Electronic Islamic Magazine

Islam Q&A

This page is updated frequentely according to the questions we recieve

Last update on "11/09/99"

A1 . there is two opinions . one of those opinions depends on seeing each country for the "Hilal". the other opinion says that if one country can see the "Hilal" in one region , the other countries in the same region should obligate this vision. and both of those opinions are correct and you can obligate your self with any one of those opinions. and about Idd el Hajj, all of the Islamic countries celebrates this idd they count on the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for the "Hilal" seeing .

A2 . if a person noticed something dangerous approaching him or approaching someone else during his salat , he/she should break the salat immediatley and after the cause of that danger dissapear he/she should restart the salat allover again also if he/she felt any kind of dangerous should do the same.

A3 . the date/day of Lailatul Qadr is assured to be in rammadhan and also assured to be in the last tenth of the month also there is a say from the prophet (peace be upon him) he specified it to be in "one" of the Rammadhan's last tenth odd nights (21,23,25,27,29) to be sure it is one of those nights, and about the opinion says that it is on the night of the 27th this is only an effort from some Islamic scientists and it is only a possibility.

A4 - if a wife converted to islam and her husband is christian her conversion is correct and if her husband converted also to islam the marriage continue and do not need to be renewed or broken, otherwise if the husband remained on his christianity the marriage should be broke because the muslim woman can't be a spouse to a non muslim.

A5 - it is a proper thing for a muslim man to marry a christian (people of the book - ahlul kitaab) and it is allowed for the wife to goto the church and her husband shouldn't object on that. but he should also try to convince her with kindness to convert to islam , so if she agreed to convert to islam with her complete choice then it is the best situation otherwise she can remain on her christianity but the childrens (boys & girls) has to follow the father religion and be a muslims.

A6. if a woman and a man had sexual intercourse before marriage they must get married immediately and to "recant" from their sin (turn to allah in repentance/penitence) and never break their repent again "never betray each other with outside prohibited relationships". that's mean if they already got married then their marriage is correct, infact it is an urgent recommended thing to do.

A7 - it is possible to do "Udhuu" when one is taking a shower/bath .

A8. when a man makes a sexual intercourse he should then "Urinate" first then clean up the place he urinates from "with water" and then make a complete ablution "take a shower", after that he can pray. and if he leakes something during his praying then he should cut out the pray and clean up the place he Leaked from "with water" and make only a normal "Udhuu" and repeat the pray over again.

Q10. They are people e.g who go for training in a foreign country for one or more years and continue praying salatus-safar for the whole period until they return to their countries. Is this acceptable?

Q11. There are situations where the distance from ones hometown justifies salatus-safar but the means of travelling is not bad e.g by aeroplane. Should one still pray salatus-safar or can start praying the normal 5 prayers?

you do salatus-safar as follows: - for the "Dawn" prayer remains the same 2 bows (2 raqaha)

- for the MidDay, LateAfterNoon and Evening Prayers you shortcut them to only 2 Bows for each .

- for the Sunset Prayer remains the same (3 Bows) .

and about the conditions for the salatus-safar it is as follows:

the traveling has to be for a long distance(80 Km and more) so you make salatus-safar during your traveling and also during your residence in the country you are traviling to . and according to the country you traveled to there is a "one condition" that is, the residence musn't exceedes 4 days (excluding the couple dayes you used for travelings and going back home) so if the residence in the country you traveled to it is more than 4 days then there is no shortcuts in the prayer(no salatus-safar is obligate) but a normal salat is obligate.

and also it is allowable during the travelling )on the same previously mentioned conditions) to "accompany" between each two prayers (MidDay & LateAfterNoon prayers together) and (Sunset & evening Prayers together). and about the Dawn Prayer you should'nt accompany it with any other prayer, but you should pray it normaly and at it's normal time (from the Call to prayer - tell the time before the sunset) .

the salat-safar is a licence and mercy from Almighty God to all the Muslims and it has nothing to do with the Means of traveling type but with the distance only.

