Our Dialogue

Q. I attended a lecture in which the speaker said that the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) ruled over mankind, the jinn, animals, and birds, as well as the sun, the moon, the stars and also over the dead. Please comment.


A. The first thing to be said here is that although we are required to love the Prophet better and more than we love anyone or anything else, including our parents, children and indeed ourselves, we must be careful lest we say or do something that is unacceptable to God Almighty. The Prophet’s status comes from the fact that God chose him to deliver his final message to mankind and show them how to implement it in practice. Throughout his life, the Prophet Muhammad remained a servant of God, exemplary in his obedience of whatever God ordered. When the speaker said that the Prophet ruled over all those creatures, what did he mean? If he meant that the Prophet determined what happened to them in this life or in the life to come, his statement is false. The Prophet did not determine events of his own life.


If the speaker meant that Prophet Muhammad was given a message that applied to all these creatures, including the sun, moon and stars, his statement is again wrong. The message of Islam calls on people to submit themselves to God on the basis of choice and free will. The only creatures mentioned in the question that have free will are humans and the jinn. The Prophet’s message is addressed to both, and every human being and jinn are required to believe in Islam, submitting themselves willingly to God and abiding by His teachings. The other types of creatures mentioned, including animals, birds and celestial bodies, have not been given free will. They cannot choose between alternatives. They submit to God in the sense that His will applies to them and they cannot contravene the laws of nature He has set in operation. Hence, they do not have to account on the Day of Judgment for the role they play in life. As for the dead, these are people whose ability to act and do anything is over. Hence, no standard of behaviour applies to them.


People often speak of their love of the Prophet. Yet love, in its true sense, means following what the Prophet has taught, either by advice or by action. The Prophet made it clear that people must not give him an exaggerated status. Some people deliberately contradict his express wishes. Does that indicate love? If you dearly love your mother and she tells you that she does not like the smell of the perfume you have just bought, would you wear that perfume day after day? Would you not try to exchange it for a different perfume that she likes?


Consider the Qur’anic verse in which God gives this instruction to the Prophet: “Say: If you love God, follow me; God will love you and forgive you your sins. God is Much-Forgiving, Merciful.” (3: 31) It sums up the role and position of the Prophet: He is to be obeyed and followed by all people who wish to be loved by God and forgiven their sins. The Prophet made it clear that he was an ordinary human being, who was not privy to what God might determine concerning anyone or anything. He could not forbid anything or make it lawful at his own behest. When he expressed dislike of the smell of garlic and onion, people said that he would go on to forbid eating them. He said to them: “ I am only human. I have no authority to forbid anything. It is only God who has such authority. I have simply expressed some personal dislike.”


We must certainly follow the Prophet’s example and abide by his guidance. This is the way to earn God’s pleasure. Indeed God has bestowed on him the greatest honour He would grant to anyone of His servants, making him the means of delivering His message to mankind. This is why Muhammad’s name is joined to God’s own name in the declaration that brings a person into the fold of Islam: “I bear witness that there is no deity other than God, and I bear witness that Muhammad is God’s messenger.” There can be no higher status than that.

Q. On the basis of my understanding of verses such as 24: 31, and 33: 53 and 55, the hijab is obligatory for Muslim women. However, some of our brothers and sisters living in the US claim that it is optional for those living in the US and other Western countries. They argue that wearing it is counter-productive, as it attracts attention to them and exposes them to pressure, discrimination and ill treatment. Please comment.


A. It is one thing for a Muslim to say that in his circumstances he finds great difficulty in complying with a particular Islamic duty, and a totally different thing to try to justify his non-compliance with it by saying that it is not a duty.


In the first case, the person concerned acknowledges the duty and his failure to comply with it, praying God for forgiveness. In the second, he tries to twist the meanings of texts in order to show that he does not contravene divine orders. This is extremely wrong, and God has denounced those among the Jews and other earlier communities who did that.


Verse 24: 31 is very clear in its instructions, requiring Muslim women to drop their head coverings over their bosoms so as to cover the top opening of their clothes. The Prophet (Pbuh) has made clear in many Hadiths that a woman must cover her body, except her face and hands. This verse addresses all believing women, which means that its requirements apply to all Muslim women. It is true that verse 55 implies the same requirements as certain parts of verse 24: 31, but this is to make clear that the general instruction also applies to the Prophet’s wives.


We need to remind ourselves that the Prophet’s wives had a number of special rulings that applied to them alone. Other Muslim women need not follow their suit, because God tells them clearly that they have a special case and that they are unlike other women. In fact, these rules specify certain additional restrictions, which means that their non-applicability to other Muslim women is an act of God’s grace, making things easier for us.


