Articles

In Commemoration of the Prophet's Hijra (Migration)
Author : Dr Noah Ali Salman
Date Added : 14-10-2015

 

In Commemoration of the Prophet's Hijra (Migration)

 

 

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of The Worlds; and may His blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Mohammad and upon all his family and companions.

 

Usually, a significant event marks the beginning of any nation`s history. As Muslims, our history is pregnant with significant events such as the birth of the Prophet (PBUH), the descent of the revelation, the Hijra (Divinely ordained migration) from Makkah to Medina, the divine declaration in which Allah has perfected our religion for us, completed His favor upon us, and has chosen Islam for us as our religion.

 

However, when Umar Bin Al-Kattab consulted the honorable companions (May Allah Be Pleased with them) on the starting date of the Islamic calendar, they agreed that the most appropriate reference point for the Islamic calendar was the Hijra. Umar justified that by saying: "Islam has been powerful since the Hijra." In fact, Islam has assumed its right and complete position by the Hijra, and there are three important issues in this regard:

 

First: The noble companions have agreed that having a calendar is one aspect of any nation`s independence and a reflection of its privacy, so it is unacceptable that the Muslim nation follows the calendar of another nation for marking its events. Thanks to Allah, our Islamic nation has been using the Islamic calendar to show that it is proud of its religion, it is distinguished, it is independent, and it is loyal to the Prophet who initiated the Hijra.

 

Second: Allah, the Almighty, has honored Islam with the Hijra, because Muslims gathered in Medina under the leadership of the Prophet (PBUH) and they established a state concerned with spreading Islam and protecting Muslims against aggression. As a result, the principles of Islam were reflected in the behavior of the Muslim society, and this led to the spread of justice, goodness, observing kinship ties as well as ending injustice, aggression, lewdness and abomination, as indicated in the following verse, (What means): "Indeed God enjoins justice and virtue and giving to kinsfolk, and He forbids lewdness, and abomination, and aggression: He admonishes you so that you might remember." [An-Nahil/90].

 

A close comparison between the number of Muslims before Hijra and after it shows that there is a big difference although they were invited to Islam by the same Prophet, Mohammad (PBUH). He enjoyed the needed eloquence and wisdom, but his style varied in accordance with the new conditions since people are more influenced by what they see, than what they hear. Rather, they neither listen to the weak nor respect what is right unless it was backed with might.

 

Three: It is necessary at this time and at every other time that Muslims reflect the bright image of the glorious Islam through their behavior and that the task of inviting others to embrace Islam should be passed to the different generations, because Allah has sent this religion as a mercy to all humanity.

If some Muslims have tarnished the bright image of Islam through violating its very teachings, then it is incumbent upon every Muslim to set the records straight and clear that suspicion.

It is a relief that people the world round are still embracing Islam owing to the sincere efforts of faithful Muslims who invite them to Allah by good word and good deed.

 

Finally, people of reason, even non-Muslims, are still admiring and praising Islam; however, if some have insulted Islam by word or deed, or insulted the Prophet (PBUH), then he is too honorable to be belittled by the rancorous and the disbelieving.

 

And All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of The Worlds.

 

 

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Summarized Fatawaa

Is it permissible to offer prayer at home, or should it be offered in the mosque?

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of The Worlds.                                                                                                                                                                      It isn`t preferable for the man to pray at home as praying in the mosque is twenty seven times more rewarding. Therefore, this should motivate him to offer prayers in the mosque. And Allah Knows Best.

My brother works in a conventional bank and gave me one of the gifts distributed to bank employees — what is the ruling on accepting it?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
There is no objection to accepting such gifts, because the physical gift itself does not carry any inherent prohibition — unlike stolen property. Sin does not transfer or extend to the one who receives the gift, for Allah the Almighty says {what means}: "And no bearer of burdens shall bear the burden of another." [Al-Anʿām/164]
The evidence for this is that the Prophet ﷺ himself ate from the food of the Jews, conducted transactions with them, and purchased from them — and it is well known that their wealth was intermingled with ribā. Similarly, the wealth of conventional ribā-based banks is a mixture of the lawful and the unlawful.
Ibn Ḥajar al-Haytamī, may Allah have mercy upon him, states: "It is not forbidden to transact with one whose wealth is predominantly unlawful, nor to eat from it — as al-Nawawī affirmed in al-Majmūʿ." [Tuḥfat al-Muḥtāj, Vol. 9/P.389] And Allah the Almighty knows best.

I have a date farm, and the dates come in different categories, and within each category there are different sizes. How is zakāh paid on the yield?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
If the yield reaches the niṣāb (the minimum threshold for zakāh to become obligatory) — which is five awsuq (plural of wasq), equivalent to (611) kg — then zakāh becomes obligatory upon it, at a rate of one-tenth ('ushr) if irrigated by rainwater (i.e., naturally, without the use of machinery), or one-twentieth (half of the 'ushr) if irrigated using machinery/equipment.
If the yield of dates consists of different varieties, then zakāh should be paid from each variety according to its respective proportion. If this proves difficult, it is permissible to pay from a medium-quality variety [representative of the average].
It is stated in Ḥāshiyatā Qulyūbī wa ‘Umayrah (Vol.2/P.22): "Different varieties are combined together [for the purpose of calculating the niṣāb] — such as the various types of dates, the various types of raisins, and so on — and zakāh is paid from each type according to its respective proportion. However, if this becomes difficult due to the large number of varieties and the small quantity of each individual type, then zakāh should be paid from a medium-quality variety among them — neither the best nor the worst — out of consideration for both sides [the giver and the poor recipient]. If one goes to the trouble of paying from each variety according to its proportion, this is also permissible." And Allah, the Exalted, knows best.

Is the multiplication of reward for prayer in the sanctuaries of Makkah and Madīnah limited to the obligatory prayer, or does it include the voluntary prayer as well?

 

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah.
There is no difference between the obligatory (farḍ) and the voluntary (nafl) prayer in the ḥadīth on the multiplication of reward in the two Sanctuaries (al-Ḥaramayn), because the authentic ḥadīths are unrestricted and general in wording. It is therefore not permissible to restrict or specify them without evidence. Shaykh al-Islām Imam al-Nawawī (may Allah have mercy on him) said: “Our school holds that the superiority of prayer in the two mosques of Makkah and Madīnah is not limited to the obligatory prayer, but includes both the obligatory and the voluntary.” [al-Majmūʿ Sharḥ al-Muhadhdhab, Vol.8/p.476]
The multiplication of reward applies to whoever prays in al-Masjid al-Ḥarām or anywhere within the sanctuary (ḥaram). Al-Shirwānī (may Allah have mercy on him) said: “The more correct view according to al-Nawawī is that the multiplication of the prayer’s reward covers the whole sanctuary, and is not limited to the mosque, nor to Makkah itself.” [Tuḥfat al-Muḥtāj with the glosses of al-Shirwānī and al-ʿAbbādī, Vol.10/p.95]. And Allah Almighty knows best.