USMANI DISCOURSES. English translation of talks by Mufti Taqi Usmani DB.

Allah Ta’alah says in the Holy Quran;

“…and do good deeds, so that you achieve success.” (22:77)

Doing good deeds or Ihsan is inclusive of being kind towards others, showing mercy towards them, trying to fulfil their needs, and relieving their suffering.

The Holy Prophet ﷺ said;

“A Muslim neither causes suffering to another Muslim, nor does he leave him at the mercy of his enemies. If a person is busy fulfilling the needs of his brother, then Allah Ta’alah will remain busy fulfilling his needs for as long as he is busy helping his brother. If a person removes some hardship or distress from a Muslim, then Allah Ta’alah will remove one of the hardships from him that he was going to face on the Day of Qiyamat.”

The Holy Prophet ﷺ also said;

“If a person covers a Muslim’s weakness, Allah Ta’alah will cover his weakness on the Day of Qiyamat.”

For example, if a person finds out that a Muslim has a particular weakness or has committed a sin, but rather than publicize it to other people he keeps it a secret, then Allah Ta’alah will cover his weaknesses and his sins on the Day of Qiyamat.

In this Hadith, the Holy Prophet ﷺ has established a core principle in the very first sentence,

“A Muslim is like a brother to another Muslim.”

In Quran Karim, Allah Ta’alah says;

“O mankind, We have created you from a male and a female, and made you into races and tribes, so that you may identify one another. Surely the noblest of you, in Allah’s sight, is the one who is most pious of you. Surely Allah is All- Knowing, All-Aware.” (49:13)

In the next sentence of the Hadith, the Holy Prophet ﷺ describes the first sign of treating other Muslims as brothers, لا یظلمہ meaning that because a Muslims is another Muslim’s brother, he will never harm him. It means he will never attack his life, his property, or his honour, and will never violate his rights.

In the third sentence in this Hadith, the Holy Prophet ﷺ says, ولایسلمہ. It means that not only a Muslim doesn’t harm another Muslim, he also doesn’t leave him helpless. It is the duty of every Muslim, that if they see another Muslim in distress or in need of something, then they should step forward to help them, and shouldn’t think why should I waste my time helping this person, what will I get out of it.

It was the Sunnah of the Holy Prophet ﷺ that, throughout his entire life, whenever he heard about a person needing something or being in some sort of distress, he became quite perturbed, and did not rest until he had done everything he could to help that person. It probably never happened that the Holy Prophet ﷺ saw a Muslim in distress and did not help him. May Allah Ta’alah help us follow his Sunnah in this regard. Aameen

و آخر دعوانا ان الحمد الّٰلہ رب العالمین

In a Hadith, the Holy prophet ﷺ said to Hazrat Ali Razi Allah Anhu,

“There are three matters in which you should not procrastinate.

1.  When a Janazah (burial of a dead body) is ready, do not delay praying the Salah of Janazah.

2.  When the time for a Salah has started, then pray it as soon as you can. Do not delay it unnecessarily.

3.  When an appropriate suitor is available for an unmarried girl, then do not delay in conducting her Nikah.”

In another Hadith, the Holy Prophet ﷺ said that “if you do not get the girls married when appropriate suitors are available for them, then discord will spread in this world.”

In a Hadith, the Holy Prophet ﷺ,

“Announce the Nikah publicly, and conduct it in Masajid.”

The Holy Prophet ﷺ said,

“Nikah is my Sunnah.”

The Holy Prophet ﷺ said;

“if a person has been granted three blessings in this world, then he is really lucky, (1) a spacious home, (2) a pious woman, and (3) and a comfortable ride. However, if these three blessings go awry, then his life becomes a burden.”

