Thursday, May 12, 2011

Is it permissible to give Zamzam water to a non-Muslim person who is sick

Is it permissible to give Zamzam water to a non-Muslim person who is sick?
I have a family friend who used to be in a coma, Alhamdulillah he is out of the coma but is handicapped. They are a trustworthy family, I would just like to know whether or not it is permissible to give some Zam Zam water to them.

 

Praise be to Allaah.

Firstly: 

The believer should not make friends with anyone but a
believer and he should not take as a close friend anyone but a monotheist
(haneef), because the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)
said, “Do not keep company with anyone but a believer and do not let anyone
eat your food except one who is pious.”

Narrated by al-Tirmidhi (2395); classed as hasan by
al-Albaani in Saheeh al-Tirmidhi. 

Making friends with disbelievers has a negative impact on the
believer, because he may be influenced by some of his religious customs or
it may lead to a weakening in his heart of the principle of befriending or
supporting believers and disavowing disbelievers (al-wala’ wa’l-bara’), or
he may fail to denounce in his heart this person or those who follow his
religion, because of frequently mixing with them and getting used to them. 

Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) was asked
about the ruling on mixing with kaafirs and treating them kindly in the hope
that they might become Muslim. 

He replied: There is no doubt that the Muslim is obliged to
hate the enemies of Allah and disavow them, because this is the way of the
Messengers and their followers. Allah, may He be exalted, says
(interpretation of the meaning):

“Indeed there has been an excellent example for you in
Ibraaheem (Abraham) and those with him, when they said to their people:
‘Verily, we are free from you and whatever you worship besides Allaah, we
have rejected you, and there has started between us and you, hostility and
hatred for ever until you believe in Allaah Alone’”

[al-Mumtahanah 60:4]

“You (O Muhammad صلى الله
عليه وسلم) will not find any people who believe in Allaah and the
Last Day, making friendship with those who oppose Allaah and His Messenger
(Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم), even
though they were their fathers or their sons or their brothers or their
kindred (people). For such He has written Faith in their hearts, and
strengthened them with Rooh (proofs, light and true guidance) from Himself”

[al-Mujaadilah 58:22]. 

Based on that, it is not permissible for a Muslim to feel
love in his heart for the enemies of Allah who in fact are also enemies to
him. Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):

“O you who believe! Take not My enemies and your enemies
(i.e. disbelievers and polytheists) as friends, showing affection towards
them, while they have disbelieved in what has come to you of the truth”

[al-Mumtahanah 60:1]. 

With regard to the Muslim treating them kindly and gently in
the hope that they will become Muslim and believe, there is nothing wrong
with this, because it comes under the heading of softening the hearts
towards Islam. But if there is no hope of that, then he should treat them as
they deserve to be treated. This is discussed in detail in the books of the
scholars, especially the book Ahkaam Ahl al-Dhimmah by Ibn al-Qayyim
(may Allah have mercy on him). End quote. 

Majmoo‘ Fataawa Ibn ‘Uthaymeen
(3/31) 

Secondly: 

There is nothing wrong with giving Zamzam water to a sick
kaafir for the purpose of healing, or with treating him if one is a doctor,
or with helping him if he is sick and in need, or with visiting him when he
is sick. There is nothing wrong with any of that, especially if there is the
hope that this will soften his heart towards Islam or if that kaafir
deserves it because of some previous kindness that he showed, or other
praiseworthy purposes. 

It is proven in al-Bukhaari (2276) and Muslim (2201) that Abu
Sa‘eed al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) treated the chief of a
tribe who had been stung by a scorpion with ruqyah by reciting al-Faatihah,
and he recovered, and his people were mushrikeen. There is no doubt about
the sanctity of the Qur’aan, and that treating a kaafir with ruqya by
reciting Qur’aan is a more serious matter than simply giving him Zamzam
water to drink or as a remedy. 

It says in al-Mawsoo‘ah al-Fiqhiyyah (13/34): There is
no difference of opinion among the fuqaha’ that it is permissible for a
Muslim to treat a kaafir with ruqya, and they quoted as evidence the hadeeth
of Abu Sa‘eed al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) quoted above. The
point here is that the tribe with whom they halted and from whom they sought
hospitality, but they refused to give them any hospitality, were kaafirs,
but the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) did not object to
him doing that. End quote. 

 

Islam Question and Answer - Is it permissible to perform ruqyah for a sick person who is a kaafir?

 

Is it permissible to perform ruqyah for a sick person who is a kaafir?
I would like to know if it is permissible to perform ruqyah on a non-muslim person as a form of da'wah, that is if it gives good results, the person may start to be interested in islam and later convert? Of course, that person would be informed that there is no power in the ruqyah itself , but that whatever happens is up to Allah's will.
Jezakumullahu khaeran

Praise be to Allaah.

There is no reason why one cannot do this. Allaah has created healing in the Qur’aan, as He has created healing in honey and oil and other things. These are means of healing and Allaah is the Healer, so there is nothing wrong with performing ruqyah for this person, especially since you hope that this kaafir may become a Muslim.

