Questions 34

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Questions asked to Shaykh ‘Abdur-Rahmaan bin ‘Abdullah al-‘Ajlaan [May Allaah Preserve him]

Former Member of Permanent Committee of Senior Scholars, Saudi Arabia
Teacher in Masjid al-Haram in Makkah al-Mukarramah since 1410AH
After Salaat al-Maghrib
17/8/1433 – 7/6/2012

Question: When does one say the Dua’a for entering the Masjid?

Answer: When he enters the Masjid, so when he passes through the doors he says the Dua’a because these are the specific bounds of the Masjid.

He says:

أعوذ بالله العظيم وبوجهه الكريم وسلطانه القديم من الشيطان الرجيم

اللهم صل على محمد اللهم اغفر لي ذنوبي وافتح لي أبواب رحمتك

‘I seek refuge in Allaah  al-‘Atheem, in His Noble Face, in His Everlasting Dominion, from Shaytaan the accursed.

Oh Allaah! Send Blessings upon Muhammad and Oh Allaah forgive my sins and open the doors of Your Mercy for me.’

This is to enter. When he wants to exit he should say;

اللهم إني أسألك من فضلك

‘Oh Allaah! I ask you for Your Favours.’

Question: Is the one who is rich and gives in Sadaqah better than the one who is poor and doesn’t?

Answer: The scholars differed. Who is better, the rich who is thankful or the poor who is patient? We say both are upon goodness even if the scholars differed on their ranks. Some of them said that the rich who gives thanks is better as he benefits others. others say the poor who is patient is better as he is baring difficulty, but what is correct is that they are both upon goodness, like ‘Umar bin al-Khattaab [May Allaah be Pleased with him] said, “Richness and poverty are both ways that one gets close to Allaah.” So it depends on the individual and his heart, either his heart is filled with thanks or patience.

Question: Who should one say in Rukoo and in Sujood?

Answer: He should say in Rukoo:

سبحان ربي العظيم

‘How Perfect is my Lord, The Magnificent’

And in Sujood he should say,

سبحان ربي الأعلى

‘How Perfect is my Lord, the Most High’

What is required is that we should say this at least once, if one repeats this then this is better and if one wants to add to these after saying them at least once, by saying his own supplication then he will be rewarded for it.

Question: Do we need to complete seven circuits in Tawaaf even if it is a voluntary Tawaaf?

Answer: Yes my brother, all Tawaaf must have seven circuits. You can’t do a Tawaaf with three or four or five or six circuits, it must be seven. If the Iqaamah or Salaah is called then you can stop to pray and continue where you left off but you must complete seven circuits. If it is a Tawaaf which is Waajib then you must complete it but if it is a voluntary Tawaaf then you may leave it if you decide to do so.

Question: What is ruling on praying behind a Soofee who believes that we can ask the deceased for help? And is this practice considered as Shirk?

Answer: It is Waajib for every Muslim is to follow the example of the Prophet [Peace and Blessings of Allaah be Upon him] and to abstain from becoming into sects, becoming misguided. The Prophet [Peace and Blessings of Allaah be Upon him] told us, and what he said is true as this Ummah is now split, that this Ummah will split into 73 sects, all of them in the fire except one. When asked which one, he [Peace and Blessings of Allaah be Upon him] said, “The path of Me and My Companions are upon today.”

There are many sects today, so it doesn’t mean that it is restricted to 73 sects, rather it means that these 73 are the heads or the roots of various sects and then each sect from the 73 will have its own splitting, splitting 5, 6 or 10 times. Each of these sects are at logger heads with the other, even though they originate from the same splitting. 

However, Ahl as-Sunnah wal Jamaa’ah are those who hold firm to the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allaah [Peace and Blessings ofAllaah be Upon him], they hold onto the Sunnah and they don’t deviate from it.

So it is Waajib upon every Muslim to make sure he is free from the splitting into sects, because splitting into sects leads us to be misguided and these sects are known to have split based on some form of misguidance. All the forms of misguidance aren’t the same; some forms of misguidances are less severe than others, some have split based on clear cut Kufr, may Allaah protect us. Some have split based misunderstandings of the religion. So it is Waajib upon the Muslim to cling on to the Sunnah of the Prophet [Peace and Blessings of Allaah be Upon him] and tread upon the path of the Sunnah with the understanding of the Salaf as-Saaleh, the Companions [May Allaah be Pleased with them all] and those who followed them in goodness and those scholars who came after them, like the four Imaams [May Allaah have Mercy on them]. So the Muslim must be aware of splitting into sects and groups and stay away from this, because splitting can lead to one leaving Islaam because of some Kufr he may fall into or something less severe than this.

It is also binding upon the Muslim to pray behind someone who is a Msulim and has Taqwaa, however if he prays behind someone who is a Faasiq, someone who sins, then the Salaah is correct and Saheeh, All Praise is for Allaah, but praying behind someone who has Taqwaa is better.

Question: We live in Britain and some of the brothers have some transactions with some of the banks there. The local Imaam that we pray behind has urged them to buy these houses in which the transactions include interest, so are we allowed to pray behind him?

Answer: Your Salaah behind is Saheeh and correct, All Praise is for Allaah, even if the person you’re praying behind is involved in doing Haraam. However, it is binding upon the Muslim to avoid falling into Haraam and when it comes to Halaal and Haraam must make sure he is doing the right thing. This is because, Allaah, the Glorified and the Exalted, has not made something Haraam except that there is an alternative which is better that is Halaal. Allaah has made business is permissible but has forbidden interest. Allaah has made marriage permissible but has forbidden fornication. Allaah has made various wholesome drinks permissible but has forbidden alcohol etc. If there is something Haraam and disgusting then there will always be a wholesome and permissible alternative. So we must make sure that all the avenues of right and wrong are looked into before making such decisions.