Your Questions Answered (volume 2)

Question : How Far Is a Muslim Allowed To Entertain Himself ? Is He Allowed To Entertain Himself With Music ? Question : Did the Holy Prophet Pay Mahr For His First Wife, Hadhrat Khadija ? How Much ?

Answer:

There are various traditions about the 'Mahr' of Hadhrat Khadija : 500 Dirhams or 400 Mithqual gold or 20 camels.

Question:

How was the "Black Stone" brought to Hazrat Ismail ? How does it look like ? What is inside it ? What is the significance of the stone ?

Answer:

The Black Stone was brought to earth by Hadhrat Adam. It is a stone and nothing is inside it. I am attaching its photo, and you will see that now it is covered on the rims by silver. According to Islamic traditions, in the beginning of the creation, Allah asked all the souls "Am I not your Lord ?" And all the souls replied "Yes, surely". Then Allah kept these confessions of beliefs in that stone. Now, the pilgrims recite a Dua in which they affirm that they have kept their promise and have maintained the belief that Allah is their Lord.

According to Hadith, this stone will be a witness for those who go to the pilgrimage with true faith.

Question:

The ancestors of the Holy Prophet were the worshippers of one God (Allah), according to our faith. How is it that they did not discourage the idol worshipping ?

Answer:

See Unit 4 page 3, where you will find that some of the prophets were sent to one man only. Also, in page 9 of that Unit you will find that the ancestors of the Holy Prophet were successors of the prophets, but not prophets themselves This much about their spiritual position. Coming to the worldly side, we know that they were not strong enough to successfully oppose idol-worship. The tribe of Quraish during the period of their disintegration and weakness had acquired all the bad habits and customs of other Arabian tribes. When they were gathered by Qusaiy, they had been idol-worshippers for many hundred years. It needed a man of the spiritual status of our Holy Prophet (s.a.w.) to succeed against them and eradicate idol-worship; no other man could accomplish this task. As they realized that their voices against idols would not be heard, they remained silent, forbidding only those of whom they were sure that they would listen to them.

Question:

The uncle of the Holy Prophet, Abu Talib, seemed to accept Islam, but not really a Muslim, why?

Answer:

Who said that Abu Talib was not really a Muslim? I have described at length that he kept the tribe of Quraish in suspense and doubt about his faith. But it does not mean that he was not Mumin. To keep one's faith secret where the interest of religion depends upon that secrecy is very much appreciated in the Qur'an. Allah praises a family member of Firaun who believed in Hadhrat Musa - secretly, and thus used his influence and position to benefit Hadhrat Musa. Commending it, Allah says :

"And said a man who was a believer, from among the people of Pharaoh, who used to conceal his faith ... ." (Qur'an, 40:28).

The same was the position of Hadhrat Abu Talib.

Question:

Some Sunni sheikhs say that when Abu Talib died, the Holy Prophet spread his saliva all over his body so that he may not be put into hell. Is this story correct ?

Answer:

It is all a pack of lies; there is no trace of such thing even in Sunnis' books.

Question:

What was the reason behind Usama's expedition ? Because it is as if the Holy Prophet would encourage Muslims to take a vengeance.

Answer:

Well, when enemy is bent upon destroying you, you have to fight him. As the Ghassanide Chief with the encouragement of the Roman emperor, wanted to crush Islam, it was necessary to weaken him to protect the Muslims and Islam. So much about your question of vengeance.

Now, I better mention one thing which can easily be inferred from this event. The Holy Prophet was aware that his death was very near; also he understood very well that certain people were not happy with the announcement of Ghadeer Khum. It seems that he wanted to send all those people away from Madina, so that when his death came, these people would not be in Madina to make trouble. We find that all immigrants, including Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, etc. etc. were strictly ordered to join the army under Usama. Ali was told to remain in Madina, while others were cursed if they delayed in joining Usama and all of them delayed.

This seems to be the real "reason" behind Usama's expedition.

Question:

The Holy Prophet is recorded to have said: Treat yourself because there is no sickness without treatment. What sort of treatments should a Muslim use ?

Answer:

Any medicine which does not contain any Haram thing.

Question:

Are African medicines not allowed in Islam ?

Answer:

I do not understand what you mean by "African medicines". If you mean leaves and roots of trees etc., then it is all right if it cures the sickness.

Question:

Suppose the disease is new and the physician uses "bao" or "Ramli" so that he may know the kind of disease, will it be Haram ?

Answer:

These things are not allowed.

Question:

Is it true that in Shia Ithna-asheria, only Seyids are allowed to lead in congregational prayer ?

Answer:

No. - Any Shia !thna-asheri who fulfils the conditions may lead in the prayers. Question: Can an ordinary person become Seyid ? How ?

Answer:

The word "Seyyid" when used in Persia, India, Pakistan and Africa, means the descendent of the Holy Prophet. Now, you will realize that your question has no meaning. If a person is not from a family he cannot become a member of that family. But it does not mean that a person who is not Seyyid, is prohibited from any work or office of religion. He can rise to the highest possible status; for example he may become a Mujtahid. In fact, hundreds of our great living Mujtahids are non-Seyyids.

Question:

The Jinns and men have the same obligation towards Allah. Why is that Jinns are kept in Ghaib ?

Answer:

Jinns are invisible to us only. They are not invisible among themselves. They have their life and death; their family and society; their religion and belief. For example if a blind animal does not see human beings, it does not mean that human beings feel any trouble or discomfort. Likewise, if our eyes are not seeing the Jinns, it does not disturb the Jinns at all.

