Q. On retirement, I received from my company a lump sum in lieu of my service. As I do not know how to start a business, I invested a certain amount in a government saving scheme that gives fixed profits every six months. The rest I invested in a fund that matures after 10 years, although it can be surrendered at any time. Could you please explain what zakah I should pay on these two types of investments.

C.H. Mukhtar

A. For the first type, which pays profits or dividends, the zakah you pay is 10% of the amount you receive in profits, and it is payable on receipt of the money. You do not have to wait until your zakah date. This is payable straightaway.

The second type is payable on maturity, once only, on the original outlay and the profits you receive, at the rate of 2.5%. When we say once only, this covers the duration of the investment. However, when you have paid its zakah on receipt, the money you now hold is treated as part of your money and it is subject to zakah in subsequent years, together with what you may have of money that is liable to zakah.

The Br. prefix

Q. In many Muslim communities of North America I have noticed the tradition of prefixing each other’s name with the word “brother”. As in Br. Ahmed or Br. Ali. While I understand the strong message of brotherhood that it denotes, I am curious to know if this practice is supported by the Sunnah of the Prophet and his companions. Most Hadith references seem to have names prefixed by “Ya” or “O” rather than the word brother.

M. Basit

A. There is nothing wrong with the way Muslims in a certain community address each other, as long as the mode of address is one of respect. We do not have any particular teaching to require that we conform to a particular way. The Prophet’s companions used the forms that were commonly used in their community. They did not invent any new method of address. The word “Ya”, which is frequently encountered in their dialogue is a form of address, often translated as “O”. Nowadays, many Muslims stress the importance of the bond of brotherhood that unite them all, and call each other as “brother” or “sister”. There is nothing wrong with that. When they shorten this in written material to Br or Sr, they are starting a convention that accepts these short forms for these words. Again, there is nothing wrong with that.

Machine-slaughtered animals

Q. Here in Australia, most animals, even those labeled as “halal” are slaughtered by machines. Suppose that a tape is played to recite the name of God at the time of slaughter, or the name is written on the blade of the machine, does the meat become halal, or permissible to eat?

F. Malik, Canberra

A. There is nothing wrong with using machines to slaughter animals for food. What is required for Islamic slaughtering is to ensure a quick and humane method that cuts the neck of the animal and its main veins, and mentioning God’s name at the time of slaughter. However, God has permitted us to eat the food of Christian and Jewish people. As Australia is a Christian country, meat slaughtered there is permissible, unless it is from an animal that is forbidden to eat, such as pork. When we buy lamb, beef or chicken and we do not know if God’s name was mentioned at the time of slaughter, we do what the Prophet taught us, which is to recite God’s name and eat from it.

On bad omen

Q. You said in a recent article that if a person finds himself uncomfortable with his wife, horse or house, he can change them, although none of these can by themselves bring him any harm. However, if a man is entertaining such thoughts, does it not mean he thinks of them as bringing bad omen? Are we not giving a man the green signal to change his wife whenever he feels like a change? Besides, changing one’s horse or house seems to imply lack of faith in God.

On another subject, is there any verse which we should read to avoid the effects of an envious eye?

Nishat

A. When we have a Hadith, we try to understand it as it is. We quoted a Hadith which makes it clear that omen is mostly associated with a woman, a house or a horse. And we quoted several Hadiths which make it clear that bad omen is wrong. One must not associate adversity with anything in particular. However, people may even subconsciously think that some adversity is associated with one or the other of these three things. When such thoughts occur to a person, he or she should dispel them altogether, reminding themselves that nothing occurs except by God’s will, and that nothing has a will of its own.

However, a wife, a horse, a house and, in our modern times, a car become part of one’s day-to-day life. If one is uncomfortable with them, they may even cause problems. Therefore a change could be the best way out, provided always that one must not blame one’s wife, horse, car or house for any misfortune that befalls one. There is no lack of faith in God if one does this, because one is simply seeking what is more comfortable, and relying on God’s will. It is also necessary to guard against putting blame on any of these for one’s misfortunes, because this may bring us to bad omen, which is not allowed in Islam.

It is recommended to read the last two Surahs of the Qur’an, i.e. Surahs 113 and 114, in order to dispel the harm of an envious eye. If one fears envy from another person, one should read these two short Surahs, and it is better to repeat them three times. You may note that Surah 113 concludes with an appeal for refuge with God from the evil of an envious person.

The Black Stone

Q.1. Could you please explain the significance of the Black Stone at the Kaabah. Is it correct that a person who kisses the Black Stone will have all his past sins removed?

Q.2. A certain person often has doubts that he might have invalidated his ablution. Such doubts occur to him during prayer. Should he continue his prayer or stop and renew his ablution?

Abdul-Rahman, Jeddah

A.1. The Black Stone is an easily distinguished stone, placed a little below shoulder level at one corner of the Kaabah. The act of worship which is particularly associated with the Kaabah, and never stops except when congregational prayer is held, is tawaf, which means walking round the Kaabah seven times in an anti-clockwise direction. Tawaf is one of the duties of Islamic pilgrimage and Umrah (mini-pilgrimage). It is also a recommended act of worship at all times. Moreover, it is the way to offer greeting to the Kaabah.

It is said that when Abraham completed the building of the Kaabah, with the help of his son, Ishmael, God commanded him to do the tawaf. He was not able to keep a correct count of the rounds he made. He felt that other worshipers would be similarly confused. He prayed God to give him a sign to be used for counting rounds. The Angel Gabriel brought him the Black Stone.

When one starts tawaf, and at the completion of each round, one should kiss the Black Stone or touch it with one’s hand, if it is possible, or signal to it from a distance, if the place is too crowded. As one does so, one should repeat this declaration: “There is no deity save God, God is supreme.” The significance of this particular action is best expressed by Umar ibn Al-Khattab, the second greatest figure among the companions of Prophet Muhammad and his second successor as ruler of the Islamic state, and a distinguished scholar. He addressed the Black Stone in these words: “I know that you are a stone which can cause no harm or benefit. Had it not been for the fact that I saw God’s messenger (peace be upon him) kissing you, I would not have kissed you.”

This is all that need be said about the Black Stone. It is not correct that kissing it will remove one’s sins. It is pilgrimage that is rewarded with the forgiveness of the pilgrim’s past sins. If a person performs the pilgrimage ten times and does not manage to kiss the Black Stone even once, his pilgrimage is perfectly correct and valid.

A.2. Invalidation of ablution during prayer could only be through the discharge of wind or nasal bleeding. The second is very obvious to be subject of doubt. The discharge of wind is ascertained through either sound or smell. If one does not have either indication, then no discharge has taken place. There should be no room for doubt. If the discharge is certain through either evidence, ablution is invalidated and so is prayer. One should leave and perform a fresh ablution. If neither indication is certain one continues his prayer, because it is valid. Many people suffer from such doubts, but this is all a mark of obsession which is treated by ignoring it altogether and doing the opposite of what it signifies. A person who resists such an obsession in this way will discover that within a few days all his doubts are cleared.

Arab News Islam 25 November 2002