Maulana Sayed Mohammad Baqer Qazwini

Maulana Sayed Mohammad Baqer Qazwini
 
Age:
Location: Dearborn, Michigan
Nationality: United States

For user Hasnain

Public QnA

Is premium dark soy sauce halal?

Given that the concentration of alcohol generated is less than 2%, it is considered negligible and hence it would be considered halal.

Iin one of your lectures you mentioned about certain hajat to fast on a Wednesday a Thursday and Friday prayer salat jafar al tayyar before noon. Should one fast on a Friday aswell or break the fast in the Friday?

Yes it is recommended to fast on that Friday as well.

I need a khula from a Mutah marriage. He set the time to 5 years, however we are having issues. He is affecting my mental health because he gives me the silent treatment. It’s affecting me. He won’t gift back the time to me. Please can you advise

1- Have someone mediate and convince him to gift it back to you. 2- If he refuses, contact your Marja’s office and they can end it for you.

So I understand most of the things of what I’m saying in salah, and when I recite i recite slowly and I pause after each ayah i translate the verse in my head the meaning of the verse In English because I understand better in English. My question is, salah has been taking too long during my life. I am someone who needs to pray and get back to what ever I need to get done, I am on break right now from school, but usually salah Dhur and asr I pray either at school or work, sayed it takes me 30-40 minutes to get done sometimes even longer. I have duas to recite after salah to help me. My question is sayed, when considering khushoo and the acceptance of Salah, do I have to understand everything I’m saying, or can I just look at the turbah and recite and go on without having to pause and think In my head without translating? In work it takes me 30 minutes to get done, I even get from my mom saying please don’t take to long in salah, I am trying to find a way to shorten my time in salah but I just don’t know how to, even when I recite just the wajib’at I sometimes my heart just dosnt let me and I just want to add an extra dhukir or something, in terms of khushoo does it mean we have to understand everything we’re doing and saying? Or can I just look at the turbah and focus in salah without having to think of what I’m reciting for the acceptance of Salah to be accepted?

Yes that is taking too long, and this could become burdensome for you. You don’t have to think too much about everything you say. As long as you understand the general idea of the verses and Dhikrs, that’s sufficient. So when you read the Fatiha, for example, just keep in mind the general meaning of the chapter—that Allah is merciful, we thank Him for everything, we seek His help only, and we ask Him to always guide us. This much is sufficient, and it should not take too long.

I had a question regarding Zainab bt. Jahsh, and specifically in a hadith from al-Kafi الكـــــــــافـي – جزء 6 – صفحة 139 عَنهُ عَنِ الحَسَنِ بنِ سَمَاعَةَ عَن وُهَيبِ بنِ حَفصٍ عَن أَبِي بَصِيرٍ عَن أَبِي جَعفَرٍ (عليه السلام) قَالَ إِنَّ زَينَبَ بِنتَ جَحشٍ قَالَت لِرَسُولِ اللَّهِ (صلى الله عليه وآله) لَا تَعدِلُ وَ أَنتَ نَبِيٌّ، قَالَ تَرِبَت يَدَاكِ إِذَا لَم أَعدِل فَمَن يَعدِلُ فَقَالَت دَعَوتَ اللَّهَ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ لِيَقطَعَ يَدَيَّ فَقَالَ لَا وَ لَكِن لَتَترَبَانِ فَقَالَتإِنَّكَ إِن طَلَّقتَنَا وَجَدنَا فِي قَومِنَا أَكفَاءَنَا فَاحتُبِسَ الوَحيُ عَن رَسُولِ اللَّهِ (صلى الله عليه وآله) تِسعاً وَ عِشرِينَ لَيلَةً ثُمَّ قَالَ أَبُو جَعفَرٍ (عليه السلام) فَأَنِفَ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ لِرَسُولِهِ فَأَنزَلَ يا أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ قُل لِأَزواجِكَ إِن كُنتُنَّ تُرِدنَ الحَياةَ الدُّنيا وَ زِينَتَها الآيَتَينِ فَاختَرنَ اللَّهَ وَ رَسُولَهُ فَلَم يَكُ شَيئاً وَ لَوِ اختَرنَ أَنفُسَهُنَّ لَبِنَّ. موثق كما قال المجلسي في مرآة العقولهكذا كتب المخالف Does this imply that she was not good all the way in her lifetime? As in, is it true that she angered the Prophet and plotted alongside Aisha? What is the main Shi’i conclusion regarding this figure

Upon analyzing this incident, some scholars understand that the one who made the statement “if you divorce is we will find suitable men among our people” is Hafsa, and that the one who said “I choose Allah and His messenger” was Zaynab. However, Sayed Mortadha al-Amili is of the opinion that Zaynab was not as good as other good wives like Um Salamah. She wasn’t evil like Aisha and Hafsa, but she had her shortcomings and she caused some problems for the Prophet (s). This hadith you mentioned is among the proofs that is used to demonstrate that she angered the Prophet (s). So some of our scholars are critical of her, and they feel that sometimes she sided with Aisha. But honestly we don’t have a clear picture of her standing and to what extent she gave the Prophet (s) a hard time.

