The story of Prophet Aadam - I

Allaah Almighty revealed in the Quran (what means): "And [mention, O
Muhammad], when your Lord said to the angels: 'Indeed, I will make
upon the earth a successiveauthority.' They said: 'Will You place upon
it one who causes corruption therein and sheds blood, while we declare
Your praise and sanctify You?' He [Allaah] said: 'Indeed, I know that
which you do not know.' And He taught Aadam the names - all of them.
Then He showed them to the angels and said: 'Inform Me of the names of
these,if you are truthful.' They said: 'Exalted are You; we have no
knowledge except what You havetaught us. Indeed, it is You who is the
Knowing, the Wise.' He said: 'O Aadam! Inform them of their names.'
And when he had informed them of their names, He said: 'Did I not tell
you that I know the unseen [aspects] of theheavens and the earth? And
I know what you reveal and what you have concealed.' And [mention]
when We said to the angels: 'Prostrate before Aadam'; so they
prostrated, except for Iblees [Satan]. He refused and was arrogant and
became of the disbelievers. And We said: 'O Aadam! Dwell, you and your
wife, in Paradise and eat therefrom in [ease and] abundance from
wherever you will. But do not approach this tree, lest you be among
the wrongdoers.' But Satan caused them to slip out of it and removed
them from that [condition] in which they had been. And We said: 'Go
down, [all of you], as enemies to one another, and you will have upon
the earth a place of settlement and provision for a time.' Then Aadam
received from his Lord [some] words, and He accepted his repentance.
Indeed, it is He who is the Accepting of repentance, the Merciful. We
said:'Go down from it, all of you. And when guidance comes to you from
Me, whoever follows My guidance - there will be no fear concerning
them, nor will they grieve. And those who disbelieve and deny Our
signs - those will becompanions of Fire; they will abide therein
eternally.'" [Quran 2:30-39]
Almighty Allaah also revealed (what means): "And We have certainly
created you, [O mankind], and given you [human] form. Then We said to
the angels: 'Prostrate to Aadam'; so they prostrated, except for
Iblees. He was not of those who prostrated. [Allaah] said: 'What
prevented you from prostrating when I commanded you?' [Satan]said: 'I
am better than him. You created me from fire and created him from clay
[i.e. earth].' [Allaah]said: 'Descend from it [i.e. Paradise ], for it
is not for you to be arrogant therein. So get out; indeed, you are of
the debased.' [Satan] said: 'Reprieve me until the Day they are
resurrected.' [Allaah] said: 'Indeed, you are of those reprieved.'
[Satan] said: 'Because You have put me in error, I will surely sit in
wait for them [i.e. mankind] on Your straight path. Then I will come
tothem from before them and frombehind them and on their right and on
their left, and You will notfind most of them grateful [to You].'
[Allaah] said: 'Get out of it [i.e. Paradise ], reproached and
expelled, Whoever follows you among them - I will surely fill Hellwith
you, all together.' And: 'O Aadam! Dwell, you and your wife, in
Paradise and eat from wherever you will but do not approach this tree,
lest you be among the wrongdoers.' But Satan whispered to them to make
apparent to them that which was concealed from them of their private
parts. He said: 'Your Lord did not forbid you this tree except that
you become angels or become of the immortal.' And he swore [by Allaah]
to them: 'Indeed, I am to you from among the sincere advisors.' So he
made them fall, through deception. And when they tasted of the tree,
their private parts became apparent tothem, and they began to fasten
together over themselves from the leaves of Paradise . And their Lord
called to them: 'Did I not forbid you from that tree and tell you that
Satan is to you a clear enemy?' They said: 'Our Lord! We have wronged
ourselves, and if You do not forgive us and have mercy upon us, we
will surely be among the losers.' [Allaah] said: 'Descend, being to
one another enemies. And for you on the earth is a place of settlement
andenjoyment [i.e. provision] for a time.' He said: 'Therein you will
live, and therein you will die, and from it you will be brought
forth.'" [Quran 7:11-25]
When Allaah the Almightycreated Aadam He addressed His angels and told
them to prostrate before him. The purpose behind that was not to ask
their opinion or take their advice, for He is above that. Allaah the
Exalted told them that He was going to create a vicegerent on the
earth who would have offspring. That is why theangels said to Allaah
the Almighty (what means): "…Will You place upon it one whocauses
corruption therein and sheds blood…" [Quran: 2:30]
According to the prominent Muslim scholar Qataadah it was said that
the angels were informed about thecreation of Aadam and his progeny by
the jinn who lived before Aadam . Abdullaah bin'Umar said that the
jinn had existed for manyyears before Aadam and had shed one another's
blood. Therefore, Allaah sent on them an army of angels that drove
them out to the depths of the seas. Ibn Abu Haatim narrated that the
angels were informed by Allaah that man would cause wickedness and
shed blood on earth.
Whether or not these traditions are correct, theangels did understand
that Allaah would create a vicegerent on earth. Allaah the Almighty
announced that He was going to create a human being out of clay, that
He would mould him and blow His spirit into him and that the angels
should then prostrate before him.
Prophet Muhammad said: "Allaah created Aadam from a handful of dust
taken from differentlands, so the children of Aadam have been created
according to the composition of the land. Therefore from mankind we
have white, red, blackand yellow; we have good and evil, ease and
sorrow, and what comes in between them." [Al-Bukhaari]
So Allaah shaped Aadam into a human being; but he remained a figure of
clay for forty years. The angels went past him. They were seized with
fear by what they saw, and Iblees felt the most fear. He would pass by
the figure of Aadam buffeting it, which would make a sound like
pottery. Allaah Says (what means): "He created man [Aadam] from clay
like [that of] pottery." [Quran: 55:14]
When the time drew nearto breathe the spirit into Aadam as Allaah
decreed, He commanded the angels (what means):" When I breathe My
spirit into him, prostrate before him." [Quran 15:29] Allaah breathed
His spirit into Aadam and when it reached his head, Aadam sneezed. The
angels said to him: "Say: 'All praise belongs to Allaah.'" Aadam
repeated: "All praise belongs to Allaah." Allaahsaid to him: "Your
Lord has granted you mercy." When the spirit reached his eyes, Aadam
looked at the fruits of Paradise . When it reached his abdomen, he
craved for food. He jumped hurriedly before the spirit could reach his
legs, so that he could eat from the fruits of Paradise .
Aadam opened his eyes and saw all the angels prostrating beforehim
except one being, who was standing at a distance. Aadam did not know
what kind of creature it was that did not prostrate before him,nor did
he know its name. Iblees was standing with the angels so as to be
included in the command given to them, but he was not oneof them - he
was a jinn. What is clear is that this prostration was to show respect
and did not meanthat the angels were worshipping Aadam . Prostrating
in worship is done only for Allaah.
Iblees believed that he was more honourable than Aadam . Therefore, he
abstained from prostrating, even though Allaah had commanded him to do
so, just as He had commanded the angels.
Iblees tried in vain to justify his refusal; he said (what means):
"…'Should I prostrate to one You created from clay? Do you see this
one who You have honoured above me? If you delay me [i.e., my death]
until the Day of Resurrection, I will surely destroy[i.e., lead
astray] his descendants,except for a few.'" [Quran: 17:61-62]
Aadam was following what was happening around him and had feelings of
love, awe, andastonishment - deep love of Allaah, who had created and
glorified himand who had made His angels prostrate before him; awe of
the Creator's wrath when He excluded Iblees from His mercy. Aadam was
surprised by this creature, Iblees, who abhorred him without even
knowing him and who imagined himself better than him without having
proved that he was worthier. What a strange creature Iblees was, and
how strange was his excuse for not prostrating!

