Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.  (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

Aslamalkume ( RAMDAN MUBDAK ) by the time you get to my email it might be passed eid so EID MUBADAK = )

I am 14 year old pakistani born in dubai camhear when I was 1 year old

Question 1 . Is thier tips on how to quit masterbation and what is the punishment for masterbation

Question 2 . Can I have a girlfrind some say yes some say no I need to clear that up

Question 3 . My mom seys smoking is not a sin ( she does not smoke ) but smoking weed is a sin (thier is alot of weed in my school but I

never smoked yet ) is weed a sin also ?

(There may be some grammatical and spelling errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in confidentiality.)

Answer:

Smoking and masturbation

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol, no person, no grave, no prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad(saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

Q-1: Is thier tips on how to quit masterbation and what is the punishment for masterbation

It is indeed good and righteous of you that you have recognized this evil habit as displeasing to the Merciful Lord, and are trying to stay away from it. ‘Fahesha’ or indecency is one of the strongest weapons of the accursed enemy of man, the Shaitaan; who has sworn to mislead and misguide mankind from the Straight Path of Allah Subhanah.

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 2 Surah Baqarah verse 268: The Shaitaan threatens you with poverty and prompts you to adopt indecency (or acts of shamelessness). Allah promiseth you His forgiveness and bounties, and Allah careth for all, and He knoweth all things.

The only thing that can stop one from acts of indecency, or intentionally disobeying any command of Allah and His Messenger (saws); is the fear and consciousness that One Day, everyone will be brought forth in the Presence of the All-Mighty Lord to give a full accounting of one’s deeds.

The first thing one needs to do, when he realizes that he has disobeyed any command of Allah and His Messenger (saws), is to immediately turn to the Merciful Lord and seek His Forgiveness and Pardon, and make a solemn covenant that he will not repeat the mistake again. When Shaitaan again tries to prompt the person to disobey the Merciful, the believers must immediately realize the play of Shaitaan, seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Shaitaan, remember the covenant he has made with His Lord, and abstain from doing any deed that will bring about the Wrath and Anger of Allah Subhanah.

After one has made a solemn promise to his Lord that he would not commit the mistake again, and has a genuine willingness to abide by the promise made to his Lord; he should seek constant help from the Merciful Lord to stay on the Straight Path.

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 7 Surah Aaraaf verse 23: They (Prophet Adam and his wife, Hawwa) said: "O our Lord! We have wronged our own souls: if Thou forgive us not, and bestow not upon us Thy mercy, we shall certainly be lost."

As soon as one feels the desire, or the avowed enemy of man, the Shaitaan suggests the person to transgress any of the boundaries of Allah Subhanah; the believers should immediately seek the refuge and protection of the All-Mighty Lord from the accursed Shaitaan by saying: “Aoodobillahe minas Shaitaan ar rajeem”. If the person is sincere in seeking refuge and protection, Allah Subhanah will protect him from the assaults of Shaitaan.

Some other things the believers may do at such a stage is do the ‘wudu’, offer prayers, or recite the 113^th and 114^th Surahs of the Quran (Surah Falaq and Surah Naas) and seek protection from the accursed Shaitaan.

The long-term remedy for keeping the Shaitaan at bay, is to constantly remember Allah Subhanah, seek and stay in the company of the righteous, recite the Quran, read good Islamic Books, listen to good Islamic cassettes and lectures, and strive to stay away from being in solitude.

If one is constantly in the face of non-mehram women, or if one regularly watches commercial television and movies, or regularly reads commercial magazines, etc. where ill-clad women are constantly portrayed; there is a greater chance the person will be swayed by the suggestions of Shaitaan towards ‘fahisah’ and indecency. If one strives to abstain from these devices of Shaitaan, and makes efforts to remain close to the Remembrance and Guidance of Allah Subhanah, he will be successful in muting the ploys of the Shaitaan.

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 7 Surah Aaraaf verse 27: O ye children of Adam! Let not Shaitaan seduce you in the same manner as he got your parents (Adam and Hawwa) out of the Garden, stripping them of their raiment to expose their shame: for he and his tribe watch you from a position where ye cannot see them: We made the evil ones friends (only) to those without faith.

If we can only cultivate the solemn belief in ourselves that The All Knowing is watching every thing that we do, and fear the standing in His Majestic Presence on an Inevitable Day to give a full accounting of our deeds; we will strive never to transgress the boundaries laid by Allah and His Messenger (saws).

