Attributes of the Believers as defined in Suraa Al Mu'minun

Part 1/2
One of the pure miracles of the Prophet (s.a.w.) that the Most
Merciful Allah has bestowed uponhim, was aiding him with an elite
community of believers who fully understood the meaningof Iman. The
nature of that early Qur'anic generation of believers was governed by
their righteous deeds and virtuous attributes. Today, the Muslim
societies are starving forsuch qualities and attributes that will
uplift their faith and strengthen their consciousness with the Exalted
Creator. The success of the entire Muslim nation in this life and the
next, is only possible when they truly comprehend the meaning of Iman,
and hence, reflect the noble attributes of the believers.
"Successful indeed are the believers
Those who offer their Salat (prayers)
with all solemnity and full submissiveness
And those who turn away from Al-Laghw
(dirty, evil vain talk, falsehood, and all that Allah has forbidden)
And those who pay their Zakat"
These exalted verses are from Surah Al-Mu' minun which takes its name
from the first verse. The name of the Surah reflects its theme and
defines its subject, in thatit begins with the attributes of the
believers and digresses into the signs of Iman in theoneself and in
the universe.
The tone of the Surah is that of declaration and calm argument, of
sentimental logic and of feelings that inspire the thought and the
consciousness. The mood which dominates the Surah is that which its
subject presents, Al-Iman (the Faith). Its opening verse pictures the
seen ofsolemnity and full submissiveness in Salat , " Those who offer
their Salat (prayers) with all solemnity and full submissiveness" ,
followed by the splendid description of the believers and the
attributes they possess.
The fact that th e people who have accepted the Message of the Prophet
(s.a.w.) have started acquiring noble qualities of character, is a
practicalproof of the truth of the message. According to a tradition
related by 'Urwan bin Zubair, ' Umar(r.a.a.) who had embraced Islam by
that time, said: " This Surah was revealed in my presence and I myself
observed the state of the Prophet (s.a.w.) during its revelation. When
the revelation ended, the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.) remarked: 'on this
occasion, ten such verses have been sent d own to me, that the one who
measures up to them, willmost surely go to paradise'. Then he recited
the initial verses of the Surah" [Ahmad, Tirmithy, Nassa'ey, Hakem].
"Successful indeed are the believers". This is the true promise and
the declaration of success to the believers. "It is a Promise of
Allah, and Allah fails not in His Promise" [30:6]. The"Believers" ,
who have attained true success, both individuals and the Jama'ah, are
those who have accepted the Message of Muhammad (s.a.w.), and have
acknowledged him as their guide, and followedthe way of life taught by
him.
This assertion cannot be fully appreciated unless one keeps in view
the background on which it was made. On the one hand, there were the
well to do and prosperous chiefs of Makkah, the opponents of Islam,
whose businesses were thriving and who were enjoyi ng every good thing
of life, and on the other hand there were the followers of Islam, a
majority of whom were either poor from the beginning or had been
reduced to poverty by ruthless antagonism to Islam. Therefore, the
assertion, "Successful indeed are the believers" with whichthe
discourse begins, wasmeant to tell the disbelievers in every age that
the criterion of success and failure that they had in mind was
notcorrect. It was based on misconceptions besides being transitory
and limited in nature, it led toreal failure and imaginary success. On
thecontrary, the followers ofMuhammad (s.a.w.) whom they regarded as
failures were truly successful, because by accepting the invitatio n
to the Right Guidance given by the Prophet (s.a.w.), they had struck
abargain which would lead them to true success and everlasting bliss
in this world, as well as in the Hereafter. Whereas by rejecting the
Message,the opponents had incurred loss and would meet with the evil
consequences both in this world and in the next. This is the main
theme of the Surah and the whole discourse, from beginning to end,
ismeant to impress the same.
The noble characteristics of the believers pointed out in the next fe
w verses are the arguments to prove the above assertion. It is these
characteristics that depicts the Muslim character of the highest
eminence, that of Muhammad (s.a.w.) the best of Allah's creation, whom
Allah described in His Noble Qur'an, "And verily, you [O
Muhammad(s.a.w.)] are on an exalted standard of character" . When
'Ai'sha (r.a.a.) was asked about the character of the Prophet
(s.a.w.), she replied: "His character was the Qur'an", then
sherecited: "Successful indeed are the believers" till "And t hose who
strictly guard their (five compulsory congregational) Salawat (at
their fixed stated hours)". Then she said:"That is how The
Prophet(s.a.w.) was" [Nasa'ey].
"Those who offer their Salat (prayers) with all solemnity and full
submissiveness". Khashi'un in the Text is from Khushu'' (to bow down,
to express humility) which is a condition of the heart and the body.
