Resolutions of Iftaa' Board



Resolutions of Iftaa' Board

Resolution No.(130): “Ruling on Quranic Verses Written on Pieces of Paper and Dissolved in Water to be Used for Healing”

Date Added : 27-10-2015

 

Resolution No.(130): “Ruling on Quranic Verses Written on Pieces of Paper and Dissolved in Water to be Used for Healing”

Date: 1/8/1430 AH, corresponding to 23/7/2009 AD.

 

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of The Worlds; and may His blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Mohammad and upon all his family and companions.

During its third session held on the above given date, the Board of Iftaa` reviewed the letter, No. 40/658-15/4/2009, sent by His Excellency, the Director General of the Press and Publications Department, which reads as follows:

I would like to inform you that our department has received Qura'nic verses written on paper to be dissolved in water and used as a cure. Could your grace inform us of the opinion of Islamic Law in this regard?

After thorough studying and deliberating, the Board decided what follows:

The Noble Quran is Allah`s word and His eternal miracle until the Day of Judgment. Allah Has Sent down in it that which is healing to the believers. He Says (What means): “We send down (stage by stage) in the Qur’an that which is a healing and a mercy to those who believe: to the unjust it causes nothing but loss after loss...” {Al-Isra`/82}. He also Says (What means): “O mankind! There hath come to you a direction from your Lord and a healing for the (diseases) in your hearts,- and for those who believe, a guidance and a Mercy.” {Younis/57}.

Healing by the Quran is achieved by reciting it on the patient i.e. the Ruqyia. It is also permissible to write verses on paper, or a pot then dissolve it in water to be drunk by the patient. It was narrated from ‘Abdullah that the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said: “You should take the two that bring healing: Honey and the Qur’an.” [Fatih Al-Bari vol.10/pp.170]

As regards writing the whole Quran or part of it on paper to be used as a readymade recipe  to be dissolved in water and drunk by the patient, this is impermissible, because it degrades the Quran and negates the purpose for which it has been revealed. Allah Says (What means): “This is the Book; in it is guidance sure, without doubt, to those who fear God” {Al-Baqarah/2}. He also Says (What means): “Blessed is He who sent down the criterion to His servant, that it may be an admonition to all creatures." {Al-Furqaan/1}.

Accordingly, we recommend the Department of Press and Publications not to approve of such a thing. And Allah Knows Best.

 

 

                     Chairperson of the Iftaa` Board, Grand Mufti of Jordan,
Dr. Nooh al-Qhodah
                                                    Vice Chairman of the Iftaa` Board,Dr. Ahmad Hilayel
                                         Sheikh Abdulkareem al-Khasawneh/ Member
                 Sheikh Sa`eid Hijjawi/ Member
                              Dr. Muhammad Khair Al-'Eisa/Member
        Judge Sari Attia/Member
                      Dr. Abdul-Rahman Ibdah/Member
                                   Dr. Muhammad Aiqla Al-Ibrahim/Member
                              Dr. Abdul Naser Abu Al-Basal/Member
                                       Executive Secretary of The Iftaa' Board Dr. Muhammad Al-Khalylah

 

 

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Summarized Fatawaa

What is the ruling on the prayer of the individual following the imam whose prayer is broadcasted via television?

Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our Master, the Messenger of Allah.
 
Among the conditions for the validity of following an Imam (Sihhat al-Iqtida’) is that the Imam and the follower (Ma’mum) must be in the same location. Therefore, the prayer of one who follows an Imam whose prayer is being broadcast via television from a distant location is not valid. However, if the follower is with the Imam in the same mosque, the prayer is valid. And Allah the Exalted knows best.