There are three specific verses of the Holy Qur’an reciting which is a Sunnah for the Khutbah of Nikah;

“O men, fear your Lord who created you from a single soul, and from it created its match, and spread many men and women from the two. Fear Allah in whose name you ask each other (for your rights), and fear (the violation of the rights of) the womb-relations. Surely, Allah is watchful over you.” (4:1)

“O’ you who believe, fear Allah, as He should be feared, and let not yourself die save as Muslims.” (3:102)

“O’ you who believe, fear Allah, and speak in straightforward words. If you do so, Allah will correct your deeds for your benefit, and forgive your sins for you. Whoever obeys Allah and His Messenger achieves a great success.” (33:70-71)

In a Hadith, the Holy Prophet ﷺ said,

“The Nikah with greatest Barakat (blessing) is the one which has been conducted with greatest ease and simplicity.”

In a Hadith the Holy Prophet ﷺ said,

“The property of a Muslim is not Halal for you unless he gives it to you happily.”

In this Hadith, the Holy Prophet ﷺ has not used the word permission, rather has used the word طیب نفس which translates as ‘happiness of heart’. It means that just taking permission is not enough, rather such permission should have been given happily. Only then it is permissible to use another person’s belongings.

When the Holy Prophet ﷺ migrated to Medinah, one of his first priorities was to build a masjid there. He saw some empty land which he liked for that purpose. When he inquired who the land belonged to, he found out that it belonged to the people of the Abu Najjar tribe. When people of Abu Najjar heard that the Holy Prophet ﷺ was thinking of building a masjid on their land, they came to the Holy Prophet ﷺ and said, “O Messenger of Allah ﷺ. It is our good fortune that the masjid be built on our land. We gift this land to you so that you build the masjid here.” The Holy Prophet ﷺ replied, “No! I won’t take this land for free. Tell me the price and I will buy this land from you.”

In a Hadith, the Holy Prophet ﷺ said,

“Live like brothers, but conduct your transactions like strangers”.

Shariah dictates that inheritance should be distributed as soon as a person has passed away, or at least the calculation of who will receive how much should be done the same day.

"O’ you who believe, do not devour each other‘s property by false means, unless it is trade conducted with your mutual consent. Do not kill one another. Indeed, Allah has been Very-Merciful to you." (4:29)

In a Hadith, the Holy Prophet ﷺ said that there are many people who debase themselves in front of Allah, in that their hair are scattered, and they beg and cry while praying, “O Allah! Please grant me this or that”. They pray very meekly but their food is Haraam, what they drink is Haraam, what they are wearing is Haraam, and their whole body has been raised on Haraam income. How can such a person’s prayer be accepted?

Who can Zakat be given to?

Who is liable to pay Zakat?

What assets is it compulsory to pay Zakat on?

How to calculate Zakat?

In the Holy Quran Allah Ta’alah says;

“Allah destroys riba and nourishes charities…” (2:276)

In a Hadith, the Holy Prophet ﷺ said that when a person takes out Zakat then Allah Ta’alah’s angels make this prayer in his favour;

“O’ Allah! Give even more to the person who is spending in Your way, and destroy the wealth of the person who is holding his wealth back and not paying Zakat.”

In another Hadith, the Holy Prophet ﷺ said;

“Sadaqah does not lead to reduction in wealth”.

The Nisaab of Zakat consists of; 52.5 Tola which is about 613 grams (about 500 NZD) of silver, or its equivalent of cash, jewelry, or items of trade. A person who has this much wealth in their possession is known as “Sahib-e-Nisa’ab”

“…As for those who accumulate gold and silver and do not spend it in the way of Allah, give them the ‘good’ news of a painful punishment,” (9:34)

“on the day it (the wealth) will be heated up in the fire of Jahannam, then their foreheads and their sides and their backs shall be branded with it: ‘This is what you had accumulated for yourselves. So, taste what you have been accumulating’.” (9:35)

“Woe to every backbiter, derider, who accumulates wealth and counts it. He thinks that his wealth has made him eternal.Never! He will certainly be thrown into the Crushing Fire.” (104:1-4)