Is prayer nullified by having thoughts while performing it?
Prayer isn`t nullified by having thoughts while performing it, provided that the praying person offers all of its pillars and meets all of its conditions. However, the reward decreases significantly in the absence of reverence since a praying person is rewarded according to the attentiveness of his/her heart during prayer.
What is the ruling on a vowed animal sacrifice?
A vowed animal sacrifice is to be distributed amongst the poor and needy, and neither the vow-maker, nor those supported by him are to eat from it.
I suffer from excessive gas, especially when I pray, and I redo my ablution more than seven times. I have obsessive thoughts about this matter, even though I went to a doctor and was given medication that did not help. What should I do?
If the release of gas stops at certain times between prayers, you should wait for that time, perform ablution, and pray. However, if it is continuous, you should perform ablution after the prayer time begins and pray, and the release of gas during the prayer is excused. And Allah The Almighty Knows Best.
What is the ruling on having brotherly ties between a strange man and a strange woman, and is the former considered a Mahram (unmarriageable) to the latter?
Such a relation between a strange man and a strange woman is forbidden in Islam because it involves forbidding what Allah has allowed by marriage, and allowing what Allah has forbidden such as looking and the like. Such a relation doesn`t render any act lawful between them, thus they are forbidden to look at each other, have a Khulwah (seclusion), and travel together.
