Alhassanain(p) Network for Heritage and Islamic Thought

Islamic Laws

According to the Fatawa of Ayatullah al Uzma Sayyid Ali al-Husaini Seestani

Laws on cleanliness, prayers, fasting, hajj, transactions, marriage, and other topics. According to the Risalah of Ayatullah Ali al-Husayni Al-Seestani.

Author(s): Ayatullah al Uzma Sayyid Ali al-Husaini Seestani

Publisher(s): World Federation of KSI Muslim Communities

Table of Contents

Important Note 9

Taqlid: Following a Mujtahid. 10

Taharat 13

Pure and Mixed Water 13

I. Kurr water 13

II. Under-Kurr Water 14

III. Running Water 14

IV. Rain Water 15

V. Well Water 15

Rules Regarding Waters: 17

Rules concerning Use of Lavatory. 19

Istibra 20

Mustahab and Makrooh Acts 21

Najis Things 22

Urine and Faeces 22

Semen. 22

Dead Body. 22

Blood. 23

Dogs and Pigs 24

Kafir 24

Alcoholic Liquor 24

Beer (Fuqa') 25

Ways of Proving Najasat 25

How a Clean (tahir/pak) Thing Becomes Najis 26

Rules Regarding Najasaat 27

Mutahhiraat 29

I. Water 29

II. Earth. 33

III. The Sun. 33

IV. Transformation (Istihala) 34

V. Change (Inqilab) 34

VI. Transfer (Intiqal) 35

VII. Islam. 35

VIII. Subjection (Taba'iyat) 36

IX. Removal of Najisul Ayn. 36

X. Istibra of an Animal which Eats Najasat 37

XI. Disappearance of a Muslim. 37

XII. Flowing out of Blood of a Slaughtered Animal in Normal Quantity. 38

Rules About Utensils 38

Wudhu. 40

Wudhu By Immersion (Wudhu Irtimasi) 42

Recommended Supplications 42

Condition for the Validity of Wudhu. 43

Things for which Wudhu is Obligatory. 49

Things which Invalidate Wudhu. 50

Jabira Wudhu. 50

Ghusl: Obligatory Baths 53

Rules Regarding Janabat 53

Forbidden Acts for those in Janabat 54

Things which are Makrooh for Junub. 54

Ghusl for Janabat 55

Tartibi 55

Irtimasi 56

Rules About Ghusl 56

Kinds of Blood Seen by Women. 59

Istihaza 59

Rules of Istihaza 59

Hayz 65

Rules for the Haaez 66

Types of Women in Hayz 69

Some Further Details are Given Below About Haaez: 69

Women having the habit of time are of two types: 72

Women Having the Habit of Fixed Duration. 73

Mudhtaribah. 74

Mubtadea 75

Nasiya 75

Various Rules Related to Hayz 76

Nifas 78

Ghusl for Touching a Dead Body. 80

Rules Related to a Dying Person. 82

Rules to Follow After the Death. 82

The Obligation of Ghusl, Kafan, Salat and Dafn. 82

The Method of Ghusl of Mayyit 83

Rules Regarding Kafan. 85

Rules of Hunut 87

Rules of Salat al-Mayyit 88

Method of Salat al-Mayyit 89

Mustahab Acts of Salat al-Mayyit 90

Rules About Burial of the Dead Body. 91

Exhumation. 96

Mustahab Ghusls 97

Tayammum. 99

Things on which Tayammum is Allowed. 102

Method of Performing Tayammum Instead of Ghusl or Wudhu. 104

Orders Regarding Tayammum. 104

Rules of Salat (Part I of III) 108

Obligatory Salat 108

Obligatory Daily Salat 108

Time for Zuhr and Asr Prayers 109

Salat al-Jumuah. 109

Time for Maghrib and Isha Prayers 111

Time for Fajr Prayers 112

Rules Regarding Salat Times 112

The Prayers which should be Performed in Sequence 114

Mustahab Prayers 115

The Timings of Daily Nafilah Prayers 116

Ghufayla Prayers 116

Rules of Qibla 117

Covering the Body in Prayers 118

Conditions for Dress Worn during Prayers 119

Exceptional Cases 124

Mustahab Things 126

Makrooh Things 126

Rules of Salat (Part II of III) 127

Place where Salat should be prayed. 127

Mustahab Places for Offering Prayers 129

Places where Offering Prayers is Makrooh. 130

Rules Regarding a Mosque 130

Adhan and Iqamah. 133

Obligatory Acts Relating to Salat 137

Niyyat 137

Takbiratul Ehram. 138

Qiyam (To Stand) 139

Rules of Salat (Part III of III) 141

Qir'at (Reciting the Surah Al-Hamd and Other Surah of Holy Qur'an) 141

Ruku (Bowing) 145

Sujood. 147

Things on which Sajdah is Allowed. 150

Obligatory Sajdahs in the Holy Qur'an. 152

Tashahhud. 153

Salam in the Prayers 154

Tartib (Sequence) 154

Muwalat (Maintenance of Succession) 155

Qunut 155

Translation of Prayers 157

Ta'qib (Duas after Prayers) 158

Salawat on the Holy Prophet 159

Things which Invalidate Prayers 160