I want to ask the kinds of black magic that exists today and what kind of black magic were existent before the time of the Prophet. Often from different people I don’t know if they believe it from family members or they’re just straight up in their own world when they say this stuff but people would just spew complete khurafat about so and so becoming possessed and calamities happening and ways someone does someone sending a curse upon someone’s family and many more. Could you please elaborate on what black magic actually is and what is actually true about it and what makes it haram? Also I’ve seen there are duas the combat against black magic what are those specifically for?

Black magic has always existed, but scholars have different understandings of what magic actually is. 1- Before the era of Prophet Mohammad (a), devils/jinns would eavesdrop on angels and steal information and use it for evil purposes. They would share it with some people and cause harm. After the revelation of Qur’an, they were blocked from doing that (you can see Sura Jinn verse 9). 2- People exaggerate and attributed everything bad to black magic. Many times bad things happen due to our bad choices and sins, or because Allah is trying us. 3- Yes, sometimes it could be the case of being harmed by black magic, and we have Duas and Herz to protect us from that. These Duas protect us from jealousy and the eveil eye, and also certain practices of black magic. 4- It is a sin because it causes harm and it resorts to devils instead of Allah. You can see this for more details. https://youtu.be/lITnqs0LwZ0?feature=shared

I want to know what the powers of shaytan from his own tricks to oneself. Often I would hear different tactics shaytan would carry out to confuse or to eventually turn someone away from Allah but how can one tell if it’s shaytan messing with them?

When we become familiar with the tactics of Shaytan, we can determine whether Shaytan is messing with us or not. For example, verse 2:268 tells us about one of the tactics of Shaytaan, which is to promise us poverty (when we want to donate). So if I want to donate and I hear a voice in my mind saying, “No, don’t, you’ll be poor if you do. You need this money…” then I know this is Shaytan whispering to me.

In Japan, it’s often hard to find a prayer space, so I wonder if it’s permissible to pray in a fitting room. These rooms are clean, shoes are removed before entering, and the floors are covered with carpets. I ensure no disturbance or harm is caused. Asking for explicit permission can be difficult, but my assumption is the staff wouldn’t mind as long as the space remains clean. Would it be permissible to pray there, and would the prayer be valid? And how about a public space like parking lot/emergency stairs?

Prayer in a fitting room is permissible as long as you are confident they allow you to pray there. As for public places, yes you can pray there.

Is futures trading permissible? Using leverage in Crypto for example. If you do financial analysis and know how to read the charts.

I have not seen a ruling from Sayed Sistani on it, but Shaykh Fayyadh in a Fiqhi book has discussed futures trading and he has suggested Fiqhi solutions or workarounds for it. So there are ways to consider it permissible.

I am wanting to ask regarding a recent trend seen within Nikkah ceremonies. Usually there is a flower curtain and the bride and groom are sitting in each side. Once nikkah is done, the groom gets up and goes to hug and kiss his wife on the forehead. Is this permissible, and to what degree.

It is permissible if it is not considered provocative in that setting.

Based on the month of muharram being part of the 4 holy months what days are recommended to fast? Any day significant to fast on?

Any day is recommended except the 9th and 10th. 13, 14, and 15 are good

1) I’m abit confused as for our concept of rajah. As for the reappearance of Imam Mahdi AS return he will rule for a set amount of time until he will be martyred and Imam Hussein will come back to life. Will the even of Karbala happen again? What will happen during Imam Husseins rule and how and when will the Prophet ص and Imam Ali AS return 2) Will the Prophet ص come back first or Imam Ali AS? also what about the other Imams AS will they also return if so what is their role, what about the previous prophets? 3) Would each Imam and prophet get a period to rule after Imam Ali AS or would each of them have a different role in government of Imam Ali AS 4) So from I’m guessing the day of judgment won’t come about until all 124,000 prophets rule over the earth 5) Could you elaborate what you meant by the prophet ص killing shaytan. What would happen to people in that sense would thay stop getting whispers?