Q-1A: what is the punishment for masterbation

There is no particular punishment in the life of this world prescribed in the Shariah for one who is guilty of committing the sin of ‘masturbation’; but it is indeed a heinous sin in the sight of the Lord, and the one who commits this sin will be held severely accountable on the Day of Judgment in the Presence of The Majestic Lord.

Q-2: Can I have a girlfrind some say yes some say no I need to clear that up

In Islam, the relationship between man and woman is segregated in two parts. One is the ‘mehram’ relationship, and the other ‘non-mehram’. Mehram relationships are considered sacred and absolutely allowed in Islam. Non-Mehram relationships between a man and woman may give rise to illegal emotions, and there is always the chance of establishing an illicit relationship, and this is forbidden in Islam.

Allah, Who created everything in existence along with its nature, has made a natural physical attraction between man and the woman. And Allah has allowed a legal way to accommodate this natural physical attraction between a non-mehram man and woman, through the institution of ‘nikaah’ or marriage.

Islam does not permit the casual friendship between a non-mehram man and woman, as this sort of friendships sow the seeds of destructions of morals in society. The biggest evidence of this degradation of morals can be seen in the societies which have allowed these non-mehram relationships to flourish.

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 33 Surah Ahzaab verse 53: If you (the noble companions of the Prophet) have to ask the wives of the Prophet for something, ask for it from behind a curtain. This is a better way for the purity of your, as well as their hearts.

The above command is for some of the most noble and best people who ever lived on this planet earth; the companions of the Prophet, and the chaste and noble wives of the Prophet of Allah (saws). Allah commands the companions of the Prophet that if they have to ask for something from the wives of the Prophet, they should do so from behind a veil or a curtain, because this way is better and purer for both, the companions and the wives of the Prophet (saws). No people could have controlled their emotions and feared Allah more than the noble companions and the chaste wives of the Prophet; but even to such noble souls, Allah has commanded that it is purer and better that if they need to talk to the wives of the Prophet, they should do so from behind a curtain.

Al-Tirmidhi Hadith 3118 Narrated by Umar ibn al-Khattab

The Prophet (saws) said, "Whenever a man is alone with a woman the Shaytaan makes a third."

In light of the Holy Quran, and the various authentic narrations of the Messenger of Allah (saws), with the exception of marriage, it is forbidden for a non-mehram man to have any sort of friendship with a non-mehram woman.

Q-3: My mom seys smoking is not a sin ( she does not smoke ) but smoking weed is a sin (thier is alot of weed in my school but I never smoked yet ) is weed a sin also ?

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 7 Surah Aaraat verse 157: (So, now mercy has been assigned to those) who follow this Messenger, the Gentile Prophet, whose mention they shall find in the Torah and the Gospel with them. He enjoins them to do good and forbids them from evil; he makes pure things ‘halaal’ for them and impure things ‘haraam’; he relieves them of their burdens and frees them from the shackles (of rites and rituals) that bound them. For this reason, those alone who believe in him, support him, succour him, and follow the Light that has been sent down with him shall attain true ‘success’.

Sahih Al-Bukhari Hadith 3.267 Narrated by An Numan bin Bashir

The Prophet (saws) said "Both, halaal and haraam things are obvious, and in between them are (suspicious) doubtful matters. So whoever forsakes those doubtful things lest he may commit a sin, will definitely avoid what is clearly illegal; and whoever indulges in these (suspicious) doubtful things bravely, is likely to commit what is clearly illegal."

Beloved brother in Islam, the least (or most) one can say is that ‘smoking’ is closer to the haraam than to the halaal; and in keeping with the guidance of the above quoted hadith of the Messenger of Allah (saws), it would be closer to piety to abstain from it for without a doubt smoking is considered a sin in Islam.

And Allah Subhanah Alone Knows Best.

Q-3A: is weed a sin also ?

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 5 Surah Maidah verses 90-91:

90 O ye who believe! Intoxicants, and gambling, (dedication of) stones, and (divination by) arrows, are an abomination of Shaytaan's handiwork; Eschew such (abomination) that ye may prosper.

91 Shaytaan's plan is (but) to excite enmity and hatred between you with intoxicants and gambling, and hinder you from the remembrance of Allah and from prayer: will ye not then abstain?

Anything that intoxicates when consumed is forbidden for the believers, who sincerely believe in Allah and the Last Day. There is absolutely no doubt that ‘weed’ is an intoxicant; and as such, it is absolutely prohibited in Islam.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your Brother in Islam,

Burhan