There is also a report in a saheeh hadeeth that supports that idea that it is permissible to perform ruqyah for a non-Muslim. Abu Sa’eed (may Allaah be pleased with him) said:

A group of the Companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) set out on a journey and travelled until they made came near one of the Arab tribes. (These people were either kaafirs or very stingy, as Ibn al-Qayyim mentioned in al-Madaarij). They asked them for hospitality but they refused to do so. Then the leader of that tribe was stung, and they tried everything but nothing helped him. Then some of them said, Why don’t you go to those people who are staying (nearby)? Maybe some of them have something. So they went to them and said, O people, our leader has been stung and we have tried everything and nothing helped him. Do any of you have something? One of them said, Yes, by Allaah. I will perform ruqyah for him, but by Allaah we asked you for hospitality and you did not give us anything, so we will not perform ruqyah for you unless you give us something in return. So they agreed on a flock of sheep, then he started to blow on him and recite Al-hamdu Lillaahi Rabb il-‘Aalameen. Then he recovered quickly from his complaint and started walking, and there was nothing wrong with him. Then they have them what they had agreed to, and some of them (the Sahaabah) said, Let us share it out. The one who had performed ruqyah said, Do not do anything until we come to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and tell him what happened, and we will wait and see what he tells us to do. So they came to the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and told him what had happened. He said, “How did you know that it is a ruqyah?” Then he said, “You did the right thing. Share them out, and give me a share.” And the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) smiled. (Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 2276, and by Muslim, 2201).

There follow some quotes from the commentary of Al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allaah have mercy on him) on the hadeeth and some additional details.

“They asked them for hospitality” means they asked them to regard them as guests. According to the report of Al-A’mash narrated by scholars others than al-Tirmidhi, it says: “The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) sent thirty of us and we camped near some people and asked them for a hospitable reception.

“was stung” means, he was stung by a scorpion.

“and they tried everything” means, they tried every kind of treatment that they usually did to treat him for the scorpion sting, they made the utmost effort to find the right treatment for him.

“So they went to them”. In the hadeeth of Jaabir, al-Bazzaar added: “And said to them, We have heard that your companion has come with light and healing. They said, Yes.”

“Do any of you have something?” Abu Dawood added in his report: “that could help our companion.”

“One of them said” According to the report of Abu Dawood: “A man among the people said, Yes, I will perform ruqyah.” The one who said this was Abu Sa’eed, the narrator of the report. His wording was: “I said, Yes, I (have something). But I will not perform ruqyah for him until you give us some sheep.”

This also appears in the report of Sulaymaan ibn Qattah, with the words: “I came to him and performed ruqyah for him by reciting the Opening of the Book [al-Faatihah].”

“So they agreed” means, they reached an agreement

“on a flock of sheep”… according to the report of al-A’mash: “They said, we will give you thirty ewes.”

“then he started to blow on him” means, he blew or spat lightly on him, with little saliva.

Ibn Abi Hamzah said: the blowing in ruqyah should come after the recitation, so as to carry the barakah (blessing) of the recitation to the parts of the body over which the saliva passes, so that the barakah travels in his saliva when he blows.

“recite Al-hamdu Lillaahi Rabb il-‘Aalameen” According to the report of Shu’bah: “He started to recite the Opening of the Book over him.” According to the report of Al-A’mash, he recited it seven times.

“Then he recovered quickly”. The meaning of nashata (translated here as “recovered”) is: he got up quickly. From the same root comes the expression rajul nasheet, meaning an active and energetic man.

“from his complaint” The word ‘iqaal (translated here as “complaint”) could refer to the rope used to tie the foreleg of an animal.

“and there was nothing wrong with him” means, his problem was gone. A problem may be described as qalabah (wa maa bihi min qalabah – translated here as “and there was nothing wrong with him”) because the one who is suffering from the problem may be turned (yuqallab) this way and that in order to find out where the problem is coming from.

“How did you know that it is a ruqyah?” Al-Daawoodi said: it means, what told you …? In the report of Ma’bad ibn Seereen it says: “And what told him?” This is something which is said to express astonishment and also admiration of a thing, which is quite appropritae in this case. Shu’bah added in his report: And it was not mentioned that he – i.e., the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) – disapproved of it. Sulaymaan ibn Qattah added in his report, after the phrase “How did you know that it is a ruqyah?”, “I said: it came to me like an inspiration” i.e., I was inspired to do it.

“and give me a share” means, give me some of them – as if he wanted to be extra friendly towards them.

The hadeeth indicates that it is permissible to perform ruqyah by reciting the Book of Allaah, and that it comes under the same category as dhikr and al-du’aa’ al-ma’thoor (du’aa’s reported in the Qur’aan and Sunnah), and also other du’aa’s so long as they do not contradict what is in the Qur’aan and Sunnah.

The hadeeth also indicates that one may respond in kind to a person who does not treat one honourably, as the Sahaabah did by withholding the ruqyah from those people who had not shown them hospitality.

The hadeeth also indicates that in the absence of a specific text, one may make ijtihaad. It also demonstrates the esteem in which the Qur’aan was held in the hearts of the Sahaabah, especially Soorat al-Faatihah, and it shows that if provision (rizq) is decreed for someone, the person in whose hands it is cannot withhold it from him. Those people withheld their hospitality but Allaah had decreed that the Sahaabah should have a share of their wealth, and they withheld it, so Allaah caused the scorion to sting their chief so that the Sahaabah would get what had been decreed for them. It also demonstrates the great wisdom of Allaah in that the one who was singled out for punishment was their leader who had been foremost in withholding hospitality, because people usually follow the commands of their leaders. Since he has led them in withholding hospitality, he was singled out for the punishment whereas his people were not, which was a most fitting punishment.

In al-Mawsoo’ah al-Fiqhiyyah it says:

There is no dispute among the fuqahaa concerning the fact that it is permissible for a Muslim to perform ruqyah for a kaafir. They take as evidence the hadeeth of Abu Sa’eed al-Khudri (may Allaah be pleased with him) which has been quoted above (f – 14). … Their evidence is that the tribe near whom they camped and from whom they sought hospitality were kuffaar, and the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) did not denounce that.

And Allaah knows best.

 

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