Things which are Makrooh in Prayers 164

Occasions when Obligatory Prayers can be Broken. 164

Doubts in the Prayers 166

Doubts Which Make Prayers Void. 166

Doubts Which May Be Ignored. 166

Doubts Which Are Valid. 170

Method of Offering Salat al-Ihtiyat 173

Sajdatus Sahv (Sajdah for Forgotten Acts) 175

The Method of Offering Sajdatus Sahv. 177

Qadha of the Forgotten Sajdah and Tashahhud. 177

Addition and Omission of the Acts and Condition of Prayers 178

Prayers of a Traveller (Musafir) 180

Miscellaneous Rules 188

Qadha Prayers 191

Qadha Prayers of a Father is Obligatory on the Eldest Son. 193

Congregational Prayers 195

Qualification of an Imam of Congregational Prayers 200

Rules of Congregational Prayers 201

Guidelines for Imam and the Follower 203

Things which are Makrooh in Congregational Prayers 203

Salat al-Ayaat 204

Method of Offering Salat al-Ayaat 205

Eid ul Fitr and Eid ul Azha Prayers 207

Hiring a Person to Offer Prayers 209

Fasting (Part I of II) 211

Niyyat for Fasting. 211

Things which make a Fast void. 213

I. Eating and Drinking. 214

II. Sexual Intercourse 214

III. Istimna (Masturbation) 215

IV. Ascribing Lies to Allah and His Prophet 215

V. Letting Dust Reach One's Throat 216

VI. Immersing One's Head in Water 217

VII. Remaining in Janabat or Haidh or Nifas Till Fajr Time 217

VIII. Enema 220

IX. Vomiting. 220

Rules Regarding Things which Invalidate a Fast 221

Fasting (Part II of II) 222

Things which are Makrooh for a Person Observing Fast 222

Obligatory Qadha Fast and Kaffarah. 222

Kaffarah for Fast 222

Occasions on which it is Obligatory to Observe the Qadha Only. 225

Rules Regarding the Qadha Fasts 226

Method of Ascertaining the First Day of a Month. 230

Haraam and Makrooh Fasts 232

Mustahab Fasts 232

Mustahab Precautions 233

Khums 234

Profit from Earning. 234

Minerals 238

Treasure - Trove 239

When Halal Property gets mixed up with Haraam Property. 240

Gems Obtained by Sea Diving. 241

Spoils of War 242

Disposal of Khums 242

Zakat (Part I of II) 245

Zakat of Wheat, Barley, Dates and Raisins. 246

Minimum Taxable Limit of Gold. 249

Taxable Limit of Silver 249

Zakat Payable on Camel, Cow and Sheep (including Goat) 251

Minimum Taxable Limit of Camels 251

The Minimum Taxable Limit of Cows 252

Taxable limit of Sheep (Including Goats) 252

Zakat on Business Goods 254

Zakat (Part II of II) 255

Disposal of Zakat 255

Qualifications of those Entitled to Receive Zakat 257

Intention of Zakat 258

Miscellaneous Rules of Zakat 258

Zakat of Fitrah. 262

Disposal of Fitra 264

Miscellaneous Matters Regarding Fitrah. 264

Hajj 266

Transactions (Part I of III) 269

Rules Regarding Purchase and Sale 269

Mustahab Acts 269

Makrooh Transactions 269

Haraam Transactions 269

Conditions of a Seller and a Buyer 273

Conditions Regarding Commodity and What is Obtained in Exchange 274

Formula of Purchase and Sale 276

Purchase and Sale of Fruits 276

Cash and Credit 277

Conditions for Contract by Advance Payment 277

Laws Regarding Advance Payment Contract 278

Sale of Gold and Silver Against Gold and Silver 279

Circumstances in Which One Has a Right to Cancel a Transaction. 279

Miscellaneous Rules 282

Transactions (Part II of III) 284

Laws of Partnership. 284

Orders Regarding Compromise 286

Rules Regarding Lease/Rent 288

Conditions Regarding the Property Given on Lease 289

Conditions for the Utilisation of the Property Given on Lease 290

Miscellaneous Rules Relating to Lease/Rent 291

Rules Regarding Ju'ala (Payment of Reward) 294

Rules Regarding Muzari'ah (Temporary Sharecropping Contract) 295

Transactions (Part III of III) 298

Rules Regarding Musaqat and Mugharisa 298

Persons Who Have No Right of Disposal or Discretion Over Their Own Property  299

Rules Regarding Agency (Wakalat) 300

Rules Regarding Debt or Loan. 302

Rules Regarding Hawala (Transferring the debts etc.) 304

Rules Regarding Mortgage (Rahn) 305

Rules Regarding Surety (Zamanat) 306

Rules Regarding Personal Guarantee For Bail (Kafalat) 308