1) No Karbala won’t happen again. Imam Hussain (a) will rule. We don’t have details on how the Prophet (s) or Imam Ali (a) will rule, nor do we have a timeline. We just know they will rule. 2) A hadith indicates the Prophet (s) will return after the Imams (a), but it is contradicted by a hadith that indicates otherwise. In any case, we don’t have a timeline. A hadith indicates all prophets will return. One of their roles is to establish justice so the world can see why Allah chose them as Imams and that they are qualified. 3) Each gets their own rule. 4) No they don’t have to rule. Many of them can come at one time and support the rule of Imam Ali (a), for instance (as one hadith states). 5) People would stop getting whispers from Shaytan, so they are left with resisting against their Nafs. Hence, most people will be good.

I want to start carrying out jihad ul nafs. Its alot more than just disciplining myself and I’m not sure where to start off.

1- Increase your knowledge about the reality of this world, the attributes of Allah, and the biography of Ahlulbayt (a). 2- Resist desires, even some halal desires, so you teach your Nafs who is boss and that you are in control. Let’s say you have the urge to eat something, resist and don’t eat it so you teach your Nafs that it cannot get what it demands. This humbles the Nafs. 3- Realize the Nafs can’t be trusted. Realize how dangerous it can be. 4- When having a choice of two options, choose the one that your Nafs rejects more (and one that brings you closer to Allah). 5- Sacrifice some comforts and donate to the poor.

Request for a clarification, is it permissable to give my pet cat, cat food off the shelf of a store or we have to check if the meat is halal.

You can give it any food, even if it’s not halal. But remember that it’s not permitted to buy pork, so just avoid products that have pork.

We all know that disrespecting parents is severely bad…with that being said if there is a person who has been bad to his parents since his childhood. Severely bad to the point parents are genuinely displeased with him. But this child in his mid 20s decides to change for the better. Will Allah accept such a person’s repentance?

1- If they are alive, in addition to sincerely repenting, this person must now show them full respect and try to please them as much as possible. If one does that, then Allah forgive him. 2- If they have passed away, in addition to repenting, one must do good deeds on their behalf, such as prayer, fasting, reading Qur’an and giving charity on their behalf on a regular basis. If one does that, one will be forgiven.

Desperately need your help! I am having lots of disputes with my mom these days. She is very disappointed with me and seems very distant. I agree I may have been feeling a little neglected as she is giving all her attention to my sister in law and arguing with her over things that are not really that big when I think about it after. This behaviour is completely wrong and I am trying to fight with my nafs on this. Can you recommend me any dua or help with how I can let go of small things and stop thinking about these things?

Salam Alaikom, Some recommendations: 1- Read this Dua: https://www.duas.org/mobile/sahifasajjadia-dua24-prayer-for-parents.html 2- Imagine that every time you are good to your mother, you are given $1 million dollars. Would you not always be good to her? Well, what Allah gives you for being good to her is far greater than $1 million. 3- Remember the orphans who have lost their parents. You are lucky to have your mother in your life, so this thought creates more appreciation for our parents. 4- InshaAllah you have a long life, but imagine you are told you have one month to live. Would you care about these small things? Well, no one knows how long they’ll live, so realize that these small things are not important and should not preoccupy your mind or bother you. 5- Say Salawat 70 times a day, and do istighfar 70 times a day.

I got a gift from my work, it’s something like a lottery ticket where I can win money every month. I didn’t pay anything for it. I wanted to ask what happens if I win something, will it be halal money or haram?

Yes it would be your halal money.

Is it permissible to decline a marriage offer to my daughter because the man asking for her is Sunni?

If your concern is that her faith in the Ahlulbayt (a) could be weakened or that there is no guarantee that she’ll be able to raise her children as Shia, yes you are justified in declining.

What’s a good dua to recite on wanting to get a job or something you want ?

Some recommendations: For a job or seeking sustenance, see the following page and read the Du’as in it or the A’mal suggested in it: https://www.duas.org/pdfs/Rizqduas_tohfatulhashmiya.pdf For other things, pray 2 rak’as (any time of day), and in the first rak’a read Sura Ikhlaas and the first three verses of Sura Fath (48) after the Fatiha, and in the second read Sura Ikhlaas and Sura Inshiraah. Then ask Allah what you want after finishing the prayer.

Is it permissible for a male to take pictures of women who play sports(basketball, soccer, tennis etc) and posting it publicly like on Instagram or websites but that aren’t covering them selfs islamically? Like they are showing them their legs, arms etc

No that would not be permissible.

