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Fatwa is Accepted only from a Scholar of Sharia
Author : The General Iftaa` Department
Date Added : 19-10-2022

Fatwa is Accepted only from a Scholar of Sharia

 

The General Iftaa` Department congratulates Muslims for the arrival of Ramadan and reminds that Fatwa isn`t accepted save from a scholar of Sharia. The Department asks Allah to make this a month of goodness, blessings, and victories for Muslims both in the east and the west.

Questions related to various aspects of life are frequently asked in this blessed month meeting the meaning of the following verse (What means): "if ye realise this not, ask of those who possess the Message." [An-Nahil/43]. This gives us great pleasure as it indicates the Muslim nation`s adherence to the religion of Islam, Thanks to Allah.

 

We remind our Muslim brothers that it isn`t permissible to deliver Fatwas in religious matters save by someone who is specialized in Sharia sciences and, as known to all, this era is one of specialty in all sciences including Sharia. Whoever delivers fatwas without knowledge has gone astray and led others astray, as was reported from the Messenger of Allah. Sharia science should be learned from the trustworthy scholars of Sharia because books contain aberrant and weak sayings and none knows the truth save the learned men of the faith.

 

Conversely, it isn`t permissible for a Muslim to seek fatwa from someone who isn`t well versed in Shariah sciences since Almighty Allah has condemned such individuals where He Said (What means): "Let them bear, on the Day of Judgment, their own burdens in full, and also (something) of the burdens of those without knowledge, whom they misled. Alas, how grievous the burdens they will bear!" [An-Nahil/25]. Therefore, the individual who acts upon the fatwa delivered by unspecialized persons will be held liable before Allah. In our country, thanks to Allah, there are many scholars of Shariah working in various faculties of Sharia, and they have obtained their knowledge through reliable scholarly methods. 

 

The Department communicates with the audience through all available methods where highly qualified scholars answer their questions. Last Ramadan, more than a thousand questions were answered. This is hard work but we are pleased to serve Allah and His religion.

 

Due to their specifity, some questions are submitted to the Board of Iftaa`, which includes an elite group of qualified Jordanian scholars.

Based on all of this, there is no excuse for anyone not to ask jurists of recognized competence.

 

We wish success to all and remind that the righteous predecessors used to say: "Be careful who you take your Din from/Indeed, this knowledge is your religion, so look whom you take your religion from."

Peace and blessings to you all.

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Summarized Fatawaa

What is the ruling of Islamic Law on continuity (muwalah) in the ritual bath?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
Continuity (muwālāh) means washing each part of the body immediately after the previous one, without leaving a gap long enough for the first part to dry before the second is washed. According to the Shāfiʿī school, continuity is a recommended act (sunnah) in both the ritual bath (ghusl) and ablution (wuḍūʾ) — it is not obligatory.
It is stated in Nihāyat al-Muḥtāj ilā Sharḥ al-Minhāj: "Likewise, continuity in the ritual bath is recommended, just as it is in ablution."
Accordingly, continuity in the ritual bath is a sunnah. And Allah the Almighty knows best.

What is the ruling on waiving a debt owed by a debtor and counting it toward zakāh?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
Waiving a debt owed by a debtor, with the intention of counting it toward zakāh, does not fulfill the zakāh obligation. Rather, it constitutes an ordinary act of charity, for which Allah rewards the giver generously — since one of the conditions for the validity of zakāh is that the person paying it must form the intention of zakāh at the actual moment the wealth is paid out. In this case, the debt has already been established as a standing obligation upon the borrower, so it is not valid to simply redirect the intention toward zakāh after the fact.
It is preferable, instead, for the creditor to first collect the debt from the debtor, and then return to him the amount of money he is required to pay as zakāh — or a portion of it — if the debtor happens to fall under one of the eight categories that Allah, the Exalted, has commanded be given from zakāh.
It is stated in ‘Umdat as-Sālik, from the books of the Shāfi‘ī school: "If someone gives [money] to a poor person, stipulating that the recipient return it to him in payment of a debt owed to him, or says, 'I am making what you owe me into zakāh, so take it [as such]' — this is not valid. But if he gives it to him with the [unstated] intention that the recipient will use it to repay him, or says, 'Repay what you owe me, so that I may [then separately] give it to you as zakāh,' or the debtor himself says, 'Give it to me, so that I may [then] repay you with it' — this is valid, and there is no binding obligation for the recipient to actually fulfill this [informal understanding]." And Allah, the Exalted, knows best.

