Prohibitions-Muharamat- Kabair

Praise be to Allah; we praise Him and seek His help and forgiveness. We seek refuge with Allah from the evil of our own souls and from our evil deeds. Whomever Allah guides will never be led astray, and whomever Allah leaves astray, no-one will guide. I bear witness that there is no god but Allah Alone, with no partners or associates, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His Slave and Messenger.

Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, has laid down obligations which we are not permitted to ignore, and has set limits which we are not permitted to transgress, and has set out prohibitions which we are not allowed to violate.

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Whatever Allah has permitted in His Book is allowed, and whatever He has prohibited is forbidden; whatever He has remained silent about is a concession, so accept the concession of Allah, for Allah is never forgetful.” Then he recited the Aayah: “. . . and your Lord is never forgetful” ][ندعوك للتسجيل في المنتدى أو التعريف بنفسك لمعاينة هذا الرابط] 19:64].

(Reported by al-Haakim, 2/375; classified as hasan by al-Albaani in Ghaayat al-Maraam, p. 14)

“. . . And whosoever transgresses the set limits of Allah, then indeed he has wronged himself . . .” or=#3366ff]65:1]

Allah has issued a threat to the one who transgresses His set limits and violates His prohibitions, as He says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And whosoever disobeys Allaah and His Messenger, and transgresses His limits, He will cast him into the Fire, to abide therein; and he shall have a disgraceful torment.” [[ندعوك للتسجيل في المنتدى أو التعريف بنفسك لمعاينة هذا الرابط] 4:14]

Avoiding that which has been forbidden is a duty, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Whatever you have been prohibited to do, avoid it, and whatever you have been commanded to do, do as much of it as you can.”

(Reported by Muslim, Kitaab al-fadaa’il, hadeeth no. 130, Abd al-Baaqi edition).

It is well-known that some of those who follow their desires, who are weak at heart and have little knowledge, become irritated when they hear lists of prohibitions. They grumble and mutter, “Everything is haraam, you haven’t left us anything that is not forbidden! You make our lives boring and miserable. You don’t talk about anything but what is haraam, but religion is supposed to easy, not strict, and Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.”

In response to such remarks, we say:

Allah, may He be glorified, rules as He wills and there is none to put back His judgement. He is All-Wise and Aware, and He allows whatever He wills and forbids whatever He wills, may He be glorified. One of the basic principles of our being His slaves is that we should accept whatever He decrees and submit fully to it. His rulings stem from His knowledge, wisdom and justice, and are not the matter of frivolity or foolish whims, as He says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And the Word of your Lord has been fulfilled in truth and in justice. None can change His words. And He is the All-Hearer, the All-Knower.” [[ندعوك للتسجيل في المنتدى أو التعريف بنفسك لمعاينة هذا الرابط] 6:115]

Allah has explained to us the governing principle behind the allowing and prohibiting of various things (interpretation of the meaning):

"... who enjoins upon them what is right and forbids them what is wrong and makes lawful for them the good things and prohibits for them the evil ... [[ندعوك للتسجيل في المنتدى أو التعريف بنفسك لمعاينة هذا الرابط] 7:157]

He allows them as lawful al-tayyibaat [(i.e., all good and lawful) as regards things, deeds, beliefs, persons, foods, etc.], and prohibits them as unlawful al-khabaa’ith.

So what is good and pure is halaal, and what is evil and unclean is haraam.

The right to determine what is halaal and what is haraam belongs to Allah alone. Whoever claims this right or affirms it for someone else is a kaafir whose extreme kufr places him beyond the pale of Islam, as Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Or have they partners with Allah (false gods) who have instituted for them a religion which Allah has not allowed? . . .” [[ندعوك للتسجيل في المنتدى أو التعريف بنفسك لمعاينة هذا الرابط] 42:21]

Furthermore, no-one is allowed to speak about matters of halaal and haraam except those who have knowledge of the Qur’an and Sunnah. Allah has issued a stern warning to those who speak about halaal and haraam with no knowledge (interpretation of the meaning):

