Dought & clear - Is it permissible to givezakaat al-fitr two years in advance by analogy with the zakaah on one’s wealth?

Is it permissible to give zakaat al-fitr two years in advance by
analogy with giving zakaah of one's wealth two years in advance?
Praise be to Allah.
The time when zakaat al-fitr becomes obligatory begins at sunset on
the last day of Ramadan. The Sunnah indicates that it is permissible
to give it one or two days before the day of Eid. See the answer to
question no. 37636
The Hanafis are of the view that an analogy may be drawn between
zakaah of one's wealth and zakaat al-fitr, so they say that it is
permissible to bring it forward.
As-Sarkhasi said inal-Mabsoot, 3/110: The correct view in our opinion
is that bringing it (zakaat al-fitr) forwardby one or two years is
permissible. End quote.
However, what appears to be the case is that bringing it forward ahead
of the time prescribed in sharee'ah is not permissible.
There are two significant differences between zakaat al-fitr and
zakaah on one's wealth:
1.
The reason for zakaat al-fitr becoming obligatory is sunset on the
last day of Ramadan, whereas the reason for zakaah on one's wealth
becoming obligatory is possession of the nisaab (minimum threshold of
wealth at which zakaah becomes obligatory). Bringing something forward
and doing it before the reason for it comes into effect is not
permissible. Hence if a person hastens to pay zakaah on his wealth
before he has possessionof the nisaab, that is not acceptable.
Ash-Shiraazi said inal-Muhadhdhab: It is notvalid to pay it in
advancebefore the month of Ramadan, because that is bringing it
forward and doing it before the two reasons for it [i.e., fasting and
sunset on the last day of Ramadan]. That is like paying zakaah on
one's wealth before one has acquired the nisaab and one full (hijri)
year has passed since that date. End quote.
See:Manzoomat Usool al-Fiqh wa Qawaa'idihiby Ibn 'Uthaymeen, p. 143
2.
The purpose behind zakaat al-fitr is make thepoor independent of means
on the day of Eid, but this purpose is not met if zakaat al-fitr is
brought forward. That isunlike zakaah on one's wealth, the purpose of
which is to make the poor independent of means in general terms and is
not limited to a specific time.
There is also a third way in which we may differentiate between them,
which is: zakaat al-fitr is a small amount, so it does not serve a
great purpose for the poor person if it is brought forward, unlike
zakaah on one's wealth.
And Allah knows best.

Dought & clear - Will anyone come out of Paradise or out of Hell after entering it? What is the reward for good deeds done by thedisbelievers?

With all due respect to the one who answered question no. 21365 about
the two verses (no. 106, 107) of Soorat Hood, you stated that the
people of Hell will abide therein forever and ever and will never come
out of it. However, I read inSaheehal-Bukhaari(Book 2, 12, 72) that
Allah will show mercy to some of the people of Hell and will admit
them to Paradise because of what there is in their hearts of faith in
Him. Which of the two is more correct? If both are correct, how can we
reconcile between them? Based on that, do the verses in Soorat Hood
indicate that some of those who do good deeds will remain for a
similar period in Paradise but in the end they will enter Hell? If
that is not the case, then how will these disbelievers who spend their
lives in the service of humanity then die in non-Muslim countries –
like Mother Teresa – be rewarded?
Praise be to Allah.
Firstly:
We appreciate the questioner's interest in the answers that we publish
on our website and his following up on them. We also appreciate
hisquestion about the apparent contradiction, which is indicative of
his love of learning and his efforts to benefit from what he reads,
insha Allah.
Secondly:
There is no contradiction between what is mentioned in the answer to
the question referred to, and the hadeeths referred to in the
question. To explain further, the people of Hell are of two types:
1.
The first type are monotheists (people who affirmed the Oneness of
Allah) who mixed good deeds with bad deeds. Allah will admit them to
Hell for their sins, and He has willed that they should be punished
there.
This category will be punished in Hell for a while, and Allah, may He
be exalted, is the One Who will determine the length thereof. Then He
will bring them out of the Fire and will decree that they will abide
for eternity in Paradise after that.
These are the ones referred to in the hadeeths mentioned in the
question, in which it is stated that some of those who are in the Fire
will be brought out because of what they believe in of Tawheed (the
Oneness of Allah). They are the people of Hell among the Muslims.
2.