Is it permissible to prayin a room where there isa television that is on?.

Is it permissible to pray in a room when there is someone else in the
same room who is watching television, if that person is watching it at
a low volume and the program being shown does not contain anything but
people who are dressed decently?.
Praise be to Allah.
It is makrooh to pray in a place where the worshipper will be
distracted from his prayer. And undoubtedlythe television is one of
the greatest distractions to people; if a man praysin a place where
the television is on, it will undoubtedly distract him even if the
volume islow.
Abu Dawood (2030) narrated that Safiyyah bint Shaybah said: I heard
the Aslami womansaying: I said to 'Uthmaan: What did the Messenger of
Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) say to you when he
called you? He said: He said: "I forgot to tell you to cover up the
two (ram's) horns, because there should not be anything in the room to
distract the one who is praying."Classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in
Saheeh al-Jaami', no. 2504.
At-Tabaraani narrated inal-Awsat (5246) that Abu Hurayrah said: The
Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: "I
have been forbidden to pray behind people who are talking or
sleeping." Classed as hasan by al-Albaani in al-Irwa' (2/96). Also
narrated by Abu Dawood(694) from the hadeeth of Ibn 'Abbaas as
follows: "|Do not pray behind one who is sleeping or talking." Classed
as hasan by al-Albaani in Saheeh Abi Dawood.
Al-Khattaabi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
With regard to praying behind people who are talking, it was regarded
as makrooh by ash-Shaafa 'i and Ahmad. That is because they talked
will distract the worshipper from his prayer. Ibn 'Umar would not pray
behind a man who was talking except on Friday.
End quote from Ma 'aalim as-Sunan, 1/187
An-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
With regard to the garments or cloths on which there are images
crosses or things that may cause distraction, it is makrooh to pray
wearing them, facing towards them or on them.
End quote from al-Majmoo ', 3/180
The one who is praying in a place where this television is cannot be
certain that it will not suddenly change from recitation of Qur'an to
songs and music, especially if there is someone with whom who does not
care aboutsuch things does not payattention to respecting the fact
that people are praying. The one who wants to pray should choose a
place where nothing will distract himfrom his prayer, whetherby means
of noise, images or other things.
If he does pray in such a place, his prayer is valid. If it is in such
a way that it will not distract him oraffect his prayer, then there is
nothing wrong with that and it is not makrooh.
But if it is in such a way that it will cause some distraction, his
prayer is still valid but it is makrooh.And Allah knows best.

