Dought & clear, - *Ruling on writing Qur’anic verses for onewho is sick to wear them

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I hope you can explain this problem. There is a sick person for whom a righteous man wrote some Qur’an to treat him for any sickness. Is that permissible? Is it permissible to wear these verses around one’s neck?
Praise be to Allah.
Writing verses in order to treat the sick is not prescribed and he should not be given them to wear, and they should not be written on his body. All of that is not prescribed. Rather what is prescribed is to recite over him, and blow onto him, and pray for healing and well-being for him. There is nothing wrong with reciting some verses over parts of his body, over his chest or his hand or his head, and praying for him; this comes under the heading of ruqyah that is prescribed in Islam; the raaqi may recite ruqyah for the sick person and recite Qur’an over him so that Allah may heal him.
The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) performed ruqyah and said: “There is nothing wrong with ruqyah so long as it does not involve shirk (association of others with Allah).”
But if he writes verses to be worn around the neck or on the arm, this is not part of Islamic teaching; the same applies if he writes hadeeths or other words, or prayers or symbols or cryptic writing or letters that are not joined up, and the like. All of that is not permitted; even the Qur’an should not be worn.
The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “Whoever wears an amulet, may Allah never fulfill his wish and whoever wears a seashell, may Allah never protect him from what he fears.” Amulets and charms and the like that some people put around the neck of the sick person, or on his arms and so on, are not permissible, but there is nothing wrong with ruqyah.
Similarly, if a person recites into water and then drinks the water, there is nothing wrong with that either. Something of that nature was narrated from the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), as it is narrated inSunan Abi Dawoodthat the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) recited into water for Thaabit ibn Qays. There is nothing wrong with this.
But as for wearing it, nothing – whether it is Qur’an or anything else – should be worn around the neck or on the arm. All of that is remedies that are not prescribed in Islam. And Allah is the One Whose help we seek, and there is no power and no strength except with Allah. End quote.
Shaykh ‘Abd al-‘Azeez ibn Baaz (may Allah have mercy on him).
Fataawa Noor ‘ala ad-Darb, 1/326

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Dought & clear, - *Is it permissible to givedates and dried yoghurt for zakat al-fitr to people who do not regard them as staple foods?

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Is it permissible to give zakat al-fitr in the form of dates and dried yoghurt even though these are not regarded as staple foods in many countries?
Praise be to Allah.
What should be given for zakat al-fitr is that which is the local staple food. If their staple food is dates or dried yoghurt or raisins, it is permissible to give it. Whatever is not regarded as a staple food is not acceptable as zakat al-fitr. This is indicated by the words of Abu Sa‘eed al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him): At the time of the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) on the day of (Eid) al-Fitr, we used to give (as zakat al-fitr) a saa‘ of foodstuff, and our food at that time was barley, raisins, dried yoghurt, and dates.
Narrated by al-Bukhaari (1510) and Muslim (985).
The Sahaabah (may Allah be pleased with them) gave these kinds of food because that was their staple food at that time.
An-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
The more correct view in our opinion is that zakat al-fitr must be given in the form of the usual staple food of the country. This is also the view of Maalik. Abu Haneefah said: One has the choice. One view was narrated from Ahmad that nothing is acceptable except the five kinds mentioned in the texts: dates, raisins, wheat, barley and dried yoghurt.
End quote fromal-Majmoo‘(6/112)
Al-Baaji said inSharh al-Muwatta’: Of what should the saa‘ be? Ibn al-Qaasim said, narrating from Maalik, that it should be the usual staple food of the country. This was also the view of Abu ‘Ali ibn Abi Hurayrah among the companions of ash-Shaafa‘i. End quote.
In al-Mawsoo ‘ah al-Fiqhiyyah (23/343) it says: … The Maalikis are of the view that it should be given in the form of the usual local staple food, such as lentils (daal), rice, foul (fava beans), wheat, barley, dates, dried yogurt, and pearl millet. Anything other than that is not acceptable, unless the people use it as a staple food and do not use the kinds of food mentioned above. End quote.
This view was favoured by Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allah have mercy on him), as stated inal-Fataawa al-Kubra(2/157). Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) was asked about giving barley for zakat al-fitr, as we have heard from you that it is not acceptable, as appears to be the case. We hope that you can explain?
He replied: You said that you heard from us that giving barley for zakat al-fitr is not acceptable, as appears to be the case, but we said that regarding people for whom barley is not a staple food. That is because the wisdom behind prescribing zakat al-fitr is that it should be food for the poor, and that can only be achieved if it is a staple food eaten by the people. Dates and barley are mentioned in the hadeeth of ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) not because there is a connection between them, rather it is because they were the usual staple foods eaten by people at that time. That is based on the report narrated by al-Bukhaari in his chapter on charity before Eid, from Abu Sa‘eed al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) who said: At the time of the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) on the day of (Eid) al-Fitr, we used to give (as zakat al-fitr) a saa‘ of foodstuff. And Abu Sa‘eed said: And our food at that time was barley, raisins, dried yoghurt, and dates.
End quote fromMajmoo‘ al-Fataawa(18/282)
What the Muslim must do is give zakat al-fitr in the form of whatever is regarded as staple food in his country, so as to fulfil the wisdom behind this zakaah, which is to make the poor independent of means so that they do not have to ask of people on the day of Eid.
And Allah knows best.