“And do not say about what your tongues assert of untruth, "This is lawful and this is unlawful," to invent falsehood about Allah . Indeed, those who invent falsehood about Allah will not succeed.” [[ندعوك للتسجيل في المنتدى أو التعريف بنفسك لمعاينة هذا الرابط] 16:116]

Things which are definitively forbidden have been clearly stated in the Qur’an and Sunnah, as Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Say, "Come, I will recite what your Lord has prohibited to you. [He commands] that you not associate anything with Him, and to parents, good treatment, and do not kill your children out of poverty; We will provide for you and them. And do not approach immoralities - what is apparent of them and what is concealed. And do not kill the soul which Allah has forbidden [to be killed] except by [legal] right. This has He instructed you that you may use reason. And do not approach the orphan's property except in a way that is best until he reaches maturity. And give full measure and weight in justice. We do not charge any soul except [with that within] its capacity. And when you testify, be just, even if [it concerns] a near relative. And the covenant of Allah fulfill. This has He instructed you that you may remember. And, [moreover], this is My path, which is straight, so follow it; and do not follow [other] ways, for you will be separated from His way. This has He instructed you that you may become righteous.” olor=#3366ff]6:151-153]

The Sunnah also mentions many prohibitions; for example, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:

“Allah has forbidden the sale of wine (intoxicants), dead meat, pork and idols.” (Reported by Abu Dawud, 3486; see also Saheeh Abi Dawud, 977).

“Whatever Allah has forbidden, its price is also forbidden.” (Reported by al-Daaraqutni, 3/7; it is a saheeh hadeeth).

Some texts mention specific types or groups of prohibitions, such as when Allah forbids certain types of food (interpretation of the meaning):

“Prohibited to you are dead animals, blood, the flesh of swine, and that which has been dedicated to other than Allah , and [those animals] killed by strangling or by a violent blow or by a head-long fall or by the goring of horns, and those from which a wild animal has eaten, except what you [are able to] slaughter [before its death], and those which are sacrificed on stone altars, and [prohibited is] that you seek decision through divining arrows....” [[ندعوك للتسجيل في المنتدى أو التعريف بنفسك لمعاينة هذا الرابط] 5:3]

Allah has also mentioned that which is forbidden with regard to marriage, as He says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Prohibited to you [for marriage] are your mothers, your daughters, your sisters, your father's sisters, your mother's sisters, your brother's daughters, your sister's daughters, your [milk] mothers who nursed you, your sisters through nursing, your wives' mothers, and your step-daughters under your guardianship [born] of your wives unto whom you have gone in. But if you have not gone in unto them, there is no sin upon you. And [also prohibited are] the wives of your sons who are from your [own] loins, and that you take [in marriage] two sisters simultaneously, except for what has already occurred. Indeed, Allah is ever Forgiving and Merciful.” [[ندعوك للتسجيل في المنتدى أو التعريف بنفسك لمعاينة هذا الرابط] 4:23]

Allah also mentions what kind of earnings are forbidden, as He says (interpretation of the meaning):

“. . .But Allah has permitted trade and has forbidden interest (riba ,usury) . . .” lor=#3366ff]2:275]

Allah, Who is Merciful towards His slaves, has permitted innumerable good things, of many kinds. He has not described the permitted things in detail because they are so many; in contrast, He has described the prohibitions in detail because they are limited, so that we will be aware of them and can avoid them. Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“. . . He has explained to you in detail what is forbidden to you, except under compulsion of necessity . . .” olor=#3366ff]6:119]

“O mankind! Eat of that which is lawful and good on the earth . . .” lor=#3366ff]2:168]

It is a part of His Mercy that He has made all things halaal in principle, except where there is proof (daleel) that they are haraam. This is part of His generosity and bounty towards His slaves, for which we must obey him, and give praise and thanks.

When some people hear a detailed list of the things that are haraam, they become alarmed about the rules of Sharee’ah. This is due to their weak faith and poor understanding of Islam. One cannot help wondering whether these people really want to be given a list of every type of thing that is halaal, so that they can be convinced that Islam is easy! Do they need for us to enumerate every type of good thing so that they can rest assured that Islam will not make their lives dreary?