Question:

Can Ghaib be explored ?

Answer:

Only when you attain spiritual perfection.

Question:

Most Arabic names start with either "Al" or "El" (a) what is the difference of the two words (b) How are they used in the Arabic language ?

Answer:

"Al" or "El" is the Arabic 'Alif and 'Lam'. There is no difference in Arabic. Some Europeans write is as "Al" which is the correct pronunciation; others write it as "El". 'Al' conveys in Arabic the following shades of meaning: (1) Each and every individual of the thing mentioned, taken separately; (2) all the individuals of the thing mentioned, taken jointly; (3) the species of the thing mentioned taken as an abstract idea. Thus it may be translated by "Each and every", "all" and "the"

Question:

Do all things have souls ?

Answer:

Not all things. Question: If not, why is it said that when you steal, all things around there, will provide evidence against you before God ? Answer: Well, why are you astonished? Even today soulless things give evidence for or against a man in the courts. Finger-prints, tapes, clothes, shoes, things belonging to a thief which are found near the place of theft, these and scores of such things give evidence in courts. So what is strange if the surrounding things were to provide evidence against a sinner on the Day of Judgment ? 31st August 1972 My Dear Dhikiri, Here are the answers to your questions :-

Question:

Suppose I have something to give for Zakat-Fitr, but I know if I do that I will have nothing to support myself with - what should I do ?

Answer:

Read p. 13 of "The Fasting In Islam" to find out the conditions when Zakat-ul-Fitra is Wajib. If you fulfill those conditions, you will have to pay that Zakat, even if it means taking loan for the time being; but if it is not Wajib upon you, then you are free.

Question:

What does it mean by "a poor of his faith" does it mean a Muslim of any Madhheb or he must be a Shia ithna-asheri?

Answer: It means "poor Shia Ithna-asheri". Question: Why does the time-table you sent me does not show time for 'Asr and Isha prayers ? Answer: In Shia Sheriat, the time of Asr starts just after finishing the prayer of Dhohr; and that of Isha just after finishing the Maghrib. (See Lesson 26 of Elements of Islamic Studies for details). Therefore, it was not necessary to mention the times of those two prayers.

Question:

By cleansing with leaves - I mean, why are we Muslims not allowed to clean ourselves with leaves - let us say when we have attended the call of nature instead of using stones, clothes and such others ?

Answer:

You may use clean leaves.

Question:

Are ladies in Haidh and Nifas allowed to fast ? Answer: No. See page 5 of Fasting in Islam. Question: Please Maulana, may I know the number of days each month of Islamic Calendar is supposed to have ?

Answer:

It is either 29 or 30, depending upon the visibility of the moon. With best wishes, Yours sincerely, S. S. Akhtar Rizvi. 15th February, 1974 My Dear Dhikiri, Here are the answers to your questions :-

Question:

Why does not the Holy Qur'an give strong emphasis to support father-in-law and mother- in-law ? Because a married woman will never be able to support her father and mother if her husband does not like it.

Answer:

Woman, married or unmarried, is never expected to support any body. She is to be supported by her father or her husband. Question:

I have seen in Unit 21 that female children are better than male ones, because they even enter the Paradise easily. Why do people, even the Muslims, want and long for male children ?

Answer:

The responsibilities of women are not as easy as you think. So far as longing for male children is concerned, it must be remembered that giving a son or a daughter is entirely in the hands of Allah, and a Muslim must be happy with whatever Allah has given him. Question:

Getting education compels young men to remain unmarried for a long time, even when their sexual urge does not allow them to remain so. What advice can you give our Muslim young men concerning this problem?

Answer:

There is no other way. If a man controls himself, and is in danger of falling in Haram, then it is Wajib upon him to get married at once. If he neglects this Wajib, for whatever reason, then he should not blame the Sheriat.

Question:

My mother died an hour after my birth; my aunt took care of me. This woman has no son. What are my duties towards her ?

Answer:

Did she give you her milk from her breast ? At least for one day and night ? If so, then she is your foster-mother. You cannot marry her daughters, nor the daughters of those foster- sisters. In short, think of her as mother, and all the rules regarding mother and children of mother will apply in her case also.

Question:

Why doesn't Islam allow people to use their mothers' surnames, like Juma bin Zainab, instead of Juma bin Hamisi ? I think using mother's name gives more honour to mother; also it is clear that mother is surely the parent of the child, while it is not so sure in case of father.

Answer:

There is no such thing as 'surname' in Islam. And the Islamic society is the Paternal society, not the maternal one. Moreover ,in a Islamic society there can never be so many bastards as to necessitate the use of mothers' names instead of fathers. Also, in a Islamic society, using the name of mother, instead of father, indicates that the child is not a legitimate one (and the reason is somewhat similar to that which you have mentioned). So, the use of mother's name is not an honour, but a disgrace for the mother.

Question:

Do we Muslims believe that Allah had sent ladies as prophets, as the Christians believe in Deborah as a prophetess (Judges, 4:4) and Ruth (Ruth) ?

Answer:

No. And the Christians do not believe as you think. According to Christianity, Judaism (and Sunni'ism), the woman is the root-cause of all the troubles and sufferings of mankind, and is debarred from becoming even a priest, let alone Prophethood. You think that anyone who foretells an event, is a prophet. In Islam it is not so. Read carefully Unit 4 of ICC. With best wishes,

Yours Lovingly, S. S. Akhtar Rizvi.