The second type are the disbelievers and hypocrites who do nothave any
belief in Tawheed and who die in a state of disbelief, shirk
(polytheism), atheism or hypocrisy.
This category will be punished in Hell for eternity. Their Lord warned
them that they would abide in Hell for eternity if theydid not do what
Allah, may He be exalted, commanded them to do of affirming His
Oneness (Tawheed) and devoting all their acts of worship to Him
alone. They chose for themselves kufr (disbelief) and they chose to
abide for eternity in the Fire.
These are the ones who are referred to in the verses of Soorat Hood
referred to at the beginning of your question.
Thirdly:
From what we have mentioned above, youwill realise that being admitted
to Hell is not just for one group; rather it is for two groups, one of
which will be brought out of it. They are the monotheists (believers
in Tawheed,the Oneness of Allah) who committed sins that meant that
they deserved to enter Hell.The other group will not be brought out of
it; those are the ones who disbelieved and died in a state of
disbelief.
With regard to Paradise, none will enter it except one group, namely
the monotheists (believers in Tawheed). When a person enters it, he
will never exit from it;rather he will enjoy what it contains, and he
will never feel sorrow or despair, he will never die or fall sick, he
will never grow old or be deprived of that delight after he has tasted
it.
Once you understand that there are two categories of people, those who
believe andthose who disbelieve, those who are blessed(destined for
Paradise) and those who are doomed (destined for Hell), then you will
be able to understand what is mentioned in the Book of Allah, may He
be exalted, of the decree that there will be no exit from Hell, and
that those who are referred to in this case are the disbelievers who
will abide in Hell forever, as Allah, may He be exalted, says
(interpretation of the meaning):
"Thus Allah will show them their deeds as regrets for them. And they
will never get outof the Fire"
[al-Baqarah 2:167]
"They will long to get out of the Fire, but never will they get
outtherefrom, and theirs will be a lasting torment"
[al-Maa'idah 5:37].
With regard to those who are blessed (destined for Paradise) and the
people of faith, Allah, may He be exalted, has decreed that they will
not exit from Paradise, as He, may He be exalted, says (interpretation
of the meaning):
"No sense of fatigue shall touch them, nor shall they (ever) be asked
to leave it"
[al-Hijr 15:48].
For more information,please see the answers to questions no. 31174,
26792and 45804
Fourthly:
Once this is understood clearly, it should be noted that ifthe
disbeliever does something that is deserving of reward, he will be
rewarded for it in this world, notin the Hereafter. His disbelief
prevents his deed being accepted in such a way that he may benefit
from it in the Hereafter, becauseone of the conditions of good deeds
being accepted is that one should be Muslim.
At-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
If a person does a righteous deed without fearing Allah – i.e., he is
a mushrik or polytheist – he will be given a reward for that in this
world, such as if he upholds ties of kinship, gives to one who is in
need out of compassion, and other such righteous deeds. Allahwill give
him the reward of his good deed in this world, such as increasing his
livelihood and provision, giving him joy in what He blesses himwith,
warding off from him the harms ofthis world, and so on. But he will
not have any share (of reward) in the Hereafter.
Tafseer at-Tabari, 15/265
Al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercyon him) said:
Al-Qaadi 'Iyaad said: There is scholarly consensus that the deeds of
the disbelievers will not benefit them [in the Hereafter]; they will
not be rewarded for them with joy and no punishment will be reduced
for them, even though some of them will be more severely punished than
others.
Al-Fath, 9/48
It should be understood that Allah,may He be exalted, will not cause
the reward for their deedsthat benefit people to be lost; but their
reward will come in this world and not in the Hereafter. As for the
believer, the reward for his good deeds will be in this world and in
the Hereafter.
It was narrated that Anas ibn Maalik said: The Messenger of Allah
(blessings and peace of Allah be uponhim) said:"If the kaafir does a
good deed, he is fed because of it in this world. As for the believer,
Allah stores up his good deeds for him in the Hereafter and grants him
provision in accordance with his obedience in this world.
Narrated by Muslim (2808).
According to another report:: "Allaah does not treat the believer
unjustly with regard to his good deeds. He blesses him because of them
in this world and He will reward him for them in the Hereafter. As for
the kaafir, he is fed because of the good deeds that he does for the
sake of Allaah in this world, then when he passes on into the
Hereafter, he will haveno good deeds left for which to be rewarded."