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Dought & clear, - *Rights of a female servant over her employers

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We have employed a female servant at home only to work for the day and take care of it as there’s no one at home during day time, in the evening she goes back to her home. She is paid her wages in full and we give her the same food as we eat. Apart from this, she’s is also facilitated in many other things. What I need to know is- does she have some other rights upon us that are not known to us? She is married and her husband is a driver. Do we have to provide her with other things like clothing and the needs of household although she and her husband can themselves take care of these things? Also does she have the right to eat or drink or to do any other activity in our house without taking permission?
Praise be to Allah.
Firstly:
Islam encourages kindness to slaves and servants, by teaching that the head of the household should give his servant a share of his food and drink, especially if this servant is the one who makes that food or brings it to his master, and he looks at the food. al-Bukhaari (5460) and Muslim (1663) narrated from Abu Hurayrah that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “When the servant of any one of you brings his food to him, if he does not make him sit with him, then let him give him a morsel or two, or a mouthful or two, for he has endured its heat and preparation.”
An-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
This hadeeth encourages good conduct and generosity with regard to food, especially with regard to the one who made it or served it, because he is the one who endured its heat and smoke, and felt like eating from it, and smelled its aroma. All of this is understood as meaning that it is mustahabb (encouraged). End quote.
Al-Haafiz (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
There is nothing in the command mentioned in the hadeeth of Abu Dharr (“Feed them as you feed yourselves”??) to suggest that it is obligatory to eat with one’s servant; rather it indicates that he should not exclude him and keep it all for himself; rather he should give him a share of everything, but that is to the extent that will ward off resentment and jealousy (evil eye) on his part. Ibn al-Mundhir narrated from all the scholars that what is required is to give one’s servant the usual staple food that people like him in that country eat. The same may be said regarding bedding and clothing. The master may keep for himself that which is more valuable, although it is better to give the servant a share in that too. And Allah knows best. End quote.
Secondly:
Pardoning and overlooking ordinary mistakes made by servants comes under the heading of good manners. Allah has commanded His slaves to be kind, as He says (interpretation of the meaning):“and do good. Truly, Allah loves Al-Muhsinoon (the good-doers)” [al-Baqarah 2:195].
Abu Dawood (5164) narrated that ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar said: A man came to the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and said: O Messenger of Allah, how often should I forgive a servant? And he remained silent, then he repeated the words and he remained silent. The third time he said: “Forgive him seventy times each day.”
According to another version: A man came to the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and said: O Messenger of Allah, I have a servant who behaves badly and does wrong, should I beat him? He said: “Forgive him seventy times each day.” Narrated by Ahmad (5635); classed as saheeh by al-Albaani.
Part of the kindness that is recommended is what you are doing of providing her with some household needs. This is not basically obligatory upon you, but if you do something of that nature out of kindness and generosity, then this is a voluntary good deed on your part, in sha Allah.
Thirdly:
The servant should not do any activities that are out of the ordinary in her employer’s house except with his permission, and she does not have the right to dispose of household items or furniture, or rearrange the furniture, except with his permission.
And she does not have the right to take away or give away any household items if it is not customary among the people to give such things, or if the head of the household has not given permission to do that. If she does that, then she has betrayed the trust given to her by the head of the household.
Moreover, she does not have any established rights over you additional to what has been stipulated in her contract or to what is well established according to custom. In such cases, what is established according to custom is like that which is stipulated as a condition.
And Allah knows best.

