Fatwa no. 21203

Q: Some people celebrate Valentine’s Day on February 14 by exchanging red roses, dressing in red, and congratulating one another on that day. Some cake shops make heart-shaped cakes in red and draw hearts on them and other shops advertise special items on sale for this day. What is your opinion on:

First: Celebrating this day?

Second: Buying from these stores on this day?

( Part No : 2,Page No:263)

Third: Shop owners who do not celebrate this day selling gifts to be given by those who do celebrate it?

May Allah reward you with the best!

A: The clear-cut evidence from the Qur’an and Sunnah, upon which the Salaf (righteous predecessors) of this Ummah (nation based on one creed) unanimously agreed, confirms that there are only two ‘Eids (festivals) in Islam: ‘Eid-ul-Fitr (the Festival of Breaking the Fast) and ‘Eid-ul-Adha (the Festival of the Sacrifice). Any other festival, whether peculiar to a person, a group, an event, or any other reason, is an invented festival that is not permissible for Muslims to celebrate, approve of, enjoy, or support in any way, because this is considered to be a transgression of the Limits of Allah. Anyone who transgresses the limits set by Allah has wronged themselves.

If we add to this fabricated festival the fact that it is one of the festivals of the Kufaar (disbelievers), this heaps sin upon sin, because it entails resembling them and is a type of support of them. Allah (may He be Glorified) forbids the Mu’mins (believers), in His Ever-Glorious Book, from imitating or supporting the Kufaar. It is authentically reported that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said:

Anyone who imitates a people is one of them.

Valentine’s Day falls under this heading, as it is one of the idolatrous Christian festivals. It is not lawful for a Muslim who believes in Allah and the Last Day to celebrate, approve of, or congratulate people on it; it is forbidden to them. Rather, it is obligatory for them to ignore and avoid it, in obedience to Allah and His Messenger and to keep away from that which will arouse Allah’s Anger and incur Punishment.

( Part No : 2,Page No:264)

It is also Haram (prohibited) for Muslims to support this festival or any other Haram festival by any means, whether by supplying food or drinks; selling, buying, manufacturing, gift-giving, correspondence, advertising etc., because all this comes under cooperating in sin and transgression and disobeying Allah and His Messenger. Allah (may He be Glorified and Exalted) says:

Surah Al-Ma’idah, 5: 2 Help you one another in Al-Birr and At-Taqwâ (virtue, righteousness and piety); but do not help one another in sin and transgression. And fear Allâh. Verily, Allâh is Severe in punishment.

It is obligatory for Muslims to adhere to the Qur’an and Sunnah in all matters, especially in times of Fitnah (trial) when corruption is widespread. They must be sagacious enough and on their guard to avoid falling into the misguidance of those who have earned Allah’s Anger, those who went astray, or the Fasiqs (those flagrantly violating Islamic law) who have no fear of Allah nor have pride in being Muslims. Muslims should resort to Allah, asking for guidance and steadfastness in Islam, as it is Allah Alone Who guides and keeps us steadfast.

Source:alifta

The accused woman lay naked on an escalera, a ladder tipped so that her head was lower than her feet. The torturer had stretched her out to her full length and bound her tightly. Iron prongs held her jaws open. Her nostrils were stopped, allowing breathing only through her mouth. She struggled, but her bounds permitted little movement, and days of relentless questioning had left her exhausted. The torturer draped a piece of linen loosely over her open mouth. Jugs of water lined a nearby wall.

Three other men stood over the woman in the torture chamber.

A doctor observed her reactions and assessed her general condition. The mandates of the 15th Century Spanish Inquisition required the presence of a physician to monitor the health of the accused. The purpose of torture would be nullified if the accused was physically unable to hear and understand the proceedings. A confession, if it came, had to be a pure act, not the half-conscious ramblings of a mortally wounded sinner.

A clerk sat at a crude wooden table, poised to write down the particulars of the session.

The man in charge of the proceedings, the inquisitor, ignored the woman’s panicked squeals and read through the charges levied against her. Witnesses had previously testified that on several successive Saturdays, smoke did not emerge from the woman’s chimney, a strong indication that she was secretly a practicing Jew. Judaism forbids manual labor on the Sabbath, and starting a fire was considered manual labor. During questioning the woman had insisted that although she was born a Jew, she was now a converse, a convert to Catholicism. But the telltale signs, which were outlined by the Grand Inquisitor himself, Tomas de Torquemada, indicated that she was in fact a heretic, a practicing Jew pretending to be a Catholic and secretly subverting the Catholic faith.

When the inquisitor finished reviewing the charges, he looked to the doctor who gave him a nod of assent. The inquisitor then pointed to the jugs of water and told the torturer to be ready. The torturer lifted one of the sloshing jugs; each contained one liter of water. The woman’s eyes widened in panic. She knew what was coming, and she tried to scream.

The first level of torture employed by the Spanish Inquisition was the “water cure.” Water was poured into the accused’s open mouth. The linen cloth was washed into the opening of the throat, preventing the accused from spitting the water back out. The overwhelming sensation of drowning forced the accused to swallow the water. The rules of torture as written by Torquemada, a man whom historians have compared to Hitler, stipulated that no more than eight liters of water could be used in a single session.