Rules Regarding Deposit Or Custody Or Trust (Amanat) 308

Rules Regarding Borrowing, Lending (Ariyat) 311

Marriage (Part I of II) 313

Marriage Formula 313

The Method of Pronouncing the Marriage Formula 313

Conditions of Pronouncing Nikah. 314

Occasions When Husband or Wife Can Nullify Nikah. 316

Women With Whom Matrimony is Haraam. 317

Rules Regarding Permanent Marriage 321

Marriage (Part II of II) 323

Mut'ah (Temporary Marriage) 323

Looking At Non-Mahram. 325

Miscellaneous Rules Concerning Marriage 326

Rules Regarding Suckling a Child. 329

How To Breast Feed A Child. 333

Miscellaneous Rules Regarding Nursing a Child. 333

Divorce 335

Iddah of Divorce (The Waiting Period after Divorce) 336

Iddah (Waiting Period) of a Widow. 337

Irrevocable and Revocable Divorce 338

Orders Regarding Return (Ruju') 338

Khula' Divorce or Talaqul Khula' 339

Mubarat Divorce 340

Various Rules Regarding Divorce 340

Usurpation (Ghasb) 342

Rules of the Lost Property When Found. 344

Slaughtering and Hunting of Animals 347

Method of Slaughtering Animals 347

Conditions of Slaughtering Animals 348

Method of Slaughtering a Camel 349

Mustahab Acts While Slaughtering Animals 349

Makrooh Acts 350

Hunting with Weapons 350

Hunting with a Retriever (Hunting Dog) 351

Hunting of Fish and Locust 352

Rules of Things Allowed to Eat and Drink  354

Eating Manners 356

Acts which are unworthy to do while taking a meal 356

Manners of Drinking Water 357

Vow and Covenant 358

Vow (Nazr) 358

Rules Regarding Oath (Qasam) 361

Rules Regarding Waqf 363

Rules Regarding Will (Wasiyyat) 366

Inheritance 371

Inheritance of the First Group. 371

Inheritance of the Second Group. 373

Inheritance of the Third Group. 376

Inheritance By The Husband and the Wife 379

Miscellaneous Rules of Inheritance 380

Important Note

The* sign after a number denotes that there is a total or partial variation from the fatwa of Marhum Ayatullah Al Uzama Syed Abul Qasim Al Khu’i. These laws are also available online at Al-Islam.org.

Taqlid: Following a Mujtahid

Issue 1: * It is necessary for a Muslim to believe in the fundamentals of faith with his own insight and understanding, and he cannot follow anyone in this respect i.e. he cannot accept the word of another who knows, simply because he has said it. However, one who has faith in the true tenets of Islam, and manifests it by his deeds, is a Muslim and Mo'min, even if he is not very profound, and the laws related to a Muslim will hold good for him. In matters of religious laws, apart from the ones clearly defined, or ones which are indisputable, a person must:

• either be aMujtahid (jurist)** himself, capable of inferring and deducing from the religious sources and evidence;

• or if he is not aMujtahid himself, he should follow one, i.e. he should act accordi ng to the verdicts(Fatwa) of theMujtahid ;

• or if he is neither aMujtahid nor a follower (Muqallid ), he should act on such precaution which should assure him that he has fulfilled his religious obligation. For example, if someMujtahids consider an act to be haraam, while others say that it is not, he should not perform that act. Similarly, if someMujtahid consider an act to be obligatory (Wajib ) while others consider it to be recommended (Mustahab ), he should perform it. Therefore, it is obligatory upon those persons who are neitherMujtahids , nor able to act on precautionary measures (Ihtiyat ), to follow aMujtahid .P

**Mujtahid is a jurist competent enough to deduce precise inferences regarding the commandments from the holy Qur'an and the Sunnah of the holy Prophet by the process of Ijtihad. Ijtihad literally means striving and exerting. Technically as a term of juri sprudence it signifies the application by a jurist of all his faculties to the consideration of the authorities of law with a view to finding out what in all probability is the law. In other words Ijtihad means making deductions in matters of law, in the cases to which no express text is applicable.(See, Baqir Sadr, A Short History of 'llmul Usul, ISP, 1984) .