Having said that, I understand the difficult position of Muslim women in Western countries, particularly in recent years. There must be collective counter pressure so as to make compliance with Islamic teachings acceptable. Unfortunately, such pressure does not seem to be forthcoming, particularly because governments in some Muslim countries are similarly opposed to the hijab. Nevertheless, all of us, even those who do not wear the hijab, should make clear to Western governments and societies that compliance with our religious duties is an inalienable right of every Muslim, man or woman.


Muslim women should continue to wear the hijab, so that they practically demonstrate that prejudice against them is nothing, but flagrant discrimination. If there are certain rules that prevent them from doing their duty, they should do everything within the law to get those rules changed.


The community as a whole should bring pressure to bear on politicians, parliamentarians, the media and the government in their respective countries to ensure that they enjoy their rights of practising their faith.

After steeping myself in books that deal with anxiety and mental ailments, I found that Muslim scholars agree upon three fundamentals for one who seeks a cure:


1. One should have a close relationship with Allah, by worshipping Him, being obedient to Him, and turning to Him when in hardship or in ease. And this is the paramount issue in faith: “So worship Him Alone and be constant and patient in His worship. Do you know of any who is similar to Him? Of course, none is similar or co-equal or comparable to Him, and He has none as partner with Him”. (Qur’an 19: 65)


2. One must close the files of the past. Episodes of the past, which when recalled only induce pain, should be forgotten and eradicated from one’s memory. Thus, a new life for a new day!


3. One should leave the future alone. Whatever is yet to occur is from the world of the unseen. Therefore it should be left alone until it comes. More particularly, one should avoid being preoccupied with predictions, expectations and apprehensions. Life should be lived within the boundaries of today.

(Source: Don’t Be Sad-by Aaidh ibn Abdullah al-Qarni)

Q. In our home country, a transaction takes place whereby one person sells a plot of land to another, but signing blank papers to enforce the sale. The point here is that the seller does not own the land in question, but he and the agent assure the buyer that he will own it at a later date. The format of the blank paper in question is devised by the property agent. Is such a sale permissible?


A. There is a principle in Islam that forbids selling what is not known for certain, and what one does not own. There are, however, details that make certain sales permissible, as in the case of selling the expected produce of agricultural land, while others are forbidden, as in the case of selling the expected fish catch before the fisherman starts his work.


The question raised by the reader falls into this general category, but he has not furnished sufficient details to make the transaction clear. On the basis of the sketchy information we have, we are bound to say that this seems a highly suspicious transaction that is more or less forbidden, but we cannot say this for certain without further details.


What does not seem to be understandable is why should anyone want to buy a piece of land from someone who does not own it, on the understanding that he will be its owner in the future. Why does he not go to its owner and buy it from him? What happens if the seller does not procure the land? Does he return the money in full, or does he pay the buyer more in consideration of his having had use of the money for a period of time? Moreover, why is the form blank, not specifying the land in area and location? Does not that allow the seller to determine the piece of land he eventually gives to the buyer, which makes the buyer totally ignorant of the commodity he is buying? If this is a possibility, then the transaction cannot be sanctioned by Islam.

Q. You said in an earlier answer that according to a Hadith, Imam Malik does not approve of offering Sunnah prayer if a person arrives in the mosque for Friday prayer when the imam is delivering his sermon. Please provide us with the Hadith in support of this view.


A.. People are often confused about this issue when it is simple and clear. The Hadith in question is not reported by Imam Malik only. It is indeed an authentic Hadith which Imam Malik interprets in a way that differs with the views of other Imams. The Hadith is reported by Jabir and says: “A man came into the mosque on Friday when the Prophet was delivering his sermon. He asked the man: ‘Have you prayed?’ The man answered in the negative. The Prophet said to him: ‘Then offer two rak’ahs.’” (Related in all six anthologies).


It is clear from this Hadith that if a person comes into the mosque when the imam has started delivering the khutbah or sermon, he should offer two short rak’ahs of voluntary prayer before he sits down. Once he sits down, he should not stand up for prayer during the khutbah. However, Imam Malik looks at the Hadith in a different way, taking into view the full circumstances of the case of the man. He feels that the Prophet wanted to draw attention to the fact that the newcomer was poor and deserved charitable assistance. By instructing him to stand up and pray when the rest of the congregation were seated, the Prophet thought that people would recognize from the man’s appearance that he was poor. This is a valid understanding. Therefore, whether we take Imam Malik’s view or the opposite one, we have solid grounds.