Zakat From Wife To Husband?

Question:
I would like to know my wife has gold jewellary which is given to her from mother but iam not well off and i am in dept also so how should i pay zakat on it. 

Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.

The husband does not have to pay zakaah on the jewellery on his wife’s behalf, because the zakaah is only obligatory on the possessor of the wealth, and the possessor in this case is your wife, because she is the owner of the jewellery. So she has to pay zakaah on it, either from the jewellery itself or from its monetary value. If her husband or someone else pays zakaah on her behalf with her permission, that is o.k., and he will be rewarded for this voluntary action.

If the wife wants to give the zakaah on her jewellery or anything else to her husband who is in debt and cannot pay it off or who is poor, there is nothing wrong with that, because it comes under the general meaning of the aayah (interpretation of the meaning):

“As-Sadaqaat (here it means Zakaah) are only for the Fuqaraa’ (poor), and Al-Masaakeen (the poor)…” [al-Tawbah 9:60]

Indeed there is the hope that she will have a multiple reward, because of the hadeeth narrated by al-Bukhaari (1466) and Muslim (1000) from Zaynab, the wife of ‘Abd-Allaah, who said: “The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: ‘Give in charity, O women, even if it is from your jewellery.’ I went back to ‘Abd-Allaah and said, ‘You are a man who has little, and the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) has commanded us to give in charity. Go and ask him if that is acceptable, otherwise I will give my charity to someone else.’ ‘Abd-Allaah said to me, ‘No, you go and ask him.’ So I went, and there I saw a woman from among the Ansaar at the door of the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), wanting to ask the same question. We felt too shy to speak to the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). Bilaal came out to us and we said to him, ‘Go to the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and tell him that there are two women at the door asking whether it is acceptable for them to give charity (zakaah) to their husbands and the orphans who are in their care, but do not tell him who we are.’ Bilaal went in to the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and asked him, and the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) asked, ‘Who are they?’ He said, ‘A woman from among the Ansaar and Zaynab.’ The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) asked, ‘Which Zaynab?’ He said, ‘The wife of ‘Abd-Allaah.’ The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said to him, ‘They will have two rewards, the reward of (upholding ties of) kinship and the reward of giving charity.’” Ibn Hajar (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: “From this hadeeth it may be understood that it is permissible for a woman to give zakaah to her husband. This is the view of al-Shaafa’i, al-Thawri, the two companions of Abu Haneefah, one of the two reports narrated from Maalik and from Ahmad.”

See the fatwa of Shaykh ‘Abd Al-‘Azeez ibn Baaz (may Allaah have mercy on him) in Fataawa Islamiyyah, 2/85 and al-Fataawa al-Jaami’ah li’l-Mar’ah al-Muslimah, 1/305.

Islam Q and A

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Seven People

Narrated Abu Huraira:
The Prophet (p.b.u.h) said, "Seven people will be shaded by Allah under His shade on the day when there will be no shade except His. They are:

(1) A just ruler;

(2) A young man who has been brought up in the worship of Allah, (i.e. worship Allah (Alone) sincerely from his childhood),

(3) A man whose heart is attached to the mosque (who offers the five compulsory congregational prayers in the mosque);

(4) Two persons who love each other only for Allah's sake and they meet and part in Allah's cause only;

(5) A man who refuses the call of a charming woman of noble birth for an illegal sexual intercourse with her and says: I am afraid of Allah;

(6) A person who practices charity so secretly that his left hand does not know what his right hand has given (i.e. nobody knows how much he has given in charity).

(7) A person who remembers Allah in seclusion and his eyes get flooded with tears."

