Q. Is it permissible for a Muslim to rear guard dogs for purposes of trade?
A. Although permissible for this purpose, it is not adviseable, especially since according to Imaam Shaafi (rahmatullah alayh) it is not even permissible. Furthermore, dealing in dogs will have a negative moral impact on a man’s character. Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) forbade even sitting on the skins of wild animals, e.g. tigers and cheetahs. The Angels of Rahmat do not enter a place where dogs are kept.

Q. Is it permissible to keep monkeys as pets?
A. It is not permissible. Allah Ta’ala transformed people into pigs and apes as a form of punishment. This shows that monkeys, like pigs are detestable. They are not animals to be kept by Muslims as pets.

Q. While making wudhu if the Athaan begins, should one stop and wait until the end of the Athaan?
A. It is not necessary to stop and wait. One may continue with the wudhu.

Q. On the plane we met a man who said that he was a Muslim. He went to another person and said that he was a Chtristian. He finally went to sit by a female and said that he was a Jew. What is his status?
A. Even if he was born into Islam, his statements made him a kaafir. It does not matter if he had made these statements of kufr in jest. He is not a Muslim.

Q. Is the food served on planes halaal?
A. Airlines serve even pork, haraam meat and other haraam types of foods. They also serve liquor. All the food is kept in the same place. The food is furthermore served by the same staff who serves haraam food and liquor. It does not behove Muslims who are concious of their Deen to consume such contaminated foods. It is not permissible to eat the airline food. Muslim passengers should take along some light foodstuff for the journey which is usually only a few hours.

Q. If an air hostess pours liquor for a passenger, then pours tea for one, is it permissible to drink the tea?
A. It is not permissible. Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam)forbade that Muslims eat from the same place where liquor is served. The plane situation comes within the scope of this Hadith of prohibition.

Q. Is it permissible to have relations with the wife immediately her haidh period ends, but before she has taken ghusl?
A. If her haidh ended before full ten days, then this will not be permissible. Ghusl is necessary first. If haidh ceased after a full ten days, relations will be permissible even without ghusl.

Q. Where should ihraam be adopted when going for Hajj or Umrah from South Africa?
A. It is preferable to put it on land (either at Johannesburg or Nairobi), i.e. even before coming in line with the Meeqaat known as Yalamlam which is announced on the plane. It is very awkward to don ihraam in the plane. It is also permissible to don ihraam in Jiddah. Some senior Ulama are of the view that it is not permissible to delay the ihraam until Jiddah. However, we follow the other view.

Q. Is it permissible to perform Salaat with a kurtah with short sleeves?
A. It is not permissible even if it is a kurtah. It is Makrooh to wear such a kurtah when performing Salaat.

Q. It is customary to feed people who attend the Janaazah. After burial they are invited for a feast. Is this a Sunnat practice?
A. It is a bid’ah practice. This custom is not permissible. Death is not an occasion of feasting.

Q. Children in our house are seeing a huge black jinn. They become extremely frightened. What can be done when this happens?
A. According to the Hadith, when any such apparition is seen, call out the Athaan loudly. Insha’Allah, the shaitaan will disappear. It is not necessary to insert the fingers in the ears when reciting the Athaan on this occasion.

Q. If the Imaam happens to be a musaafir, how should the muqtadis perform their Salaat?
A. After the Imaam makes Salaam, i.e. after he completes his two raka’ts, the muqtadis should rise and perform the remaining two raka’ts without reciting Qiraa’t in any of the raka’ts.

Q. The musaafir Imaam by error performed four raka’ts Zuhr instead of two. At the end he made Sajdah Sahw. What is the state of the Salaat?
A. The Salaat of the Imaam is valid if he had sat in tashahhud after two raka’ts, but not that of the muqtadis. They have to repeat their Salaat.

Q. When a journey of 77 km (three manzils) or more is undertaken, from which point will it become permissible to perform Qasr Salaat? Could the Qasr be performed before reaching 77 km?
A. Qasr may be performed as soon as one has reached beyond the built-up area, i.e. where the town ends. It is not necessary to wait until one reaches 77 km.

Q. What is the condition of a Muslim who says that he believes and follows only the Qur’aan. He rejects the Hadith.
A. Such a man is a kaafir. He becomes a murtad by rejecting the Ahadith of Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam).

Q. When should the Masbooq stand up to complete the raka’ts he has missed — after the first Salaam or after the second Salaam?
A. After the first Salaam. If one delays until after the second Salaam, Sajdah Sahw will be necessary.