A12. The Islamic Law (Sahriaah) based on two basic sources : 1 - the holy quran . 2 - the prophet's Says (Ahadeeth).

and the following Qur`anic verse supports this meaning:

(We sent them) with Clear Signs and Books of dark prophecies; and We have sent down unto thee (also) the Message; that thou mayest explain clearly to men what is sent for them, and that they may give thought. "An-nahl - 44"

you can also find many Qur`anic verses contains the same meaning.

and about the Religious Observances which contains the (Zakat,Prayer..etc) it exists only with details in the sunnah "Prophets's Ahadeeth" .

and for the other aspect of your question about the zakat, the prophet Mohamed "Peace be upon him" specified the kinds of things that the zakat should be taken from . i.e. (gold, silver"money", seads, different types of trading, cows, sheeps and camels..etc) also the prophet specified the amounting to be 2.5% of the surplus wealth over and above a stipulated minimum rate (called nisab) that has remained in the possession of a muslim for a year . the following "Ahadeeth" clearify theses points:

------------------------------------------------------------------------ Book 9, Number 1567: Narrated Ali ibn AbuTalib: Al-Harith al-A'war reported from Ali. Zuhayr said: I think, the Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) said: "Pay a fortieth. A dirham is payable on every forty, but you are not liable for payment until you have accumulated two hundred dirhams. When you have two hundred dirhams, five dirhams are payable, and that proportion is applicable to larger amounts. "Regarding sheep, for every forty sheep up to one hundred and twenty, one sheep is due. But if you possess only thirty-nine, nothing is payable on them." He further narrated the tradition about the sadaqah (zakat) on sheep like that of az-Zuhri. "Regarding cattle, a yearling bull calf is payable for every thirty, and a cow in her third year for forty, and nothing is payable on working animals. Regarding (the zakat on) camels, he mentioned the rates that az-Zuhri mentioned in his tradition. He said: "For twenty-five camels, five sheep are to be paid. If they exceed by one, a she-camel in her second year is to be given. If there is no she-camel in her second year, a male camel in its third year is to be given, up to thirty-five. If they exceed by one a she-camel in her third year is to be given, up to forty-five. If they exceed by one, a she-camel in her fourth year which is ready to be covered by a bull-camel is to be given." He then transmitted the rest of the tradition like that of az-Zuhri. He continued: If they exceed by one, i.e. they are ninety-one to hundred and twenty, two she-camels in their fourth year, which are ready to be covered by a bull-camel, are to be given. If there are more camels than that, a she-camel in her fourth year is to be given for every fifty. Those which are in one flock are not to be separated, and those which are separate are not to be brought together. An old sheep, one with a defect in the eye, or a billy goat is not to be accepted as a sadaqah unless the collector is willing. As regards agricultural produce, a tenth is payable on that which is watered by rivers or rain, and a twentieth on that which is watered by draught camels." The version of Asim and al-Harith says: "Sadaqah (zakat) is payable every year." Zuhayr said: I think he said "Once a year". The version of Asim has the words: "If a she-camel in her second year is not available among the camels, nor is there a bull-camel in its third year, ten dirhams or two goats are to be given." ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Book 9, Number 1568: Narrated Ali ibn AbuTalib: The Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) said: "When you possess two hundred dirhams and one year passes on them, five dirhams are payable. Nothing is incumbent on you, that is, on gold, till it reaches twenty dinars. When you possess twenty dinars and one year passes on them, half a dinar is payable. Whatever exceeds, that will be reckoned properly." (The narrator said: I do not remember whether the words "that will be reckoned properly" were uttered by All himself or he attributed them to the Prophet (peace_be_upon_him). No zakat is payable on property till a year passes on it. But Jarir said: Ibn Wahb (sub-narrator) added to this tradition from the Prophet (peace_be_upon_him): "No zakat is payable on property until a year passes away on it." ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Book 9, Number 1569: Narrated Ali ibn AbuTalib: The Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) said: I have given exemption regarding horses and slaves; with regard to coins, however, you must pay a dirham for every forty (dirhams), but nothing is payable on one hundred and ninety. When the total reaches two hundred, five dirhams are payable. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Volume 2, Book 24, Number 487: Narrated Abu Said: Allah's Apostle (p.b.u.h) said, "No Zakat is due on property mounting to less than five Uqiyas (of silver), and no Zakat is due on less than five camels, and there is no Zakat on less than five Wasqs." (A Wasqs equals 60 Sa's) & (1 Sa=3 K gms App.) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Narrated Abdullah ibn Umar: The Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) wrote a letter about sadaqah (zakat) but he died before he could send it to his governors. He had kept it with his sword. So AbuBakr acted upon it till he died, and then Umar acted upon it till he died. It contained: "For five camels one goat is to be given; for ten camels two goats are to be given; for fifteen camels three goats are to be given; for twenty camels four goats are to be given; for twenty-five to thirty-five camels a she-camel in her second year is to be given. If the number exceeds by one up to seventy camels, a she-camel in her fourth year is to be given; if they exceed by one up to seventy-five camels, a she-camel in her fifth year is to be given; if they exceed by one up to ninety camels, two she-camels in their third year are to be given; if they exceed by one up to one hundred and twenty, two she-camels in their fourth year are to be given. If the camels are more than this, a she-camel in her fourth year is to be given for every fifty camels, and a she-camel in her third year is to be given for every forty camels. For forty to one hundred and twenty goats one goat is to be given; if they exceed by one up to two hundred, two goats are to be given. If they exceed by on e up to three hundred, three goats are to be given; if the goats are more than this, one goat for every hundred goats is to be given. Nothing is payable until they reach one hundred. Those which are in one flock are not to be separated, and those which are in separate flocks are not be brought together from fear of sadaqah (zakat). Regarding that which belongs to two partners, they can make claims for restitution from each other with equity. An old goat and a defective one are not to be accepted as sadaqah (zakat)." Az-Zuhri said: When the collector comes, the goats will be apportioned into three flocks: one containing bad, the second good, and the third moderate. The collector will take zakat from the moderate. Az-Zuhri did not mention the cows (to be apportioned in three flocks).