You should understand that this reward in this world is not definite;
rather it is subject to the will of Allah. Allah, may He be glorified
and exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):"Whoever wishes for
the quick-passing (transitory enjoyment of this world), We readily
grant him what We will for whom We like" [al-Isra' 18:18].
Ash-Shanqeeti (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
It should be understood that this matter, for which we have quoted
evidence from the Qur'an and Sunnah, that the disbeliever may benefit
from his righteous deeds in this world, such as honouring his parents,
upholding ties of kinship, honouring guests and neighbours, relieving
people of distress and so on – all of that is subject to the will of
Allah, may He be exalted, as He has stated in the verse
(interpretation of the meaning):"Whoever wishes for the quick-passing
(transitory enjoyment of this world), We readily grant him what We
will for whom We like" [al-Isra' 18:18].
This verse is specific and specifies what is mentioned in general
terms in other verses and hadeeths.
Adwa' al-Bayaan, 3/450
What we have mentioned about Allah, may He be exalted, rewarding
whomever He wills among the disbelievers does not apply to Mother
Teresa, whose original name was Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu. She originally
came from Macedonia and died in1997 CE. She was a missionary nun
whosework focused on helping the poor, destitute and sick, andshe used
her work to try to convert them to Christianity. The deedsof a person
like this cannot be called "good" and whatever provision he or she
gets in this world is not the reward of good deeds; rather it is
provision that is granted by Allah, for which those who disbelieve in
Him will be punished, as Allah, may He be exalted, says
(interpretation ofthe meaning):
"And (remember) when Ibrahim (Abraham) said, 'My Lord, make this city
(Makkah) a place of security and provide its people with fruits, such
of them as believe in Allah and the Last Day.' He (Allah) answered:
'As for him who disbelieves, I shall leave him in contentment for a
while, then I shall compel him to the torment of the Fire, and worst
indeed is that destination!'"
[al-Baqarah 2:126].
To sum up, the deeds of the disbelievers in this world are of two types:
1.
Those that are worldlydeeds such as acts of kindness, in which it is
not stipulated that one should have the intention of drawing close to
Allah, such as upholding ties of kinship, honouring guests, and so on.
Thisis what is referred to in the hadeeth, for which the disbeliever
will be rewarded in this world if Allah wants to reward him.
An-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
It is clearly stated in this hadeeth that (the disbeliever) is fed in
this world because of what he does of good deeds, i.e., what he does
seeking thereby to draw closer to Allahof actions in which their
validity does not depend on the intention, such as upholding ties of
kinship, giving charity, manumitting slaves, hosting guests,and other
good deeds.
Sharh Muslim(17/150)
2.
Those that are worldlydeeds, in which the doer's intention is to
spread his religion and mislead Muslims away from their religion.
These are notincluded in the hadeeth; rather the sternest warnings is
given to the one who does them, because heis turning people away from
the religion of Allah and exploiting people's needs, poverty and
sickness for this evil purpose. That includeswhat Mother Teresa and
other missionaries and promoters of falsehood are doing.
With regard to religious actions in which it is stipulated that one
should have the intention of drawing close to Allah, such as Hajj,
'Umrah and du'aa' (supplication), the disbeliever will not berewarded
for these either in this world or in the Hereafter, because it is
invalid, as some of the conditions of its beingaccepted are not
present, i.e., being Muslim, being sincere towards Allah alone, and
following (the Sunnah). Moreover, disbelief (kufr) renders good deeds
invalid, so the one who does them will not benefit from them at all on
the Day of Resurrection.
And Allah knows best.

Dought & clear - What is the ruling on offering the regular Sunnah prayer that is usually offered after the obligatory prayer, before the obligatory prayer?

Is it permissible for someone to pray the 2 unit of sunnah of esha
salaah beforehand of the obligatory prayer ? If someone prayed it
without knowledge about the ruling, what is the stand ?
Praise be to Allah.
The regular Sunnah prayers are of two types:
1.The Sunnah prayers that are offered before the obligatory prayer.
They are: two rak'ahs before Fajr and four rak'ahs with two tasleems
(i.e., offered two by two) before Zuhr.
The time for this type of Sunnah prayer begins when the time for that
prayer begins, and lasts until one begins to offer the obligatory
prayer.
2.The Sunnah prayers that are offered after the obligatory prayer.
