Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Question What is the significance of the 9th of Dhu’l Hijjah? Answer In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful The 9th of Dhu’l Hijjah is known as ‘the Day of ‘Arafa,’ because the pilgrims at Hajj gather at ‘Arafa in worship, which is one of the three central […]

Answered by Shaykh Faraz A. Khan Question How can the Prophet the Best of Creation if he was unlettered? (Allah bless him and give him peace) Answer I pray this finds you in the best of health and states. The short answer is that while for others the term “unlettered” is considered a deficiency, it […]

Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Question From what little I know, Fajr, Maghrib, and Isha are recited aloud, whereas Zuhr and Asr are recited silently. (Assuming I was praying on my own,) I’ve heard from a Shafi’i Scholar that reading loudly means with a voice that someone close to you can hear, whereas reading silently […]

Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Question Is it a sunna or bida to worship on the night of the 15th of Sha‘ban? Answer In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful A Blessed Opportunity The majority of Sunni scholarship considers the 15th of Sha‘ban to be a blessed day and night. It is recommended […]

Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Question Is it compulsory for women to wear Niqab according to Hanafi fiqh? Can you please briefly explain this with some evidence? Answer In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful I asked Mufti Mahmoud Ashraf Usmani, an ocean of knowledge and humility, this question. He answered that in […]

Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Question What is the difference between a man’s and a woman’s prayer in the Hanafi school? Would it be invalid for a man to pray like a woman or vice versa? Answer In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful The differences between men and women in prayer relate […]

Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani and Shaykh Ilyas Patel Question I understand that in the hanafi madhab, women cannot lead a congregation of other women. From what someone had told me, it is considered prohibitively dislike (makruh tahrimi). I informed my mother of this. The next time she was with a group of women, they […]

Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Question Is it true that salat and wudu in the Hanafi School are invalid if you have a filling in your tooth? Answer In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful “Allah desires for you ease; He desires not hardship for you; and (He desires) that you should complete […]

Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Question What is the fiqh ruling of performing oral sex? Answer Oral sex takes various rulings depending on the situation: a) if oral sex entails swallowing or likely swallowing of filthy substances–such as pre-sexual discharge–then it is prohibitively disliked and sinful; b) if there is fear of this, and this […]

In the Name of Allah, the Merciful and Compassionate “And strive for God, with the striving due to Him. He has chosen you and has not burdened you in religion —the faith of your father Abraham.” [Quran, 22:78]   Many Muslims struggle with baseless misgivings (waswasa) and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). OCD is defined as “a common, […]

Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Question What is the position of Sunni Islam on making prayers for non-Muslims who died supporting Muslims, such as Rachel Corrie?  Can we make dua for them or mention them in a khutba as martyrs for Muslim causes? Answer In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful and Compassionate There are two […]

In the Name of Allah, the Merciful and Compassionate. “Let there be a group among you who call (others) to goodness, encourage what is good, and forbid what is evil—it is they who will be successful.” [Quran, 36:55-58] Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “By the One in Whose hand is […]

Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Question I read a fatwa from a scholar that mentioned several ways you could shorten your prayer by skipping some of the non-obligatory and recommended actions if you have many make up prayers to perform.  Are you familiar with this fatwa?  Is the method mentioned therein valid? Answer In summary, […]

Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Question Is it prohibited to sleep or lie on one’s stomach? Answer In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful Imam Ahmad reported that Abu Hurayra (Allah be pleased with him) said, “The Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) passed by a man who was lying on […]

Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Question Some scholars claim that there is “blatant shirk” in many parts of the Qasida Burda because it goes against Allah’s Oneness of Lordship, His Oneness in Names & Attributes, and also His Oneness in Divinity. Is this true? Answer In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful May […]

Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Question Is it permissible to buy and/or sell children’s books with illustrations? These would be early reading picture books. Answer The fatwa of leading Hanafi scholars from Syria, Iraq, and elsewhere, is that pictures in children’s books take the same ruling as dolls for children: they are permitted to buy […]

Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Question The question is the permissibility of drawings for, say, educational purposes. I have read the reliance and agree with what Sh. Nuh mentions, but it doesn’t mention for example, the ruling on drawing for educational purposes I am aware that there is ikhtilaf [difference of opinion] on this issue, […]

Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Question I wanted to know what the ruling was for women who have discharge. Does it nullify their wudu? If so, then what about the women who have it daily, even if they discharge during prayer? Does it then mean that their prayer does not count and that they’d have […]

Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Question A dear brother of mine is due to get married in December, unfortunately, he went to a prostitute and committed illegal sexual acts. He regrets it very much, even while he was there he wanted to leave. Please if you could give some prayer for repentance also if you […]

Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Question In a fard prayer, I learned that it is necessary to not delay the wajib parts of the salah (Acc. to Sh. Yaqoubi). So, along those lines, I learned from various sources some of the adhkar and du’as that should be made at different times of the salah, such […]

Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Question I have a medical condition for which I have been given medication by my consultant. The medication contains gelatin and is not available in any other form. There is nothing I can take as a substitute for this medication either. According to the Hanafi Madhab, would it be permissible […]

Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Question Please explain the Hanafi classification of legal rulings. Answer The scholars agree that in reality, every human action has a ruling unique to it. Killing an innocent human and an innocent petty lie are both unlawful (haram); however, one is immensely more grave than the other. The Hanafis and […]

Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Question I have heard that reciting “Rabbi ghfir li” thrice during jalsa is recommendable? is that true and can it be done in fard prayers? Answer If by “jalsa” you mean the final sitting, then: It is a confirmed sunna in the final sitting, before the final salams, to make […]

Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Question If an obligatory prayer is considerably delayed to an extent that upon completing the prayer (or in the final rak’aa), the time for the next prayer arrives, is the former prayer accepted as being prayed on time? In other words, when one commences the delayed prayer, he is on […]