we raise the awareness of Muslims everywhere and explain to them the dangers and repercussions of violence in the sense that it breeds hatred and enmity amongst the members of society, sows the seeds of sin and transgression, and prevents achieving security and safety for humanity. Allah The Almighty Says {What means}: "Help ye one another in righteousness and piety, but help ye not one another in sin and rancor: fear Allah. for Allah is strict in punishment." {Al-Ma`idah/2}.

We affirm that violence occurring at the family, university or community levels is an intrusion on our Jordanian Muslim society and Arab-Islamic culture and values stemming from authenticity, compassion and mercy. The only fruit for this violence is damaging and corrupting public and private property, thereby causing harm to citizens and their interests. This is mischief in the land and Allah doesn`t love those who do mischief. He, The Almighty Says {What means}: "But seek, with the (wealth) which God has bestowed on thee, the Home of the Hereafter, nor forget thy portion in this world: but do thou good, as God has been good to thee, and seek not (occasions for) mischief in the land: for God loves not those who do mischief." {Al-Qasas/77}. If Allah The Exalted Forbade transgressing against the property of others and prescribed penalties for that in this life and the next, He also Forbade violating properties and public funds, which belong to all members of society, and considered this as an unjust act for society and self since Allah Loves not the unjust.

In this regard, there is a Sharia maxim that states: "There should be neither harm nor reciprocating harm." What is the use behind killing, beating or abusing someone? What is the use behind destroying property and disrupting schooling other than spreading evil and corruption in the land? The escalation of violence leads to increasing human and material losses. This is destroying the crops and the cattle and a sinful transgression against the right of society, and the doer of this along with whoever assisted him/her will be held accountable for that on the Day of Resurrection.

Undoubtedly, acts of violence increase tribal dissension about which the Prophet (PBUH) said: "Leave it. For it is something disgusting."{Bukhari}.

We all know that violence spreads discord and boosts rumors, thereby spreading fear, terror and dismay among people leading to the elimination of security, peace and stability. This is in addition to extinguishing the flame of knowledge that our universities, institutions and families spread; consequently, losing our leading role, which Allah Praised us for when He Said (What means): "Ye are the best of peoples, evolved for mankind, enjoining what is right, forbidding what is wrong, and believing in God. If only the People of the Book had faith, it were best for them: among them are some who have faith, but most of them are perverted transgressors." {Al-Imran/110}. " 

This is a call for our blessed society to resort to reason in all its affairs and adhere to the guidance of Islam concerning kindness, mercy and tolerance. It is also a call for all researchers, scholars and preachers to work on remedying this extraneous phenomenon to spread the culture of compassion and tolerance and eliminate all forms of violence.

Oh Allah! Bless this country and the other Muslim countries with safety and security. And all perfect praise be to Allah The Lord of The Worlds.

 

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Summarized Fatawaa

What is the ruling on the follower`s prayer if the Imam stands for a fifth rak`ah?

Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our Master, the Messenger of Allah.
 
If the Imam stands up for an extra unit (rak‘ah) of prayer out of forgetfulness, he must return to the sitting position as soon as he remembers, and he should perform the prostration of forgetfulness (Sujud al-Sahw). It is the duty of the congregants (Ma’mumin) behind him to remind him. However, if the Imam is in a state of doubt regarding the extra unit (and not certainty), it is not permissible for him to return.
 
As for the congregants: anyone who is certain that the Imam has stood for an extra unit is forbidden from following him. In this case, the follower has two choices: either intend to separate from the Imam (Mufaraqah) and finish the prayer alone, or wait for the Imam in the sitting position and perform the final salams with him—the latter being the preferred option. If a follower knowingly follows the Imam into an extra unit, their prayer becomes invalid. However, if a follower is in doubt and not certain of the mistake, they must continue following the Imam, as the Imam was appointed to be followed.
 
It is stated in Al-Majmu’ (Vol.4/P.145): 'If [the Imam] stands for a fifth rak‘ah, the follower should not follow him, even if it is assumed that the Imam might have omitted a pillar from a previous unit; because if the reality is known, following him is impermissible since the follower has certainly completed their own prayer. Even if the follower had missed a previous unit (Masbuq) or was in doubt about performing a pillar like the Fatihah, and the Imam stood for the fifth, it is not permissible for the latecomer to follow him in it. This is because we know that this unit is not counted for the Imam and that he is mistaken in performing it.' And Allah the Exalted knows best.