They are: two rak'ahs after Maghrib, two rak'ahs after 'Isha' and two
rak'ahs after Zuhr.
The time for this type of Sunnah prayer begins when the obligatory
prayer is over and lasts until the end of the time for that prayer.
Ibn Qudaamah (may Allah have mercy on him) said: With regard toevery
Sunnah prayer that is offered before the obligatory prayer, itstime
lasts from the beginning of the time for that prayer until the start
of the obligatory prayer. With regard to every Sunnah prayer that is
offered after the obligatory prayer, its time lasts from when that
prayer is finished until the end of that time.
End quote fromal-Mughni, 1/436
It says inal-Mawsoo'ah al-Fiqhiyyah(25/281-282): The regular Sunnah
prayers are connected to the obligatory prayers; someof them are
offered before the obligatory prayer, such as the Sunnah prayer of
Fajr and the Sunnah prayer that comes before Zuhr. And some of them
are offered after the obligatory prayer, such as the Sunnah prayer
that comes after Zuhr, the Sunnah prayers of Maghrib and 'Isha', Witr,
and qiyaam in Ramadan (i.e., Taraweeh).
With regard to whateverof these Sunnah prayers come before the
obligatory prayer, the time for them begins when the time for the
obligatory prayer begins, and ends when the iqaamah for the obligatory
prayer is given, if that iqaamah is given in a group or congregation
(jamaa'ah), because once the iqaamah is given for prayer, there isno
prayer except the prescribed obligatory prayer. But if an individual
is going to offer the prayer on his own, the time for the Sunnah
prayer lasts untilhe begins the obligatoryprayer.
With regard to the Sunnah prayers that come after the obligatory
prayer, such as the Sunnah prayer that comes after Zuhr and the Sunnah
prayers of Maghrib and 'Isha', the time for each of them begins when
the obligatory prayer has been completed and lasts until the time of
theobligatory prayer ends and the time for the nextprayer begins.
End quote.
Based on the above, if a person offers the Sunnah prayer that should
be offered after 'Isha' before he prays 'Isha', it is as if he has
performed that Sunnah before its time. Hence it will not be counted as
a regular sunnah prayer; rather it is a naafil prayer between the
adhaan and iqaamah, for which one earns the reward of a naafil prayer,
not a regular Sunnah prayer.
An-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:It is mustahabb to pray
two rak'ahs or more before 'Isha', because of the hadeeth of
'Abdullahibn Maghfal, according to which the Prophet (blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him) said: "Between each two calls (the adhaan
and iqaamah) there should be a prayer, between each two calls there
should be a prayer, between each two calls there should be a prayer" –
and the third time he said, "for whoever wishes." Narrated by
al-Bukhaari and Muslim. What is meant by the two calls is the adhaan
and iqaamah, according to scholarly consensus.
End quote fromal-Majmoo', 3/504
For more information please see the answer toquestion no. 128164
With regard to the one who used to do that andwas unaware of the
ruling as mentioned above, then we hope that Allah, by His bounty and
grace, will grant him the reward of one who offered the regular Sunnah
prayer, because he was unaware of the ruling on that matter.
And Allah knows best.

Muslim Marriage Stories: Carry me in your ArmsImportance of Marriage in Islam

When I got home that night as my wife served dinner, I held her hand
and said, I've got something to tell you. She sat down and ate
quietly. Again I observed the hurt in her eyes.
Suddenly I didn't know how to say it. But I had tolet her know what I
was thinking. I want a divorce. I raised the topiccalmly. She didn't
seem to be annoyed by my words, instead she asked me softly, why? I
avoidedher question. This made her angry. She shouted atme, "you are
not a man!"
That night, we didn't talkto each other. She was weeping. I knew she
wanted to find out what had happened to our marriage. But I could
hardly give her a satisfactory answer; I hadlost my heart to a lovely
girl called Dew. I didn't love her anymore. I just pitied her!
With a deep sense of guilt, I drafted a divorce agreement which stated
that she could own our house, 30% shares of my company and the car.
Sheglanced at it and then tore it to pieces. The woman who had spent
ten years of her life with me had become a stranger. I felt sorry for
her wasted time, resources and energy butI could not take back what I
had said, for I loved Dew so dearly.
