عربي
Home


Articles

Articles

Islamic View on the Custom of Extravagance during Ramadan
Author : The General Iftaa` Department
Date Added : 15-02-2023

 

Ramadan is the month of goodness and blessings in which Allah opens the gates of His mercy to His worshippers and bestows His grace upon them so that they thank Him and ask for more.

Allah The Almighty Says {What means}: "Then do ye remember Me; I will remember you. Be grateful to Me, and reject not Faith." {Al-Baqarah/152}. 

 

It doesn`t befit a believing slave who is in need for Allah to be ungrateful to His Blessings during Ramadan by wasting food and drink and spending money lavishly to the extent of corrupting homes and harming society. In fact, behaving in this manner defies the real objective behind legislating fasting, which is disciplining self and freeing it from its covetousness. Almighty Allah Says in this regard {What means}: "And those saved from the covetousness of their own souls, - they are the ones that achieve prosperity." {Al-Hashir/9}.

 

In addition to Sharia, both logic and custom condemn extravagance because an extravagant person takes Allah`s Blessings lightly, behaves arrogantly, shows misconduct and poor management skills. This is why Allah Describes such person with the most awful of descriptions. He, The Almighty Says (What means): "And render to the kindred their due rights, as (also) to those in want, and to the wayfarer: But squander not (your wealth) in the manner of a spendthrift. Verily spendthrifts are brothers of the Evil Ones; and the Evil One is to his Lord (himself) ungrateful." {Al-Isra`/26-27}. He also Warns against the repercussion, for squandering wealth, in this life and the next where He said: "Make not thy hand tied (like a niggard’s) to thy neck, nor stretch it forth to its utmost reach, so that thou become blameworthy and destitute." {Al-Isra`/29}.

 

Along with approving what is mentioned earlier, we remind of the afflictions that many Muslims are experiencing. They can hardly find food and are suffering from diseases due to malnutrition while spendthrifts brag about different types of food and drink that they waste. Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) said: "If a person living in a neighborhood sleeps while hungry, Allah's responsibility towards the people of that neighborhood no longer applies." {Related by Ahmad}.

 

A true Muslim is one who cares for others and helps them overcome afflictions, as was our role model Prophet Mohammad (PBUH). He (PBUH) would spend several nights in a row with an empty stomach, and his family would not find anything for dinner. 

 

Having said that, how could those who spend their money lavishly on different types of food and drink, which will end in the garbage can, comprehend the objectives for which fasting was legislated while others can`t find pieces of bread to feed themselves and their children?!

 

We ask Allah to teach us how to achieve kindness in Ramadan and eschew squandering wealth in the manner of a spendthrift.  And Allah The Most Exalted Knows Best.

 

Article Number [ Previous | Next ]

Read for Author




Comments


Captcha


Warning: this window is not dedicated to receive religious questions, but to comment on topics published for the benefit of the site administrators—and not for publication. We are pleased to receive religious questions in the section "Send Your Question". So we apologize to readers for not answering any questions through this window of "Comments" for the sake of work organization. Thank you.




Summarized Fatawaa

What is the ruling of Islamic Law on eating or drinking during the circumambulation?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
It is disliked (makrūh) to eat or drink during the circumambulation (ṭawāf).
Shaykh al-Islām Imām al-Nawawī states in al-Majmūʿ: "It is disliked to eat or drink during ṭawāf, and the dislikedness of drinking is lighter. Neither of them, nor both together, invalidates the ṭawāf. Al-Shāfiʿī said: 'There is no objection to drinking water during ṭawāf, and I do not consider it sinful; however, I prefer that it be avoided, as refraining from it is more befitting in terms of proper conduct.' Among those who explicitly stated the dislikedness of eating and drinking, and that drinking is the lesser of the two, is the author of al-Ḥāwī."
If, however, a person is in genuine need of drinking, then there is no dislikedness in doing so. In any case, the ṭawāf itself remains valid. And Allah the Almighty knows best.

What are the legal and religious consequences for a charitable organization in the event that a sacrificial animal is damaged or spoiled after slaughter?

All praise is due to Allah, and may peace and blessings be upon our Master, the Messenger of Allah.
Charitable organizations entrusted with slaughtering sacrificial animals (uḍḥiyyah) and distributing their meat on behalf of their owners are obligated to safeguard the meat from spoilage, damage, theft, and any other harm. This is because such organizations act as agents (wukalā') on behalf of those offering the sacrifice, and an agent holds what is entrusted to them in trust (amānah) — whether they receive a wage for their work or act on a voluntary basis.
If the sacrificial animal is damaged after slaughter during the processes of packaging, transportation, or storage due to negligence or oversight — whether on the part of the organization's own staff overseeing the operation, or on the part of third parties contracted by the organization such as transport or shipping companies — then liability falls upon the negligent party, who is required to compensate for the value of the sacrifice. It is not permissible to cover such compensation from the organization's other donor funds.
However, if the damage to the sacrificial animal occurs without any negligence in its preservation and storage on the part of any party involved in the transportation, shipping, or storage process, and is instead attributable to force majeure circumstances beyond their control, then no financial liability is borne by any party in such a case. And Allah Almighty knows best.

"I told my family at night: 'I will fast tomorrow as qaḍā' (a make-up fast),' but I forgot to make the intention before sleeping. Is my fast valid?"

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
 
The intention is obligatory in acts of worship. For obligatory fasting, the required intention is to resolve to fast during the night [before dawn]. Its proper locus is the heart, while verbalizing the intention out loud in acts of worship is a sunnah — so that the tongue may align with the heart. If the intent behind the statement in question was the intention to fast, then it is valid; but if the intent was merely to inform someone, or reflected hesitation or doubt, then it is not valid.
 
It is stated in *Bushrā al-Karīm* (Vol.1/P.216): "It is a sunnah to verbalize the intention — that is, whatever has already been intended in the heart, whether an obligatory or a voluntary act — such as specifying the number of rak‘ahs, just before the opening takbīr — so that the tongue may assist the heart, and because this is further removed from whispered doubts (waswasah), and in order to accommodate the view of those who held it obligatory in every act of worship that requires an intention (even though this is a minority position), by analogy with Ḥajj."
 
Accordingly: if the intention to fast arose in your heart before the second adhān [i.e., before Fajr], then your fast is valid.
 
And Allah, the Exalted, knows best.

Can I start fasting based on the moon sighting of another country?

You must follow the moon sighting of the country you are in.

See More