Khushu' of the heart is to fear and stand in awe to Allah, and Khushu'
of the body is to bow one's head and lower one's gaze and voice in
Allah's Company. In Salat , one is required to show Khushu' both of
the heart and of the body, and this is the essence of the prayer. When
the Prophet (s.a.w.) once saw a person offering his prayer as well as
playing with his beard, he remarked: "Had he Khushu' in his heart, his
body would have manifested it". Though Khushu' is actually a condition
of the heart, asstated by the above tradition, it is manifestedby the
body as a matter of course. One should neither turn to the right or
left, shift about or incline side ways, but must fix the gaze on the
place where the forehead would rest in prostration. Similarly, it
isdisrespectful that one should stand stiffly erect, recite the verses
of the Qur'an in a loud resounding voice, or singthem, or belch and
yawn repeatedly and nosily. It is also not approved that one should
offer the Prayer in a hurry. The injunction is that each article of
the prayer should be performed in perfect peace and tranquillity, and
unless one article has been completely performed , the next should not
be begun.
Along with this etiquette of the body, it is also important that one
should avoid thinking irrelevant things during the Prayer by purifying
the thought and keeping the mind in full harmony and tune with the
tongue. One should also try the utmost to ensure that the mind and
heart are wholly turned towards Allah in order to sense His Grace and
to worship Him solely.
" And those who turn away from Al-Laghw (dirty, false, evil vain
talk,falsehood, and all that Allah has forbidden)". Literally, Laghw
is anything nonsensical, meaningless and vain, which is no way
conductive of achieving one' s goal and purpose in life. The believers
pay no heed to such useless things and show no inclination or interest
in them. If by chance they see such things being i ndulged in, they
keep away and avoid them scrupulously, and treat them with utmost
indifference. This attitude has been described in Al-Furqan [25:72]: "
.. if they pass by some evil play or evil talk,they pass by it with
dignity".
This is indeed one of the outstanding characteristics of the believer.
There are many thoughts that distract thebeliever from evil vain talk.
His attention is diverted towards the remembrance of Allah and the
contemplation ofHis signs in the universe. He is also occupied with
obligations in Aqeedah such as purification of the soul, holding
steadfast to Iman , enjoining what is good and forbidding what is
wrong, protecting the community from corruption, and the obligation of
exercising Jihad for the sake of Alla h. Hence, He is a person who
feels the burden of responsibility at all times,he regards the world
as aplace of test, and the life is a limited time allowed for the
test. This feeling makes him/her behave seriously and responsibly
throughout life and spends each moment of his/her life on works which
are useful and productive in his ultimateresults. So much so that even
in matters of recreation and sport, he makes a choice of only those
things which prepare him for higher ends in life and do not result in
mere wastage oftime. For him time is not something to be killed but
used profitably and productively.
Besides this, the believer is a person who possesses a right thinking
mind, pure nature and fine taste. He has no inclination to indecent
things and can talk useful and healthy things but cannot indulge in
idle talk. On the authority of Abu Huraira (r.a.a.), the Prophet
(s.a.w.) said: "Lethim who believes in Allahand the Last Day either
speak good or keep silent" [Bukhari and Muslim]. The believer has a
fine taste of humour, but is not given to jesting, joking and
ridicule, nor can he endure dirty jokes. For him a society in which
the ears are never immune from abusive language, back-biting, slander
lying, dirty songs,fortune tellers and indecent talk is a source of
torture and agony. A characteristic of the promised Paradise is:
"NoLaghw (dirty, false, evil vain talk) will they hear therein, nor
any sinful speech (like backbiting, etc.)" [56:25].
"And those who pay theirZakat". the word Zakat literally means
purification and development without obstruction. As an Islamic term,
it implies both the portion of wealth taken out for the purpose of
purifying the rest of wealth and the act of purification itself. The
words of the original Text mean that the believer constantly practices
purification. Thus the meaning is not confined to paying off of Zakat
dues only, but it is extended to self- purification which include
purification of morals as well as wealth, property and life in
general. This purification is thus, not limited to one's own self, but
includes the purification of the lives of other people as well. So the
verse means: "The believers are the people who purify themselves
aswell as others". This fact has been stated at other places in the
Qur'an, for instance, "Successful is hewho practiced purification and
remembered his Lord and prayed" [87:14-15]. But this verse is more
comprehensive in meaning because it stresses the purification of both
society and one's own person. This was also confirmed by the Prophet
(s.a.w.) when he said: " To smile in the company of your brother is a
charity. To command to do good deeds and to prevent others from doing
evil is charity. To guide a person in a place were he can go astray is
a charity. To remove troublesome things like thorns and bones from the
road is a charity. To pour water from your jugof your brother is a
charity. To guide a person with defective vision is charity for you"
[Bukhari].