is it right to really go to college ?

based on speach meaning of the profit "peace be upon him", seeking for knowledge and education is a task upon each muslim. The Holly Quraan also called to seek for either secular or relegious sciences. >So, if the muslim couldn't find a place that fulfils principles of Islam for education, i.e. non sex-mexture and etc.., he is then recommended to study in such your college, how ever, stay away from uncorrect practices as much as you can.

Should one continue with iqama and proceed to make his prayers after such a recorded adhan or its mandatory that one makes another "live" adhan by himself?

A14. the call for the prayer(Adhan) is only for announcing the people that the time for the pray has come. so it is not a must for a man inside his home to call for a prayer (adhan) the (iqama) is only enough for him before he prays, and also if you know the time for the prayer you don't even have to play a recorded (adhan) unless you are doing this on a public to announce the people that the time for a prayer has come.

A15. first of all you are not responsible of converting your parents to Islam but you are only required to talk to them with kindness and charity about the princibles of islam and how Islam includes the guides about the good relations between the son and his parents even if they are non muslims. and the human doesn't get his reward on his good actions in life in the hereafter unless he have a faith by god, other than whom there is no god, the faith by mohammed as the the last prophet, the faith with all the previous prophets and the Islam as the only required religion for the people to work with it's rules and princibles. so if they are not convinced yet with islam you just keep on treating them with kindness and charity and pray to allah that he guides them to islam and maybe one day they get the chance and convert to islam.

- What is actually inherited? Does it include things like tables, chairs and carpets in the deceased house? What about a husband to left two wives/families each with their own houses? Will the items mentioned above put together and re-distributed or does it suffice just to leave them for the use of those who reside in those houses ie wives/children.

- How is a deceased wife inherited? Does the husband and children she leaves behind have any right to inherit?

- What's the place of writing a will in Islam?

A16. - In case the deceased father has childrens (male/female) and wife/wives the parents has the right to inherit from their deceased son . and on this condition they inherit only (1\6) for each from the wilth, and both wife/wives takes only (1\8) from the wilth.

- in case the deceased had no childrens the mother of the deceased inherits only (1/3) and the wife/wives inherits only (1/4) and the father of the deceased inherites the rest of the wealth.

- for every thing the deceased had (furnitures - items in his own houses - etc..) should be valued together and to be distributed among each person deserves it according to the islamic law(sharia).

- if the deceased had pay for the items (in some countries like egypt the wife pays to buy the furniture from her own money in this case those items belongs to her) in his own both houses then you should follow the previous point rules.

- incase a wife died and left husband, childrens and parents then her wealth devided as follows: the husband takes 1/4 . the mother takes 1/6 . the father takes 1/6 . and the childrens takes the rest of the wealth.

- incase a wife died and left husband, parents and she had no childrens then her wealth devided as follows: her husband takes 1/2 . her mother takes 1/3 . her father takes the rest of the wealth .

- you can write the will at any place and approve it later on from an official place at your country.

p.s. if a person wants to write a will and give someone(besides the normal heirs) some of his wilth then he can do it but in one condition that this amount of wilth souldn't exceede more than (1/3) from his total wilth.

otherwise if it exceedes more than (1/3) then he must give it to the person during his life (not to write it down on his will).