1.) I am wondering what the rules for investing in stock are based on Sayyid Al Sistani’s rulings. From my little knowledge, I understand that a business can be involved in interest, alcohol, and drug business if it is a minuscule part, is that true? Can you please quantify it for me? I ask because most companies have an investing team that buys all sorts of stock, from defense companies that produce weapons which kill muslims, to alcohol and recreational drugs like weed. 2.) Stock investing sometimes involves following patterns rather than relying on news. This means investing based on the movement of a ticker, which forms certain shapes or trends that can help predict what happens next. Often, a stock goes up due to news that the average person doesn’t have access to. An investment firm with insider information may buy large amounts before the news is public. Other times, the stock rises for no apparent reason. There’s a bot that tracks many stocks, typically cheap or penny stocks, and alerts its members about patterns, increases, and other significant movements. I’ve seen it work in real-time multiple times, with stocks increasing by 200-1000% in a single day. It can also decrease by 200-1000%, but you can be safe and set to automatically sell. What should I do in this situation? Can I blindly invest in the stocks the bot recommends, or is there specific information I need to understand before investing? 3) Options trading, Is it halal? If you’re unfamiliar with it, this article explains the basics. https://www.investopedia.com/options-basics-tutorial-4583012 Options trading involves a contract linked to a stock. You have the right to exercise the contract (buy the stock at the strike price), or you can choose not to exercise it, in which case all you lose is the premium (essentially the contract fee, usually $100–500 for most options). Alternatively, you can sell the contract itself. Its value increases if the stock performs well, so if you don’t have the funds to exercise the option, you can sell the contract for a profit (ex. making $400 extra). Is this way of trading halal? 4) lastly how about “pattern trading.” As I mentioned earlier, many people invest based on patterns, but the real reason a stock goes up can be due to: A.) Enough traders noticing the same pattern and buying the stock simultaneously, creating a self fulfilling cycle of demand and driving the price up artificially. This is the result of collective behavior in the market. B.) A wealthy individual or institution acting on insider information and buying heavily before the news becomes public. Some consider this kind of trading speculative, as it relies on past price movements and collective behavior rather than a company’s actual performance. Others see it as a science, given that it involves statistical analysis and probability. QUESTION: Is investing/trading based on stock patterns halal, given that the company meets the halal criteria?

1- The guiding principle is whether investing in that business constitutes direct “support for haram.” If the haram transactions a company conducts are minuscule such that investing in it is not regarded society as supporting haram, then it would be permissible. An example is buying airline stocks. Pretty my all airlines serve alcohol on board, but this is so small in relation to their operations such that society does not consider investing in them as supporting “the sale of alcohol.” They don’t view this label applying. 2- If you are confident the companies the bot is suggesting are halal companies, then yes you can proceed. But if you are confident that some of those companies are haram companies, you must look at each company the bot is recommending and avoid the haram ones. 3- There are numerous ways how options trading is described (and you have described it in one of those ways). Basically, my understanding is that it’s halal because with options trading you’re basically paying a premium to a broker to reserve the stocks for you, then when the time comes you decide whether to buy the stocks or not. And since the contract itself has market value, you can sell it.

I have thankfully developed a reading habit and started reading to develop my knowledge of Islam. I read through books and start the next one but I don’t remember what I read 100 percent, I might take 5-10% of a book with me. For example, in Kitab al Irshad there is a lot and many hadiths and I read it but I can’t remember what I read. What tips/methods did you get in the hawza to improve your efficiency?

Some recommendations: 1- Discuss what you read with a friend. This allows you to retain a lot more. Have regular discussions. 2- Summarize what you read in a notebook. While this is time consuming, but it’s worth it. It allows you to retain a lot of what you read. 3- On some mornings, eat 21 raisins (or 7). Also eat raw, organic honey. In addition to that, eat frankincense. These all aid with a sharper memory. May Allah increase you in knowledge and wisdom.

My father gave a relative money to invest and the relative gives us the profit earned from the invested money. I am sure this relative does not take care of whats haram and halal. I dont know the rulings of investing money, and I also doubt if the profit we get is haram or not. Is it halal to use this money?

As long as you do not know that the money is haram, you can treat it as halal, and you don’t need to investigate.

1) I used to have a bad addiction when I was younger, and I didn’t know that when you are junoob you must do ghusl or you become major impure at that time, do I have to redo all my prayers? 2) Does this (ruling) apply to being impure lets say with urine without you knowing?

Yes they must be redone because one of the conditions of prayer is to be on purity, even if one didn’t know. No it doesn’t apply to that. If one prayed with urine on his clothes or body and was not aware of that, the prayer is valid.

