incidentally invests any of its surplus
funds in interest bearing accounts,
generates profit through other impermissible
investments, or takes loans
upon interest, then, the rate of return
earned through such transactions must
be less than 5% of the company’s total
revenue, while the amount of surplus
residing in interest bearing accounts,
should not be more than 33% of the
company’s net value. The shareholder
should also voice his/her dissent regarding
such transactions if presented
the opportunity to do so (e.g. if a person
has voting or super-voting stocks).
While such transactions will always be
considered impermissible and sinful,
it is hoped that the shareholder will
be absolved of this sin due to him/her
voicing his/her dissent or intending to
do so if he/she had the opportunity.
7. If the company earns any revenue
through haram avenues even if less
than 5 percent, then the shareholder
must deduct from his dividends the
percentage of profit earned in this
manner (based on the figures released
in the annual report) and give it in
charity. Since the majority of the company’s
earnings are from halal sources
and these investments do not make its
primary revenue tools, the rest of the
earnings will remain permissible.
8. The shareholder can only resell a
share after it comes into his/her possession.
This will occur when the company
officially registers him/her as the
owner of the said share. As such, day
trading stocks would be impermissible.
Note: The aforementioned principles
are a summary of the conclusions
written in a recent fatwa from Darul
Uloom Karachi on this matter.
Question: Is it Sunna to fast on the 15th
of Sha’ban?
Answer: In general, fasting during
the month of Sha‘ban is an encouraged
practice as the Messenger of Allah
s fasted in abundance during this
month. ‘Ayesha j narrates, “I have not
seen the Messenger of Allah s complete
an entire month of fasting except
for Ramadan and I did not see him
complete more voluntary fasts than in
the month of Sha’ban” (Bukhari, Muslim).
Furthermore, the Messenger of Allah
s encouraged fasting on the 13th, 14th,
and 15th of every lunar month. As such,
fasting on the 15th of Sha’ban would be
a virtuous practice in general. However,
there is valid dispute whether there
is any reliable hadith encouraging fasting
specifically on the 15th. The point
of dispute is the following hadith:
‘Ali g narrates that the Prophet s said,
“When it is the 15th of Sha’ban, you
should stay up during its night and fast
during the day” (Ibn Maja).
Some scholars of hadith have classified
the aforementioned hadith as
extremely weak, whereas others have
said the weakness is negligible and it
is suitable for practice. Notwithstanding
this difference of opinion, there is
consensus that it would be desirable to
fast on the 15th of Sha’ban as a general
fast for the reasons mentioned above.
Question: I own a gas station and sell
some haram items such as lottery
tickets and beef jerky. If I was to donate
the money earned from haram
streams of revenue by either keeping
a separate account for it or through estimation,
would the rest of my income
be halal?
Answer: It is impermissible to sell
haram items such as lottery tickets,
haram meat (such as beef jerky), etc.
This is irrespective of whether a person
donates the funds earned from
such transactions or not. Nonetheless,
if a person donates the money earned
from haram avenues (whether that is
through having a separate account for
it or through estimation), the remaining
income earned would be halal
despite the haram transactions being
sinful themselves.
Question: Is delivering for Uber Eats/
Door Dash/Skip-the-Dishes permissible?
Many of the orders being delivered
would likely be from haram
restaurants.
Answer: It will be permissible to work
for such services, provided the majority
of the restaurant’s products are
halal. If the majority of the products
are haram, then such work should
be avoided, and other employment
should be sought. However, the income
earned from such deliveries will
be considered halal.
Question: What is the ruling of i‘tikaf?
Does a person need to stay in the masjid
boundaries the entire time? What
are valid reasons to leave the boundaries?
Answer: I‘tikaf is a Sunna of the Messenger
s that is regularly performed
every year in Ramadan. It is emphasized
that each community have at
least one individual perform this sunnah.
A person in Sunna i‘tikaf must
stay within the masjid boundaries
throughout the last ten nights. However,
a person may leave the boundaries
to:
» Use the washroom
» Perform wudu when necessary
» Pray Jumu‘a if the masjid one is
staying in does not hold Jumu‘a
» To eat food (if there is no accommodation
to eat within the masjid
area)
It would not be permitted to leave the
masjid boundaries for any of the following
reasons:
» To brush one’s teeth (although if
one left the boundaries for any
of the above reasons, he may also
brush his teeth during his time out
of the boundaries)
» To shower (although after using the
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