What is the ruling on waiving a debt owed by a debtor and counting it toward zakāh?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
Waiving a debt owed by a debtor, with the intention of counting it toward zakāh, does not fulfill the zakāh obligation. Rather, it constitutes an ordinary act of charity, for which Allah rewards the giver generously — since one of the conditions for the validity of zakāh is that the person paying it must form the intention of zakāh at the actual moment the wealth is paid out. In this case, the debt has already been established as a standing obligation upon the borrower, so it is not valid to simply redirect the intention toward zakāh after the fact.
It is preferable, instead, for the creditor to first collect the debt from the debtor, and then return to him the amount of money he is required to pay as zakāh — or a portion of it — if the debtor happens to fall under one of the eight categories that Allah, the Exalted, has commanded be given from zakāh.
It is stated in ‘Umdat as-Sālik, from the books of the Shāfi‘ī school: "If someone gives [money] to a poor person, stipulating that the recipient return it to him in payment of a debt owed to him, or says, 'I am making what you owe me into zakāh, so take it [as such]' — this is not valid. But if he gives it to him with the [unstated] intention that the recipient will use it to repay him, or says, 'Repay what you owe me, so that I may [then separately] give it to you as zakāh,' or the debtor himself says, 'Give it to me, so that I may [then] repay you with it' — this is valid, and there is no binding obligation for the recipient to actually fulfill this [informal understanding]." And Allah, the Exalted, knows best.

What is the ruling on making up missed prayers during prohibited times?

 

Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our Master, the Messenger of Allah.
 
It is permissible to make up (qada’) missed prayers at any time, even during the periods when prayer is generally prohibited. The prayers that are forbidden and considered invalid during these times are 'absolute voluntary prayers' (nafl mutlaq)—which have no specific cause—and voluntary prayers whose cause follows the prayer itself, such as the Sunnah of entering Ihram or the Sunnah of the Istikharah prayer. Furthermore, no prayer is considered disliked (makruh) during these prohibited times when performed within the Meccan Sanctuary (Makkah al-Mukarramah).
 
It is stated in Bushra al-Karim (Vol.1/P.181), one of the Shafi’i texts: 'It is not forbidden to perform prayers that have a cause that is not delayed (i.e., the cause is preceding), such as making up a missed prayer (fa’itah)—even if it was a voluntary one—and the funeral prayer (janazah); or a cause that is simultaneous, such as the prayer for rain (istisqa’) or the eclipse prayer (kusuf)... and the Sunnah of wudu, the greeting of the mosque (tahiyyat al-masjid), the Sunnah of circumambulation (tawaf), the Sunnah of arrival, and the prostrations of recitation (tilawah) or thankfulness (shukr). These mentioned prayers and their like are not forbidden provided that one does not specifically intend (ta'ammud) to perform them during the disliked time because it is a disliked time. If one does so intentionally, it becomes forbidden, even if it is a mandatory makeup prayer that is due immediately; because in that case, one is acting in defiance of the Sharia. This is in contrast to when one does not specifically seek out that time, even if the prayer happens to fall within it, or if one seeks it for another purpose—such as delaying a funeral prayer to that time so that a larger number of people may pray over the deceased; in such cases, it is permissible and valid... And it is forbidden to perform prayers with no cause at all, like absolute nafl, or those with a delayed cause, such as the Istikharah prayer, the prayer for Ihram, the prayer for a need (hajah), the prayer before leaving the house, or the prayer before execution; because their causes occur after the prayer itself.' And Allah the Exalted knows best."

"I told my family at night: 'I will fast tomorrow as qaḍā' (a make-up fast),' but I forgot to make the intention before sleeping. Is my fast valid?"

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
 
The intention is obligatory in acts of worship. For obligatory fasting, the required intention is to resolve to fast during the night [before dawn]. Its proper locus is the heart, while verbalizing the intention out loud in acts of worship is a sunnah — so that the tongue may align with the heart. If the intent behind the statement in question was the intention to fast, then it is valid; but if the intent was merely to inform someone, or reflected hesitation or doubt, then it is not valid.
 
It is stated in *Bushrā al-Karīm* (Vol.1/P.216): "It is a sunnah to verbalize the intention — that is, whatever has already been intended in the heart, whether an obligatory or a voluntary act — such as specifying the number of rak‘ahs, just before the opening takbīr — so that the tongue may assist the heart, and because this is further removed from whispered doubts (waswasah), and in order to accommodate the view of those who held it obligatory in every act of worship that requires an intention (even though this is a minority position), by analogy with Ḥajj."
 
Accordingly: if the intention to fast arose in your heart before the second adhān [i.e., before Fajr], then your fast is valid.
 
And Allah, the Exalted, knows best.