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Dought & clear, - *How big will the believer’s dominion be in Paradise? What deeds could increase the sizeof his dominion?

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How big will the believer’s dominion be in Paradise? Is there any evidence which mentions the size of his dominion? What are the deeds that could increase the size of the dominion of the believer in Paradise?
Praise be to Allah.
Allah, may He be exalted, has prepared Paradise for His pious slaves and has made its breadth like the breadth of heaven and earth, which is indicative of its vastness and great size. Allah, may He be exalted, will honour His slaves therein by His grace and mercy, and His grace is immense and His mercy is vast. Part of that honour is the great dominion that the people of Paradise will have. Allah, may He be exalted, says, describing that (interpretation of the meaning):“And when you look there (in Paradise), you will see a delight (that cannot be imagined), and a great dominion” [al-Insaan 76:20].
In the saheeh Sunnah there is a description of the abundance that the lowest of the people of Paradise in status will have, which is ten times this world! So how about the highest of them in status? It was narrated from ‘Abdullah ibn Mas‘ood (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “I know the last of the people of Hell to be brought forth, and the last of the people of Paradise to enter therein. It will be a man who will emerge crawling from Hell, and Allah will say to him: ‘Go and enter Paradise.’ He will come to it and it will appear to him to be full. He will go back and say, ‘O Lord, I found it full.’ Allah, may He be blessed and exalted, will say to him: ‘Go and enter Paradise.’ He will go to it and it will appear to him to be full. He will go back and say, ‘O Lord, I found it full.’ Allah, may He be blessed and exalted, will say to him: ‘Go and enter Paradise, and you will have the equivalent of the whole world and ten times as much.’ He will say, ‘Are You mocking me – or laughing at me – when You are the Sovereign?’” He said: And I saw the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) smile so broadly that his molars appeared. And he used to say: “That will be the lowest of the people of Paradise in status.”
Narrated by al-Bukhaari (6202); Muslim (186).
With regard to deeds and acts of obedience that the Muslim can do to increase the size of his dominion in Paradise, we do not know of anything proven in the Sunnah. But undoubtedly if the Muslim has a space in Paradise the size of a whip or the size of a bow, that will be better for him than this world and everything in it, as is narrated in a saheeh report from the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him). It was narrated that Sahl ibn Sa‘d as-Saa‘idi said: The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “The space of the whip of one of you in Paradise is better than this world and everything in it.” Narrated by al-Bukhaari (2735). And it was narrated from Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “The short span of the bow of one of you in Paradise is better than that on which the sun rises or sets.” Narrated by al-Bukhaari (2643).
The “short span” of a bow is the area between the middle (where the archer grasps it) and the end of the bow. What is meant is that the space of that size in Paradise is better than this world and everything in it. And the same is said concerning the space of a whip.
It is proven in the saheeh Sunnah that the tent of the believer in Paradise will be sixty miles long, so how big will the size of his dominion be if that is the length of just one tent? It was narrated from Abu Moosa al-Ash‘ari (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “In Paradise the believer will have a tent made from a single hollowed-out pearl, sixty miles long, in which the believer will have wives and he will go around among them and they will not see one another.”
Narrated by al-Bukhaari (4598) and Muslim (2838); according to another version it is “sixty miles wide”.
And Allah knows best.

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