References
1. S.Abul A'la Al-Maududi, The Meaning of the Qur'an, vol. VIII p4-10.
2. Sayyid Qutb, In the Shade of theQur'an, part 18 p2451-2455.

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Inheritance and wills: Does a sinful or disobedient child inherit? Can they be barred?

Question:
What is the ruling on inheritance rights of a son from his father, if
the son has been disobedient, not looking after him, and even acted
violently towards his father? Is he entitled to the same share of a
son who is obedient?
Answer:
Walaikum assalam wa rahmatullah,
The inheritance portions have been allotted by Allah Most High, and
are due to any child, even if deviant, disobedient, and sinful, except
in veryrare circumstances such as apostasy or if they kill the parent.
It is obligatory for every Muslim to take the meansto ensure that
their wealth will be distributed in accordance with the command of
Allah. The importance of this is made clear when we realize that the
laws of inheritance were explained by Allah Most High himself in the
Qur�an in detail.
In non-Muslim countries this cannot normally be ensured without having
a proper will specifying that one�s wealth be distributed according to
Islamic law. It is thus religiously obligatory and binding upon every
Muslim in a non-Muslim country to have such a will, and to keep it up
to date.
See attached answer(s)
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Inheritance: how tosplit assets?

Question:
Regarding inheritance,let's say the parents have several resources(for
e.g. house/land, gold and money), how would they split those amongst
their children? Would they split each resource equally or can they
evaluate the total amount and decide how they want to distribute the
resources as long as the total amounts are equal?
Answer:
Wa alaikum salaam,
Divinely ordained shares of inheritance pertain to every single piece
of wealth the deceased leaves behind individually. Therefore, when the
actual inheritance comes into effect, (upon the death of the family
member whose estate is to be distributed), each of the heirs will have
their stipulated share spread out over every resource. In order to
facilitate division, at that time, they may enter into mutual
agreements and allocate the estate in the best way they see fit,
subject to the conditions of wealth division mentioned in the books of
Fiqh.
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Stipulations in Pre-Nuptial Contracts and Inheritance Laws

Question:
I have a question regarding the marriage contract and pre-nuptial
requests or agreements. Can the wife or the wife's family specify in
the marriage contract thatthe wife should receive a certain financial
sum or property etc if the husband should pass away while she is
married to him (for reasons of security). I understood that this kind
of issue is best covered in the Islamic will and completely voluntary,
not a form of bribery, i.e. the bride will only marry the groom if he
agreesto a kind of dowry or haqmar if he should pass away.
Answer:
Wa alaik as salam,
The wife is entitled to receive 1/4 of the husband's estate/assets in
case of his death if he is not survived by children and 1/8 if he is
survived by children. (See Sura AnNisa: 12)
The above will Islamicallyapply whether he has left behind a will or not.
The husband is obligatedto give his wife enough to take care of her
and the children's basic needs according to his and her financial
status. (See Sura At-Talaq: 7)
A certain amount may bestipulated for the husband to give his wife on
a periodic basis with mutual consent at the time of marriage or any
time after it and the husband will be legally obliged to pay that
amount. If any payments have been missed, the wife is allowed to take
that amount from her husband's assets at the time of his death before
distribution. (See Raddul Muhtar chapter on Nafaqah as given below)
A husband may also gift her a property or a certain amount of moneyfor
the sake of her security during his soundhealth without the intention
of depriving his other heirs.
If it is stipulated in the way mentioned in the question i.e. after
the death of the husband thewife will receive X amount, then this will
fall under the category of an Islamic will, and an Islamic will can
only be executed for non-heirs within 1/3 of the deceased's assets
balance after covering funeral costs and paying off debts. A wife
being an heir is not entitled to any share in the will unless all
heirs are of the age of puberty and they consent to it. Thus there are
two possible case scenarios:
1) One of the heirs is a minor; she will only be entitled to the
prescribed share that a wife is Islamically entitled to i.e. 1/4 if
there are no children or 1/8 if there are children. In this case the
wife will be entitled to her full share regardless of the stipulated X
amount.
2) All heirs are major andconsent to her having anextra share in the
will ontop of her prescribed share and the X amount is equivalent to
or less than 1/3 of the assets' balance; she will be eligible for the
full X amount plus her prescribed share.
3) All heirs are major andconsent and the X amount is greater than 1/3
but not greater than 1/3 plus the 1/8 she is entitled to; she will
receive her full 1/8 and the remainder from within 1/3 of the assets'
balance before distribution.
4) All heirs are major andconsent and the X amount is greater than 1/3
and 1/8 put together;she will receive the full 1/3 + her full 1/8 and
the remaining amount will only be given to her if one or the rest of
the heirs consent to giving up a portion of their share.
And only Allah Almighty knows best.