Is it permissible for her to get an invoice for medication from a pharmacy from which she did not get this medicine?.

I work in a government department and our medical costs are covered by
this department; we have to bring an invoice for the cost of medical
consultations from any doctor as well as invoices from any pharmacy
showing the price of medicine, and the department will cover the cost
of these invoices.
My questions are:
Sometimes the doctor who treats me prescribes medicine for me, some of
which can be found in the pharmacy and some of itcannot, so we buy it
from him, but he does not write me an invoice showing the price of
these medicines.
Is it permissible for me to get an invoice from any pharmacy to show
the price of this medicine, but showing the name of some other
medicine that is in the prescription? On one occasion I went to the
doctor and my sister waswith me, and she had some problems, so she
asked the doctor and he wrote a prescription for her. But when I asked
him whether I should pay for this consultation,he refused. Is it
permissible for her to submit it to the department in which myfather
works, because children get half of their medical costs covered bythe
department in whichthe father works?
Praise be to Allah.
Firstly:
The employee should approach his work with an attitude of
trustworthiness, dignity and honesty, and should avoid haraam
earnings, lying, cheating and deceiving.
He should do the work required of him in a proper manner, without
cheating in his earnings or doing anything that will lead to regret in
the Hereafter.
See the answer to question no. 4651 .
Secondly:
Saying that the medicinementioned is not available in pharmacies is a
dubious statement, because the basic principle is that medicine is
more available in pharmacies than in doctors' clinics; the doctor may
have free samples that he getsfrom (pharmaceutical) companies and the
like.
Whatever the case, it seems to us, and we know from experience, that
if you had looked more, especially in larger pharmacies, you would
certainly have found the medicine that you were looking for or you
would have found a suitable alternative to it. It does not seem to us
that there is any concession concerning what you are asking about,
especially as it is not a case of necessity. So it is not permissible
tohasten to tell lies or resort to deceit and tricks when there is no
case of necessity and no pressure to do so.
Even if we assume that there is no alternative for this medicine, and
that it is only available from this doctor (which cannot be the case),
either the doctor should sell it with an invoice, or you can talk to
your superiors at work so thatthey can find out the facts about the
matter.
Thirdly:
If children have half of their medical costs covered, as you say,
thenit is not permissible for them to submit papers showing anything
but the true facts. If on this occasion you did not payany of the
costs for this consultation, then you do not have the right to ask the
administration atwork for anything.
If you did pay for it, thenyou have the right to askfor what you are
allowed to, according to the conditions stipulatedby your father's
work, but that is on condition that the papers you submit are truthful
and are not made up.And Allah knows best.

Bahirah, the Monk Recognizes the Seal of Prophethood

When the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) was twelve years old,
he went with his uncle Abu Talib on a business journey to Syria. When
they reached Busra (which was a part of Syria, in the vicinity of
Howran under the Roman domain) they met a monk called Bahira (his real
name was Georges), who showed great kindness, and entertained them
lavishly. He had never been in the habit of receiving or entertaining
them before. He readily enough recognized the Prophet (Peace be upon
him) and said while taking his hand: "This is the master of all
humans. Allah will send him with a Message which will be a mercy to
all beings." Abu Talib asked: "How do you know that?" He replied:"When
you appeared from the direction of 'Aqabah, all stones and trees
prostrated themselves, which they never do except for a Prophet. I can
recognize him also by the seal of Prophethood which is below his
shoulder, like an apple. We have got tolearn this from our books."
Source: At Tirmidhi and At Tabari