Do they want to be told that the meats of camels, cattle, sheep, rabbits, deer, goats, chickens, pigeons, ducks, geese and ostriches over which the name of Allah has been mentioned, and fish and locusts, are halaal?

That vegetables, herbs, fruits and edible seeds are halaal?

That water, milk, honey, oil and vinegar are halaal?

That salt, seasonings and spices are halaal?

That using wood, iron, sand, stones, plastic, glass and rubber is halaal?

That travelling via riding-beasts, cars, trains, ships and airplanes is halaal?

That using air-conditioners, fridges, washing-machines, tumble-dryers, mills, dough-mixers, meat-grinders, juicers, medical instruments, engineering tools, calculators, microscopes, telescopes, machinery for extracting water, oil and minerals, filters for purifying water, printing presses and so on is halaal?

That wearing cotton, linen, wool, camel hair, fur, permitted leathers, nylon and polyester is halaal?

That in principle marriage, buying, selling, sponsorship, bills of exchange, renting, professions and trades such as carpentry, metalworking, repairing machines and tending sheep are all halaal?

I wonder what would happen if we were to explain all this in detail to them. “So what is [the matter] with those people that they can hardly understand any statement?" lor=#3366ff] 4:78]

" And what is wrong with these people that they fail to understand any word?” olor=#3366ff]4:78]

As regards their claim that Islam is easy, this is true, but they are twisting the truth to try and prove something that is false. What is meant by saying that Islaam is easy is not that it is in accordance with their desires and opinions, but that is it easy in accordance with what the Sharee’ah has brought. There is a huge difference between violating prohibitions by making false claims about Islam being easy - although it is easy, beyond any doubt - and availing oneself of legitimate concessions such as being allowed to join or shorten prayers; to break one’s fast when travelling; to wipe one’s socks when performing wudoo’ - for one day and one night for a person who is not travelling, and for three days and three nights in the case of travelling; to perform tayammum when one is afraid to use water; to join two prayers together when one is sick or when rain is falling; to look at a non-mahram woman for purposes of marriage; to have the choice, in the case of making expiation for a broken vow, between freeing a slave or feeding or clothing the poor; to eat the meat of dead animals when necessary - and other kinds of concessions allowed by Sharee’ah.

In addition to the above, the Muslim should realize that one principle underlies all the prohibitions in Islam: Allaah is testing His slaves by means of these prohibitions, to see what they will do. One of the things that distinguishes the people of Paradise from the people of Hell is that the people of Hell indulge in the desires with which the Fire is surrounded, whereas the people of Paradise patiently endure the hardships with which the Garden is surrounded. Were it not for this test, the obedient would not be distinguished from the disobedient. People of faith look at the difficulties involved from the perspective of the reward they will earn by pleasing Allah, so obedience becomes easy for them. The hypocrites, on the other hand, view these difficulties as a matter of pain, suffering and deprivation, so obedience becomes a heavy burden on them.

" ...and whoever obeys Allah and His Messenger will be admitted by Him to gardens 000]Paradise] under which rivers flow, abiding eternally therein; and that is the great attainment. And whoever disobeys Allah and His Messenger and transgresses His limits - He will put him into the Fire to abide eternally therein, and he will have a humiliating punishment." [ 4:13 ]

By foregoing what is prohibited, the obedient person gains much more: whoever forsakes something for the sake of Allah, Allah will compensate him with something better, and he will enjoy the sweet taste of faith in his heart.

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Next we will discuss a number of the prohibitions that have been proven in Sharee’ah, based on evidence from the Qur’aan and Sunnah. (Some scholars have grouped the prohibitions under headings such as al-kabaa’ir or major sins. Among the best books on the topic is Tanbeeh al-ghaafileen ‘an a’maal al-jaahileen by Ibn al-Nahhaas al-Dimashqi, may Allah have mercy on him). These prohibitions include actions which are widely practised among many Muslims. By mentioning them my intention is to correct and advise people. I ask Allah to guide me and my Muslim brothers, and to help us to adhere to the limits which He has set and to avoid the things that He has prohibited, and to save us from our evil deeds. And Allah is the Best to guard, and He is the Most Merciful of those who show mercy.