Bukhari :: Book 2 :: Volume 24 :: Hadith 504

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A Beautiful Month

The best part of this beautiful month is giving up the things you love just to obey your Creator.  So how do the Muslims give up things during this month? By fasting, and what is fasting? Fasting "is giving up on food, drink, desires, and everything else just to obey Allah, to please Allah, because he commanded" us (Sheikh Karim Abu Zaid). Many people wondering if they have to fast because of their illness, age, pregnancy, breastfeeding, postpartum, and some people are  also considered about zakat how much to pay, if zakat is required on gold, property, live stock, crops, and many more.  Guide Us TV has a live show every night online. If you've missed the previous Q and A live shows here are the links for some of the shows.

Ramadan
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6
Part 7
Part 8

Zakat
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6
Part 7

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Islam Oppresses Women?

Islam Oppresses Women

The image of the typical Muslim woman wearing the veil and forced to stay home and forbidden to drive is all too common in most people’s thoughts. Although some Muslim countries may have laws that oppress women, this should not be seen as coming from Islam. Many of these countries do not rule by any kind of Shari'ah (Islamic law) and introduce their own cultural standpoints on the issue of gender equity. 

Islam on the other hand gives men and women different roles and equity between the two is laid down in the Quran and the example of the Prophet (peace be upon him). Islam sees a woman, whether single or married, as an individual in her own right, with the right to own and dispose of her property and earnings. A marriage gift is given by the groom to the bride for her own personal use, and she keeps her own family name rather than taking her husband's. Both men and women are expected to dress in a way that is modest and dignified. The Messenger of God (peace be upon him) said: "The most perfect in faith amongst believers is he who is best in manner and kindest to his wife." 

Violence of any kind towards women and forcing them against their will for anything is not allowed. A Muslim marriage is a simple, legal agreement in which either partner is free to include conditions. Marriage customs thus vary widely from country to country. Divorce is not common, although it is acceptable as a last resort. According to Islam, a Muslim girl cannot be forced to marry against her will: her parents simply suggest young men they think may be suitable.

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A Muslim man's duty

Question:
Recently I could find a good way to earn experience at working as I dont know what could happen to me if my husband died while I dont have a complete education and I never worked before.
Obviously, I can earn money with that work, which is revising translations. I work at home and I don't have a fixed schedule, I can have work at any time but I can do it while my husband is not present.
My question is: Can my husband control the way I spend my money? He doesn't let me buy anything for the house with my own money, he doesn't even let me buy something I want to buy, he says he can buy it for me another time and he doesn't like me to spend any of my money, although it could make things easier for him and for me. I'm living with my parents-in-law for more than a year now and we are joining money to rent a house soon, inshaAllah. But he doesn't let me help him to join money to buy the things for the house like fridge, washing machine, etc.
I know it's his responsibility to take care of these things, but can't I help? What am I supposed to do with the money I may earn except giving in charity? I could do a lot of things and take a lot of weight from my husband's shoulders if I helped him with my income.
Is it permissible if I put some of my money with the savings we have without his knowledge as sadaqah?
Please advise me.

Answer:

Praise be to Allaah.

We congratulate you for having this virtuous husband who is a man of good character and high integrity. There are very few men like him who refrain from taking their wives’ wealth and insist on keeping away from it and not touching it so that they will not undermine their wives’ rights or fall into dubious matters.  This is part of the kind and honourable treatment that Allah enjoins, as He says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And live with them honourably” [al-Nisa’ 4:19]. 

It was narrated from Hakeem ibn Mu‘aawiyah al-Qushayri that his father said:

I said: O Messenger of Allah, what are the rights of the wife of one of us over him? He said, “That you feed her when you feed yourself and clothe her when you clothe yourself or when you earn some income, that you do not hit her in the face, you do not say ‘May Allaah make your face ugly’ and you do not forsake her, except in the house.”

Narrated by Abu Dawood in al-Sunan, 2142 

Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) said: 

What this means is: do not buy clothes or food only for yourself and not for her; rather she is your partner and you have to spend on her as you spend on yourself.

End quote from Sharh Riyaadh al-Saaliheen, 3/131. 