I work for a bank in a non-muslim country (Australia) and my job is to manage and enhance and support a system which people use to apply for car loans & leases. I’m in the IT team where we help the business to perform their jobs more efficiently. I am not involved in approving any loans myself – there is a business team for that. I just to help the business to do what they do more efficiently. This company receives most of its income from interest charged on it’s loans but also do receive a halal portion of money such as establishment, account administration and closure fees. Approximately 95% of the customers who repay the loans and the interest charges are non-muslims. Can I consider my income & job as halal? I basically give them requirements on what they need to build & sometimes this may involve me writing to them that they company wishes to build some components for the interest loans. is it haram to do this then?

Scholars state that being “directly” involved in an interest-based loan or transaction is haram, but if the involvement is indirect, it is permissible. If your service in the IT team is basically offering the company an enhanced platform, and this platform can be used for halal and haram services, then this would be halal because you are not directly involved in interest loans. But if part of this platform requires you to specifically include something on interest loans (like you developing a section for that), then this is direct involvement and you would have to avoid that. Also recently a brother asked Sayed Sistani’s office about being the intermediary between two non-Muslims, and the reply was that it’s not permitted. So those components that have to do with interest specifically, avoid involving yourself in them and let someone else from your team handle them.

If a food contains beef gelatin and it’s certified halal but the food is also certified kosher, is it permissible to eat? I have have heard some foods require a “blessing” by Jewish authorities to be kosher by reciting a prayer as the animal is slaughtered.

Jews do not consider halal food to be kosher, and we Muslims say the one slaughtering the animal must be Muslim. So I’m not sure how this product can be kosher and halal at the same time. I would avoid consuming this product.

I’ve been watching your amazing playlists on Real Shia Beliefs on the Thaqlain YouTube channel, I have a question on one thing. With Bada’ I kinda got the concept right, but something still is confusing me, so let’s say Allah gives a contingent will for Zaid to die at 30, but if he pays Sadaqa, then it’ll be 40. So Allah has two options kept open for him here. But since Allah is all knowledgable, doesn’t he already know if Zaid will pay Sadaqa or not therefore there is actually only one ending for Zaid, and if Allah doesn’t and he waits to see what Zaid will do then that would be a deficiency in the knowledge of Allah right? Since it would be a change in the knowledge as well. And if Allah knows I mean what difference does it make then for our existence if everything is predetermined?

Allah has knowledge of the ultimate outcome, by His knowledge does not cause the outcome. There is no causality. Allah is above time, so there is no yesterday, today or tomorrow for Him. We are stuck in time. For us, tomorrow Zaid will do or not do that act. For us it’s uncertain: is he going to do it or not? For Allah, He simply sees what Zaid does. There is no tomorrow for Allah because He is above time. I acknowledge this is difficult to grasp because we cannot properly conceptualize something outside of time, but we get the idea. Now Bada’ reminds us that the choices we make a difference. If you choose to give Sadaqa, you’ll live longer. If you don’t you won’t. Now Allah knows what you will choose, but you are the one choosing it. He simply sees your choice. It’s not that the outcome of our actions is already decided. It just means Allah “sees” the outcome of our actions, meaning He sees the result of our free will. Yes, our free will is created in that sense that Allah gave us the power of choice. It is a difficult concept because we are so bound and limited we cannot grasp a reality that’s above time and how it interacts with us. Hence the Imams said it’s “neither absolute free will nor destination, but it is a matter between two matters.”

If one needs to do ghusl ul janabah and needs to reach every area would their ghusl be valid if they cannot reach the back area and try their best to reach that area

The water much reach the back area. If you shower under a shower head, the water easily reaches the back. One must find ways to ensure that, such as filling the bathtub in a little bit of water and then lying on your back in it. That way you ensure it reached it.

1) If one wants to make his clothes tahir how should it be done? 2) If the substance won’t come off after several washes 3) If there are still remenants of it?

1) Wash it once with running/tap water, and if urine is on it, wash it twice. 2) If the substance is a najes substance, it must come off for the clothes to be pure. If it’s just a color, that’s fine the clothes become pure. 3) It is najes and one cannot pray in if if there are remnants of the actual najasa

As a woman, do I have to make a niyah everyday in Shhr ramdan to fast because I get my periods during the month?

You can make the intention everyday, but it suffices for you to make one intention at the beginning of the month that I will fast everyday which I am clear of menstruation. And you just keep this intention throughout the month. You don’t have to verbalize it everyday.