Issue 2: Taqlid in religious laws means acting according to the verdict of aMujtahid . It is necessary for theMujtahid who is followed, to be male, Shi'ah Ithna Ash'ari, adult, sane, of legitimate birth, living and just ('Adil). A person is said to be just whe n he performs all those acts which are obligatory upon him, and refrains from all those things which are forbidden to him. And the sign of being just is that one is apparently of a good character, so that if enquiries are made about him from the people of his locality, or from his neighbours, or from those persons with whom he lives, they would confirm his good conduct. And if one knows that the verdicts of theMujtahids differ with regard to the problems which we face in everyday life, it is necessary that theMujtahid who is followed beA'lam (the most learned), who is more capable of understanding the divine laws than any of the contemporaryMujtahids .

Issue 3: There are three ways of identifying aMujtahid , and theA'alam :

• when a person is certain that a particular person is aMujtahid , or the most learned one. For this, he should be a learned person himself, and should possess the capacity to identify aMujtahid or anA'alam ;

• when two persons, who are learned and just and possess the capacity to identify aMujtahid or theA'alam , confirm that a person is aMujtahid or anA'lam , provided that two other learned and just persons do not contradict them. In fact, being a Mujt ahid or anA'lam can also be established by a statement of only one trusted and reliable person;

• when a number of learned persons who possess the capacity to identify aMujtahid or anA'lam , certify that a particular person is aMujtahid or anA'lam , provided that one is satisfied by their statement.

Issue 4: * If one generally knows that the verdicts ofMujtahids do vary in day to day matters, and also that some of theMujtahids are more capable than the others, but is unable to identify the most learned one, then he should act on precaution based on t heir verdicts. And if he is unable to act on precaution, then he should follow aMujtahid he supposes to be the most learned. And if decides that they are all of equal stature, then he has a choice.

Issue 5: There are four ways of obtaining the verdicts of aMujtahid :

• When a man hears from theMujtahid himself.

• When the verdict of theMujtahid is quoted by two just persons.

• When a man hears the verdict from a person whose statement satisfies him.

• By reading theMujtahid 's book ofMasae'l , provided that, one is satisfied about the correctness of the book.

Issue 6: As long as a person is certain that the verdict of theMujtahid has not changed, he can act according to what is written in theMujtahid 's book. And if he suspects that the verdict might have been changed, investigation in that matter is not necessary.

Issue 7: If anA'lam Mujtahid gives a fatwa on some matter, his follower cannot act in that matter on the fatwa of anotherMujtahid . But if he does not give a fatwa, and expresses a precaution (Ihtiyat ) that a man should act in such and such a manner, for exam ple if he says that as a precautionary measure, in the first and second Rak'at of the Salat he should read a complete Surah after the Surah of “Hamd”, the follower may either act on this precaution, which is called obligatory precaution (Ihtiyat Wajib ), or he may act on the fatwa of anotherMujtahid who it is permissible to follow. Hence, if he (the secondMujtahid ) rules that only “Surah Hamd” is enough, he (the person offering prayers) may drop the second Surah. The position will be the same if the A'a lamMujtahid expresses terms likeTa'mmul orIshkal .

Issue 8: If theA'lam Mujtahid observes precaution after or before having given a fatwa, for example, if he says that if Najis vessel is washed once with Kurr water (about 388 litres), it becomes Clean (tahir/pak ), although as precautionary measure, it should be washed thre e times, his followers can abandon acting according to this precaution. This precaution is called recommended precaution (Ihtiyat Mustahab ).

Issue 9: * If aMujtahid , who is followed by a person dies, his category will be the same as when he was alive. Based on this, if he is more learned than a livingMujtahid , the follower who has a general notion about the variation in the day to dayMasae'l , must continue to remain in his taqlid.

And if the livingMujtahid is more learned, then the follower must turn to him for taqlid. The term 'taqlid' used here implies only an intention to follow a particularMujtahid , and does not include having acted acco rding to his fatwa.

Issue 10: If a person acts according to the fatwa of aMujtahid in certain matter, and after the death of thatMujtahid , he follows a livingMujtahid in that matter according to his obligation, he cannot act again according to the fatwa of the deadMujtahid .

Issue 11: It is obligatory for a follower to learn theMasae'l which are of daily importance.

Issue 12: * If a person faces a problem whose rule is not known to him, it is necessary for him to exercise precaution, or to follow aMujtahid according to the conditions mentioned above. But if he cannot obtain the ruling of anA'lam Mujtahid on that matt er, he is allowed to follow a non-A'lam Mujtahid , even if he has a general notion about the difference between the verdicts.

Issue 13: * If a person relates the fatwa of aMujtahid to someone, and then that fatwa is changed, it is not necessary for him to inform that person about the change. But if he realises after having related the fatwa that he had made an error, and the error would lead someone to contradicting the laws of Shariah, then as an obligatory precaution, he should do his best to rectify the error.

Issue 14: If a person performs his acts for some time without taqlid of aMujtahid , and later follows aMujtahid , his former actions will be valid if thatMujtahid declares them to be valid, otherwise they will be treated as void.