The torturer held the earthen jug in his arms, ready to follow the inquisitor’s orders. The woman cried and struggled for breath, anticipating the worst.

The inquisitor stepped forward and spoke. “We shall begin.”
Source

The above is perhaps one of the first documented accounts of the hideous torture technique, called waterboarding in modern parlance. And just as it was used by Christian extremists in the past to extract information and force confessions – today’s modern Christian crusaders are enacting the very same treatment upon Muslims once again.

Tales from Guantanamo’s murky history are very revealing, the accounts of torture and murder mimic Torquemada’s infamous inquisition enacted against Jews and Muslims. Claims of widespread proselytizing and rewards being offered to informants all echo the past to reveal a disturbing present reality – the Christian crusade is in full swing, where is our Salahudeen?

60yr old Erika Tazi, who suffers from the chronic pain condition fibromyalgia and a recent revert to Al Islam had finally plucked up the courage to don hijab. It was a big moment for her and she’d previously discussed her trepidation with her doctor. Nevertheless, wear it she did, and with pride and dignity.

Unfortunately, what should have been a very special moment for her ended abruptly when she was set upon by two ‘Christians’ who called our Prophet a warlord and accused poor Mrs Tazi of living in bondage. What’s worse of course is that the couple in question were the proprietors, and Mrs Tazi a paying guest in their hotel. Is this the kind of treatment British law now condones toward Muslim customers? Should we expect the same when we go into any shop to buy something now?

While the judge cleared the ‘Christian’ couple of hate speech yesterday, we must ask had the tables been turned would the situation be the same. Many of our brothers are languishing in British prisons for doing what the ‘Christian’ couple did, exercising their right to free speech. But again we see, it’s one law for the kuffar, another for the Muslims.

Sadly, Mrs Tazi fought this battle alone, while the ‘Christians’ were supported by donations from their group. Our prayers go out to our sister, may Allah reward her for standing up for the truth.

The religion of Islam, like Judaism and Christianity, is a strong advocate of marriage – though quite unlike certain elements within the Catholic faith, celibacy is actually frowned upon as being against the constituent nature of man. So important is marriage among Muslims that the Prophet of Islam declared this noble institution to be half of one’s religion.

For Muslims, choosing a partner presents its own unique problems, as a potential spouse’s compatibility is more often based on concerns that have little or nothing to do with Islam. Islamic jurists down through the ages have differed on what constitutes this compatibility, with some placing an emphasis on lineage and status and others stressing religion as being primary.

The consensus opinion would appear to be that held by Imam Malik – one of the four main jurists in Islam – which is in accord with the statement of Prophet Muhammad: “A woman is married for four things, ie her wealth, her family status, her beauty and her religion. So you should marry the religious woman [otherwise] you will be a loser.”

In emphasising the importance of religion, the Prophet also said to women: “If there comes to you an offer of marriage, one with whose religious commitment and character you are pleased, then marry him. If you do not do so, there will be mischief on earth and widespread corruption.”

Such was the Prophet’s commitment to an egalitarian society based on Islamic principles that he is reported to have given Zainab bint Jahsh in marriage to Zaid, his freed slave – a union that would have been unheard of in pre-Islamic Arabia. Other notable examples include the marriage of Bilal Al Habashi (a freed black slave) to the sister of AbdurRahman ibn Awf of the Quraish (a noble tribe among the Arabs).

Unfortunately, the mischief and corruption spoken of by the Prophet is still widespread today, as ethnicity and status have replaced the importance of religion, resulting in refusals of marriage to those outside people’s own narrow ethnic and social class. Indeed, in Ireland and elsewhere we are plagued with notions of Arab/Asian superiority that are all too often presented in the constitution of our mosques and, disappointingly, are tacitly approved by our political elites.

The notion of brotherhood established many generations before us has sadly been replaced with the evil of nationalism and partisanship that judges a person based on ethnicity and status, rather than the equitable principles outlined by the Prophet.

Allah says in the Qur’an: “And marry the unmarried among you and the righteous among your male slaves and female slaves [a noble example of the emancipatory nature of Islam, where former masters were encouraged to not only free slaves, but also honour them as equals through the rite of marriage]. If they should be poor, Allah will enrich them from His bounty, and Allah is all-Encompassing and Know-ing”. In other words, neither poverty nor ethnicity, status or lineage should prevent a marriage so long as there is compatibility in terms of religious commitment – all else only furthers the spread of mischief and corruption.

While practising Catholics must seek Church permission to enter a mixed marriage, Muslim men are free to marry Christians and Jews – though compatibility is paramount and similar to Catholic prescriptions, such that any offspring must be raised Muslim. Like their Jewish counterparts, Muslim women are strictly forbidden to marry non-Muslims.

Once a suitable marriage partner has been found, both are encouraged to live in mutual love and respect for each other. Allah says in the Qur’an: “They are garments for you and you are garments for them” (2:187).

And just as garments provide warmth, support, protection and adornment, so too must spouses endeavour to provide the same. Indeed the Prophet said: “The most perfect believer in faith is the one who is the best of them in good conduct. The best of you is the one among you who treats his wife the best.”

Source: MetroEireann