FATAWA
(which is usually the mother) to
whom the payment is made. It is
not necessary for the money to
specifically be spent on the child
provided the needs of the child are
met through other means.
Question: Many of the prayer times
are back to back in winter time, which
makes it difficult to travel during that
period of the day. According to the
Hanafi school, is there any scope or
method for joining prayers while
travelling?
Answer: From the outset, it should be
understood that there is a difference
of opinion among the different
juridical schools in this matter. While
other schools allow the traveler
to combine prayers under certain
conditions, the Hanafi school does
not permit praying salat outside of
its stipulated time. The basis for this
position is the verse of the Qur’an,
“Verily, prayer for the believers has
been made incumbent (and) its time
has been stipulated” (3: 103).
However, the Hanafi school permits
the traveler to combine prayers in
one of two ways:
1. One may pray one salat at the
end of its prescribed time and
the following one at its beginning
time. For example, if ‘Asr time
starts at 3:00 pm, one can pray
Zuhr at 2:55 pm and thereafter
pray ‘Asr at its beginning time.
Thus, each salat would be prayed
in its prescribed time and the
traveler would not be required to
make multiple stops on his/her
journey.
2. Some ‘Ulama have mentioned
another method of combining
prayers during travel. It would
be permissible for one to
combine Zuhr and ‘Asr between
the first and second shadow
and to combine Maghrib and
‘Isha between the red and white
twilight. For example, if the first
shadow is at 3:00 pm and the
second at 3:30 pm, it would be
permissible to combine Zuhr
and ‘Asr between 3:00-3:30 pm.
Similarly, one can combine
Maghrib and ‘Isha in the same
manner between the red and
white twilight (15 and 18 degrees
respectively).
Question: Is there any du’a to protect
oneself against extreme cold?
Answer: The following du’a is narrated
in a weak hadith:
لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ مَا أَشَدَّ بَرْدَ هَذَا الْيَوْمِ اللَّهُمَّ أَجِرْنِي مِنْ زَمْهَرِيرِ جَهَنَّمَ
La ilaha illallah ma ashadda barda
hadha al-yaumi allahumma ajirni min
zamhareeri jahannum
There is no god but Allah. What a
cold day it is today! O Allah! Protect
me from the place of Zamharir in the
Hellfire (note: Zamharir is a section of
Jahannum where the inhabitants will
be punished with extreme cold).
The aforementioned du’a has been
cited by Ibn al-Sunni in his book
‘Amal al-Yaumi wa al-Layl. However,
since the hadith is weak, it cannot
be called Sunna. Nonetheless, one
may recite the aforementioned du’a
without believing it to be Sunna.
Question: Is it permissible to perform
masah (wipe) on winter boots? Can we
pray salat in winter boots?
Answer: The requirements for masah
on boots are different from the
requirements for praying salat in
boots. The requirements for masah
to be valid on footwear are as follows:
1. The footwear must be waterproof
2. It must securely cover the whole
foot, including the ankle
3. It must be free of any holes
4. and durable enough to hold up
against one mile of continuous
walking.
If these four requirements are met
and the footwear is free of any
impurities, it would be permissible to
perform masah on them.
As for offering salat in footwear, it
should be noted that sajda
(prostration) is not valid unless the
worshipper’s toes touch the ground.
Any separation or gap between the
toes and the end of the boot (as is
customary in most boots) will prevent
the toes from touching the ground
thus invalidating the sajda and the
salat. However, if this is not the case
and one is able to bend the boot in
a away that the foot is reaching the
ground while performing sajdah, the
salat would be valid.
If one is unable to even bend the
boots (as in steel-toed boots), then
they can alternatively prostrate while
laying the foot flat on its side, though
it is undesirable to pray in such a
manner without a genuine excuse.
Question: Many times, the recipient
of a text message does not respond
right away. Sometimes, the response
comes hours or even days later.
Should one still say salam before each
message?
Answer: When texting someone, one
does not need to text salam before
every message even if the response
is given after some time. Rather, one
may suffice on saying salam once at
the beginning of the thread even if
the conversation continues for many
days.
Question: Is it permissible for women
to wear steel or plastic rings?
Answer: It is preferable for women to
avoid wearing rings that are not made
of gold or silver. However, this ruling
applies only to rings. Women can
wear all other forms of jewelery of
any material.
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