Mohammed-Umer Ibn Ibrahim
Sources: سنن الترمذي :2020 ‏حدثنا ‏ ‏بندار ‏ ‏حدثنا‏ ‏يزيد بن هارون ‏
‏أخبرنا ‏ ‏سفيان ‏ ‏عن ‏ ‏أبي إسحق ‏ ‏عن ‏ ‏الحارث ‏ ‏عن ‏ ‏علي ‏ ‏أنه
قال ‏ ‏إنكم تقرءون هذه الآية ‏ ‏من بعد وصية توصون بها أو دين ‏ ‏وإن
رسول الله ‏ ‏صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏ ‏قضى بالدين قبل الوصية وإن ‏ ‏أعيان
‏ ‏بني الأم يتوارثون دون بني ‏ ‏العلات ‏ ‏الرجل يرث أخاه لأبيه وأمه
دون أخيه لأبيه ‏ ‏حدثنا ‏ ‏بندار ‏ ‏حدثنا ‏ ‏يزيد بن هارون ‏ ‏أخبرنا ‏
‏زكريا بن أبي زائدة ‏ ‏عن ‏ ‏أبي إسحق ‏ ‏عن ‏ ‏الحارث ‏ ‏عن ‏ ‏علي ‏
‏عن النبي ‏ ‏صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏ ‏بمثله ‏
‏Bukahri:1213; حدثنا ‏ ‏عبد الله بن يوسف ‏ ‏أخبرنا ‏ ‏مالك ‏ ‏عن ‏
‏ابن شهاب ‏ ‏عن ‏ ‏عامر بن سعد بن أبي وقاص ‏ ‏عن ‏ ‏أبيه ‏ ‏رضي له عنه
‏ ‏قال ‏ ‏كان رسول الله ‏ ‏صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏ ‏يعودني عام حجة الوداع
من وجع اشتد بي فقلت إني قد بلغ بي من الوجع وأنا ذو مال ولا يرثني إلا
ابنة أفأتصدق بثلثي مالي قال لا فقلت بالشطر فقال لا ثم قال ‏ ‏الثلث
والثلث كبير ‏ ‏أو كثير ‏ ‏إنك أن تذر ورثتك أغنياء خير من أن تذرهم عالة
يتكففون الناس وإنك لن تنفق نفقة تبتغي بها وجه الله إلا أجرت بها حتى ما
تجعل في ‏ ‏في امرأتك فقلت يا رسول الله ‏ ‏أخلف ‏ ‏بعد أصحابي قال إنك
لن ‏ ‏تخلف ‏ ‏فتعمل عملا صالحا إلا ازددت به درجة ورفعة ثم لعلك أن تخلف
حتى ينتفع بك أقوام ويضربك آخرون اللهم أمض لأصحابي هجرتهم ولا تردهم على
أعقابهم لكن ‏ ‏البائس ‏ ‏سعد بن خولة ‏ ‏يرثي له رسول الله ‏ ‏صلى الله
عليه وسلم ‏ ‏أن مات ‏ ‏بمكة
‏Tirmidhy:2046 حدثنا ‏ ‏علي بن حجر ‏ ‏وهناد ‏ ‏قالا حدثنا ‏ ‏إسمعيل بن
عياش ‏ ‏حدثنا ‏ ‏شرحبيل بن مسلم الخولاني ‏ ‏عن ‏ ‏أبي أمامة الباهلي ‏
‏قال ‏ ‏سمعت رسول الله ‏ ‏صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏ ‏يقول في خطبته عام حجة
الوداع ‏ ‏إن الله قد أعطى لكل ذي حق حقه فلا وصية لوارث الولد ‏ ‏للفراش
‏ ‏وللعاهر ‏ ‏الحجر ‏ ‏وحسابهم على الله ومن‏ ‏ادعى ‏ ‏إلى غير أبيه أو
انتمى إلى غير ‏ ‏مواليه ‏ ‏فعليه لعنةالله ‏ ‏التابعة ‏ ‏إلى يوم
القيامة لا تنفق امرأة من بيت زوجها إلا بإذن زوجها قيل يا رسولالله ولا
الطعام قال ذلك أفضل أموالنا ثم قال ‏ ‏العارية ‏ ‏مؤداة ‏ ‏والمنحة ‏
‏مردودة والدين مقضي ‏ ‏والزعيم ‏ ‏غارم
Raddul Muhtar: رد المحتار على الدر المختار > باب النفقة > مطلب لا تصير
النفقةدينا إلا بالقضاء أو الرضا ( والنفقة لا تصير دينا إلا بالقضاء أو
الرضا ) أي اصطلاحهما على قدر معين أصنافا أو دراهم ، فقبل ذلك لا يلزم
شيء ، وبعده ترجع بما أنفقت ولو من مال نفسها بلا أمر قاض


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