Q. Is it necessary to perform all the Sunnatul Muakkadah Salaat? Some say that this is not necessary in view of it being only Sunnah. Is this correct?
A. The statement “is only Sunnat”, is kufr. When any act of the Deen is regarded as being insignificant and unimportant, such an attitude is termed istikhfaaf which is kufr. A person who neglects the Sunnatul Muakkadah Salaat without valid Shar’i reason is a faasiq. It is a grievious sin to neglect the Sunnatul Muakkadah Salaat. It is a punishable offence.

Q. I had been taught that it is Sunnat to sit when drinking water. Now I have come across some hadiths which mention that Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) stood while drinking water. What is the correct view?
A. There are several authentic Ahadith which prohibit drinking water while standing. There are also some narrations which mention that Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) had stood while drinking water. While the general and usual practice of Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) was to sit when drinking water, occasionally he did stand. The fact that he prohibited drinking water while standing, indicates that there must have been a special reason for having stood sometimes when drinking water. Some narrations specifically mention that when he drank Zam Zam water, he stood. It is for this reason that our Ulama stand when drinking Zam Zam water. According to the Hadith Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) also stood when drinking the water left over in the container after having made wudhu. This too is adopted by our Ulama. It is nevertheless clear from the Ahadith prohibiting standing when drinking water, that the actual Sunnah practice is to sit when drinking water.

Q. A Person had a sex-change operation from man to woman. This person now wants to embrace Islam. Does Islam recognize such sex-changes? If the person was a woman and had changed to a man, would his imaamate be acceptable? What rules in general will apply to such persons?
A. Some people are born with two sets of organs, male and female. The one set is sometimes more developed than the other or the one may be functional while the other is inactive or the one may be fully functional and the other partially functional or both may be functional. If the male organ is functional, not the female organ, then the person is classified a male by the Shariah. If the female organ is functional, not the male one, the person will be a woman. If both are functional, but the male organ is dominant in its functioning, then the person will be a male. If the female organ is dominant, the person will be a female. If both function, the sex remains undetermined and the person is called Khuntha Mushkil. There are laws pertaining to the Kuntha Mushkil. A medical operation for correcting the disorder and for ensuring that only one organ functions is permissible. It is permissible for a Khuntha Mushkil to have an operation so that only one organ functions. This is not a sex-change. It is rather treatment to correct a disorder. However, assuming that by some technique a person who is originally a man or a woman can undergo a sex change operation, then this will be haraam. It will be an act of shaitaan in terms of the Qur’aan Shareef. It will be described as taghyeer khalqillaah or to change the natural creation of Allah Ta’ala. Such a person will remain what he/she was originally. The sex ‘change’ will not be recognized. If Allah Ta’ala has created a person a man or a woman, he/she will remain so and be classified as such. The original classification will not change by artificial means.

Q. What happens to the soul after death?
A. The souls of the pious Mu’mineen are taken to the Abode of Bliss called Illiyyeen where they dwell in comfort and pleasure until the Day of Qiyaamah. The souls of the evil people are taken to the Abode of Punishment and Misery where they suffer until the Day of Qiyaamah.

Q. Does the soul remain in the grave or does it go up?
A. The Grave (Qabr) is a different phase of life. The life after death but before Qiyaamah is called Barzakh. The pleasure and pain the soul undergoes are in the Realm of Barzakh. The exact state of that Realm is unknown and beyond description. It is a spiritual existence in which everything occurs to the soul although sometimes with the command of Allah Ta’ala the effects of Barzakh are experienced by both physical body and soul. And, everything is within the Power of Allah.

Q. In a quarrel with my wife I told her that if she will not be coming with me for the weekend, I shall give her three Talaaqs. When weekend came, she did not accompany me. I did not follow up on my threat but an Imaam says that the talaaqs are valid. Please advise if this is so.
A. The talaaqs did not come into effect. You had threatened to issue three talaaqs. You did not issue the talaaqs when she refused to accompany you at the weekend. Your Nikah therefore remains valid.

Q. If a person is able to stand, but unable to perform ruku’ and sajdah due to a back ailment, how should he perform his Salaat?
A. He will make ruku’ and sajdah with signs of his head. For sajdah he will bend his head lower than for ruku’. Although he may stand and perform Salaat, it is preferable to sit in this case. If he is able to sit on the ground ...