What is the ruling on a Friday sermon in which the khaṭīb did not explicitly exhort the congregation to be conscious of Allah (taqwā) in both sermons, but sufficed with commanding them to obey Allah and refrain from disobeying Him?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
For the Friday sermon (khuṭbat al-Jumʿah) to be valid, certain essential pillars (arkān) must be fulfilled. Among these is the exhortation to be conscious of Allah (waṣiyyah bi-taqwā Allāh), which must be present in both sermons. Alongside this pillar, the praising of Allah (ḥamdallah) and the sending of blessings upon the Messenger of Allah ﷺ are equally required.
Shaykh al-Islām Imām Ibn Ḥajar al-Haytamī, may Allah have mercy upon him, states: "These three are pillars in each of the two sermons, because each sermon is independent and separate from the other." [Tuḥfat al-Muḥtāj,Vol.4/P.447]
It is not a condition that the exhortation be expressed in any specific wording, nor is it required that the word "taqwā" itself be used — such as saying "I exhort you to be conscious of Allah." Rather, this pillar is fulfilled by any expression that contains a command to obey Allah the Almighty and to abstain from what He has prohibited.
Imām al-Khaṭīb al-Sharbīnī, may Allah have mercy upon him, states: "The third pillar is the exhortation to taqwā... The specific wording of this exhortation is not required, according to the most correct view, because the purpose is admonition and the urging of obedience to Allah the Almighty. Therefore, any expression that conveys admonition suffices — whether long or short — such as: 'Obey Allah and be ever mindful of Him.'" [Mughnī al-Muḥtāj,Vol.1/P.550]
Accordingly, what the khaṭīb has done — by commanding obedience to Allah and forbidding disobedience to Him in both sermons — is valid and sufficient. And Allah the Almighty knows best.

What is the recommended supplication (Du'a) upon breaking the fast, and is it recited before or after breaking it?

 
All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah.
 
It is recommended (Mustahabb) for a fasting person to recite upon breaking the fast—that is, immediately after eating or drinking—the supplication: "Allahumma laka sumtu wa 'ala rizqika aftartu" (O Allah, for You I have fasted, and with Your provision I have broken my fast).
 
This is because our master, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), used to say this. The narration was recorded by Abu Dawud with a good (Hasan) chain of transmission, albeit in a Mursal form (a narration where a Successor reports directly from the Prophet). Shaykh al-Islam Imam Ibn Hajar al-Haytami (may Allah have mercy upon him) stated: "Its Mursal status is inconsequential, as it pertains to virtuous deeds (Fada'il); furthermore, it was connected (Mawsul) through another chain of transmission." [Tuhfat al-Muhtaj, Vol.3/P.425]
 
It is also recommended to recite: "Dhahaba al-dhama'u wa ibtallat al-'uruqu wa thabata al-ajru in sha' Allah" (The thirst has gone, the veins are moistened, and the reward is confirmed, if Allah wills).
 
This was recorded by Abu Dawud with a good (Hasan) chain. Our leading jurists (Imams) have explicitly stated that it is recommended for the fasting person to combine both supplications.
 
Imam al-Bajuri (may Allah have mercy upon him) stated:
 
 
"And his saying following his breaking of the fast—that is, it is recommended to say: 'O Allah, for You I have fasted, upon Your provision I have broken my fast, in You I have believed, to You I have submitted, and upon You I have relied. The thirst has gone, the veins are moistened, and the reward is confirmed, if Allah wills. O You of vast bounty, forgive me. Praise be to Allah Who aided me so that I fasted, and provided for me so that I broke my fast. O Allah, grant us success in fasting, enable us to stand in night prayer during it, and aid us in it while people sleep, and admit us to Paradise in peace.'" [Hashiyat al-Bajuri, Vol.1/P.562]
 
Furthermore, the fasting person may supplicate with whatever good he or she wishes, for the supplication of a fasting person is answered. Al-Bayhaqi recorded on the authority of Anas ibn Malik that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Three supplications are not rejected: the supplication of a parent for his child, the supplication of a fasting person, and the supplication of a traveler." And Allah Almighty knows best.