Is the Saying "Whatever is Taken by the Sword of Shyness is Forbidden" an Authentic Ḥadīth?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
The saying "Whatever is taken by the sword of shyness is forbidden" is not an authentic ḥadīth, though its underlying meaning is sound. The established sharʿī principle is that a Muslim's wealth is not lawful for anyone to take except with his wholehearted consent, as Allah the Almighty says {what means}: "O you who have believed, do not consume one another's wealth unjustly, but only [in lawful] business by mutual consent." [Al-Nisā/ 29] And the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: "Listen to me and you will live well: do not wrong others, do not wrong others, do not wrong others. Indeed, a man's wealth is not lawful except with his full, willing consent." (Reported by Aḥmad in his Musnad.) Whatever is taken through the pressure of shyness or social embarrassment runs directly counter to genuine, wholehearted consent.
The jurists have explicitly stated that whatever is taken by means of the "sword of shyness" carries the same ruling as that which is taken by coercion — it must be returned to its rightful owner.
Ibn Ḥajar al-Haytamī, may Allah have mercy upon him, states in al-Fatāwā al-Kubrā (Vol.3/P.30): "Do you not see the reported scholarly consensus that whoever has something taken from him purely out of shyness, without his genuine consent, does not pass ownership of it to the one who took it? They reasoned that this constitutes a form of coercion through the 'sword of shyness,' comparable to coercion at the point of an actual sword. Indeed, many people would rather submit to the literal sword and endure the pain of its wound than submit to this first kind of coercion, out of fear for their dignity and standing — which people of sound judgment hold dear and guard most fiercely." And Allah the Almighty knows best.

If a woman becomes pure from menstruation shortly after Fajr in Ramadan, what is required of her?

If a woman becomes pure (from menstrual period) after Fajr, even shortly after, it is recommended (but not obligatory) for her to refrain from eating and drinking for the rest of the day. However, she must make up for that day after Ramadan.
She will be rewarded for both refraining from eating (imsak) and making up the fast (qada) since she was menstruating for part of the day.

The Jurisprudential Significance of the Ḥadīth: "Whoever says, at the conclusion of the Fajr Prayer, while crossing his legs, before speaking..."
"Whoever says, at the conclusion of the Fajr prayer, while crossing his legs, before speaking: 'Lā ilāha illā Allāh, waḥdahu lā sharīka lah, lahu al-mulku wa lahu al-ḥamdu yuḥyī wa yumītu wa huwa ʿalā kulli shayʾin qadīr' ten times — ten good deeds will be recorded for him, ten bad deeds will be erased from him, he will be raised ten levels, he will spend that day in protection from everything disliked and guarded from the devil, and no sin will be able to befall him on that day except associating partners with Allah" — does this noble ḥadīth apply to the imam, and what is meant by "extraneous speech"?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
It is recommended for both the imam and those praying behind him to recite, immediately after the final salām, the specific remembrance reported in the sunnah to be said before turning away from one's place of prayer. The imam then leaves his praying spot, and the act of "turning" is fulfilled when the imam faces the congregation — even without physically leaving his spot — by positioning his right side toward them and his left side toward the qiblah, and this applies even while he is engaged in supplication.
Al-ʿAllāmah Ibn Qāsim al-ʿAbbādī states in his Ḥāshiyah ʿalā al-Tuḥfah (Vol.2/P.105): "It is most virtuous for the imam, once he has given the salām, to rise from his place of prayer immediately afterward." He adds that an exception must be made for the remembrances that are specifically required to be recited before he turns away. He then notes, citing Sharḥ al-ʿUbāb: "Yes, an exception to this rising immediately after the salām applies to the Fajr prayer, due to the authentic report that the Prophet ﷺ, when he prayed Fajr, would remain seated until the sun rose." He further cites, from al-Khādim, the ḥadīth concerning one who recites, at the conclusion of the Fajr prayer while still in the position of crossing his leg to rise: "Lā ilāha illā Allāh, waḥdahu lā sharīka lah..." and the rest of the well-known ḥadīth. He comments that this makes explicit that this particular remembrance is to be recited before the worshipper turns his legs to leave, and the same applies to Maghrib and ʿAṣr, as reported in those contexts as well.
What is meant by "speech" in the relevant ḥadīth is extraneous worldly speech that is not called for after the prayer and for which there is no legitimate excuse. The remembrances reported to be recited upon concluding the prayer, however, do not fall under this category of extraneous speech, since they are themselves required by the sharīʿah.
Al-ʿAllāmah ʿAlī al-Shabrāmalsī states in his Ḥāshiyah ʿalā al-Nihāyah (Vol.1/P.551): "If someone greets a person with salām while he is occupied with reciting this remembrance [i.e., 'Lā ilāha illā Allāh...'], should he return the greeting — without this causing him to forfeit the promised reward, since he is engaged in an obligatory matter — or should he delay returning the greeting until he finishes, this being a legitimate excuse for the delay?" He continues: "I say: the more likely view is the former, and the prohibition on speech is to be understood as applying to extraneous speech for which there is no legitimate excuse. Based on this, should the worshipper give precedence to this remembrance ('Lā ilāha illā Allāh...') or to reciting Sūrat al-Ikhlāṣ ('Qul huwa Allāhu aḥad')? This requires consideration, though it is not unlikely that the remembrance takes precedence, given that the Lawgiver urged hastening to it through his words 'while crossing his leg.' This is not considered ordinary speech, since it is not extraneous to what is required after the prayer."
Accordingly, it is recommended for both the imam and those praying behind him to recite this remembrance and to give it precedence over the other remembrances of the prayer, ensuring it is said before they move from their place. And Allah the Almighty knows best.