What is the best charity to offer on behalf of the deceased? Is it giving food, reciting Quran, giving money or supplicating? What is the best charity to offer on behalf of dead father and dead husband? What is the best continuous charity to offer on behalf of the deceased?
Praise be to Allah the Lord of the Worlds. The deceased benefits from every righteous deed offered on his/her behalf, be that continuous charity, reciting Quran or a pious son praying for him/her. However, the best righteous deed is performing Haj and Omrah on their behalf especially if he/she hadn`t performed that ritual for it remains a debt on them. The evidence on this is that Ibn 'Abbas (Allah be pleased with them) reported: A man came to the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) and said: "Messenger of Allah, my mother has died (in a state) that she had to observe fasts of a month (of Ramadan). Should I complete (them) on her behalf? Thereupon he (the Holy Prophet) said: Would you not pay the debt if your mother had died (without paying it)? He said: Yes. He (the Holy Prophet) said: The debt of Allah deserves more that it should be paid."{Related by Muslim}. And Allah the Almighty knows best.
After a month and a half from the end of postpartum bleeding, my wife occasionally finds a small amount of blood, and she is breastfeeding. What is this blood, and should she fast and pray when she experiences it?
This is postpartum bleeding, so she should not fast or pray until she sees the signs of purity, unless it exceeds sixty days, as the maximum duration for postpartum bleeding is sixty days, and the majority of women experience forty days. If it exceeds sixty days, it is considered irregular bleeding (Istihada). It would be advisable to consult a doctor after the sixty days. And Allah Knows Best.
A woman died at the age of ninety. Her living children are nine: two sons and two daughters. The youngest of her grandchildren, from her son who passed away one year before her, is aged thirty-two. Are these grandchildren entitled to the obligatory bequest although they are aged thirty-two and above?
All perfect praise be to Allah the Lord of the Worlds. May His peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Mohammad and upon all his family and companions.
A Muslim isn`t obligated to leave a bequest to his grandchildren whose father had passed away; rather, this act is recommended. Therefore, if he left a bequest whereby they get less than one third of the estate then Allah will reward him for that. However, if he left no bequest for them then they get nothing because their paternal uncles are alive and they are closer to the deceased and more entitled to inherit him. This is the position of the four schools of Islamic jurisprudence. However, the Personal Status Law didn`t adopt this position; rather, it gave them the same amount to which their father is entitled when alive but his father or mother are dead; provided that it doesn`t exceed one third of the estate. Therefore, we advise them (Grandchildren) to relinquish this share of the inheritance. If not, then we advise their paternal uncles to overlook the amounts taken from their shares and given to their paternal nephews. And Allah The Almighty Knows Best.
A Christian woman wants to marry a Muslim man through an unregistered marriage contract and for a specific period because of certain circumstances. She is an adult and wants to know the correct procedure so as not to make any mistakes. What is the correct thing to do in this regard?
All perfect praise be to Allah the Lord of the Worlds. May His peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Mohammad and upon all his family and companions.
Every marriage should be conducted through court in order to preserve the rights of the spouses and avoid any accusations. In fact, a person shouldn`t be ashamed of what is lawful. Rather, he/she should overcome those circumstances and start in the correct way. And Allah The Almighty Knows Best.