Your husband is obeying the command of the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) by spending fully on your maintenance; in fact he is going over and above that by spending on extras from his own money and refusing any financial help on your part. 

Hence we advise you to respond to this kindness with kindness and do not give up trying to help financially, even if that is by depositing some of your money in his account without him realising, because it is not essential for him to know about that. Or you could buy things that your husband needs or that the house needs before he realises it, or buy him a valuable gift, especially something that is important to him, or keep the money to give to him at the time of need, and other kinds of beneficial spending. 

Then whatever is left over of your money, after you have helped him in whatever way you can and put whatever you can give in your joint account and given in charity, you can save it in your own personal account, because perhaps you will need it for both of you, or your children may benefit from it. 

And Allah knows best.

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Islamic Marriage Rules

Islam provides essential ingredients for a man and woman to be married and to have sexual relations as man and wife. While there are many books on the subject which we recommend for all Muslims to read, we humbly offer the follow information about these ingredients, inshallah.
 

1. The first ingredient is the "wali" (nearest relative to the lady, such as her father or brother if the father is unable to perform the task) or "wakil" (imam or appointed guardian to act on behalf of the best interests of the lady). It is his job to help find and interview the background of any potential suitor for the lady.

2. After choosing the young man, there is an appointment scheduled for the two of them to meet (under chaperoned supervision) to discuss their possible future together.

3. After the initial meeting, both of them are to pray to Allah in the form of salat known as "salatul istakharah" for guidance. If this is not done, it does not invalidate the marriage, but it is something that will really help both of them in their future. Please refer to the subject of the "salatul istakharah."

4. If both of them recognized positive signs from the "salatul istakharah" then they would proceed to make the "nikah" (marriage contract). This again is done under supervision with two witnesses. It is usually attended by an imam or knowledgeable person in Islam, just so that there will be no mistakes in taking care of the details.

5. The mahr (dowry) is presented and the lady is asked if she is prepared to accept this mahr and be married to this man. This is usually repeated three times in front of the witnesses, but at least one acknowledgment from the lady is necessary to proceed.

6. The women would then sign the nikah document in front of the witnesses.

7. The witnesses (usually two) would sign and attest that they had been present at the nikah and did witness the acceptance by the lady of the offer of marriage by the man. The imam might also sign, but this does not affect the validity of the marriage. Any two adult Muslims may witness the document. In the case of women witnesses, it is correct to have two in place of one. If there were to be two witnesses, but one is a woman, then it would be correct to have a man and two women sign the document.

8. After the acceptance of the lady, the signing of the nikah (document), witnessing of the two witnesses and exchange of mahr, the man and the women are considered legal in Islam to live together and be together as man and wife and to have sex. However, until they actually consummate the marriage (i.e., have intercourse) they may cancel the marriage, and the mahr would be returned back to the man.

9. After the signing of the marriage document, and the acceptance of the bride of the 'mahr' (dowry), and the signing of the two witnesses, the groom is free to take his bride at anytime he chooses. There is no waiting, if that is what you are implying. As regards any kind of a deadline, this would be according to the contract. If the lady or the gentleman has specified that for whatever reasons, if they are not able to be living together by such and such a date, then the mahr could be returned back to the man and the woman and man would be considered not married (unless of course, if they had consummated the marriage by having sex together).

10. If the groom is unable or unwilling to take the bride after an extended period of time and she or he would like to annul the marriage, they would simply let the other person know and cause the mahr to be returned to the groom.

NOTE: This is all based on the fact that although they have a contract for marriage (nikah) it is not considered completed until after they consummate (have sex). Once that has happened, they are married and the only way for them to no longer be married would be through divorce (khulwa or lian or talaq).

And of course, Allah Knows Best.
 
Any good is from Allah the mistakes were from myself. May Allah guide all of us to His Truth, ameen.
 
Salam alaykum - Yusuf Estes
National Muslim Chaplain (retired)

Source:

Islam News Room 

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