Finally she cried loudly in front of me, which was what I had expected
to see. To me, her cry was actually a kind of release.The idea of
divorce which had obsessed me for several weeks seemedto be firmer and
clearer now.
The next day, I came backhome very late and found her writing
something at the table. I didn't have supper but went straight to
sleep and fell fast asleep because I was tired after an eventful day
with Dew. When I woke up, she was still there at the table writing. I
just didn'tcare so I turned over and was asleep again.
In the morning she presented her divorce conditions: she didn't want
anything from me, but needed a month's notice before the divorce. She
requested that in that one month, we both struggle to live as normal a
life as possible. Her reasons were simple: our son hadhis exams in a
month's time and she didn't want to disrupt him with our broken
marriage.
This was agreeable to me. But she had something more, she asked me to
recall how I had carried her into out bridal room on our wedding day.
She requested that everyday for the month's duration I carry her out
of our bedroom to the front door ever morning. I thought she was going
crazy.
Just to make our last daystogether bearable I accepted her odd
request. I told Dew aboutmy wife's divorce conditions. She laughed
loudly and thought it wasabsurd. No matter what tricks she has, she
has to face the divorce, she said scornfully. My wife and I hadn't had
any body contact since my divorce intention was explicitly expressed.
So when I carried her out on the first day, we both appeared clumsy.
Our sonclapped behind us, daddyis holding mummy in his arms. His words
brought me a sense of pain. From the bedroom to the sitting room, then
to the door, I walked over ten meters with her in my arms. She closed
her eyesand said softly; don't tell our son about the divorce. I
nodded, feelingsomewhat upset. I put her down outside the door. She
went to wait for the bus to work. I drove alone to the office.
On the second day, both of us acted much more easily. She leaned on my
chest... I could smell the fragrance of her blouse. Irealized that I
hadn't looked at this woman carefully for a long time. Irealized she
was not young any more. There were fine wrinkles on her face, her hair
was graying! Our marriage had taken its toll on her. For a minute I
wondered what I had done to her.
On the fourth day, when Ilifted her up, I felt a sense of intimacy
returning. This was the woman who had given ten years of her life to
me. On the fifth and sixth day, I realized that our sense of intimacy
was growing again. I didn't tell Dew about this. It became easier to
carry her as the month slipped by. Perhaps the everyday workout made
me stronger.
She was choosing what to wear one morning. She tried on quite a few
dresses but could not find a suitable one. Then she sighed, all my
dresseshave grown bigger. I suddenly realized that she had grown so
thin, that was the reason why I could carry her more easily. Suddenly
it hit me;she had buried so much pain and bitterness in her heart.
Subconsciously I reached out and touched her head. Our son came in at
the moment and said, Dad, it's time to carry mum out. To him, seeing
his father carrying his mother out had become an essential part of his
life. My wife gestured to our son to come close and hugged him
tightly. Iturned my face away because I was afraid I might change my
mind atthis last minute. I then held her in my arms, walking from the
bedroom, through the sitting room, to the hallway. Her hand surrounded
my neck softly and naturally. I held her body tightly; it was just
like our wedding day.
But her much lighter weight made me sad. On the last day, when I held
her in my arms I could hardly move a step. Our son had gone to school.
I held her tightly and said, I hadn't noticed that our life lacked
intimacy. I drove to office... jumped out of the car swiftly without
locking the door.I was afraid any delay would make me change my
mind... I walked upstairs. Dew opened thedoor and I said to her,
Sorry, Dew, I do not wantthe divorce anymore.
She looked at me, astonished, then touchedmy forehead. Do you have a
fever? She said. I moved her hand off my head. Sorry, Dew, I said, I
won't divorce. My marriage life was boring probably because she and I
didn't value the details of our lives, not because we didn't love each
other any more. Now I realized that since I carried her into my home
on our wedding day I am supposed to hold her until one of us departs
this world.
Dew seemed to suddenly wake up. She gave me a loud slap and then
slammed the door and burst into tears. I walked downstairs and drove
away. At the floral shop on the way, I ordered a bouquet of flowers
for my wife. The sales girl asked me what to write on the card. I
smiled and wrote: I will carry you out every morning until we are old.
The small details of our lives are what really matter in a
relationship. It is not the mansion, the car, the property, the bank
balance that matters. These create an environment conducive for
happiness but cannot give happiness in themselves. So find time to be
your spouse's friend and do those little things for each other
thatbuild a relationship.