Mu'meneen Brothers and Sisters,

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

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

Assalaam Alaikum! What is Haqun Nafs? Is this concept in Islamic Shariah or just another custom created by us? 

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Answer:

What is haqqun nafs?

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.

‘Haqq’ means ‘the right’, and ‘Nafs’ means ‘the self’; thus the term ‘Haqqun-Nafs’ would mean ‘the right of the self’. In light of the Holy Quran the biggest ‘Haqq’ or right of the ‘Nafs’ or self, is that we follow the guidance of Allah Subhanah in our lives save our ‘nafs’ or selves from the Hell Fire.

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 66 Surah Tahreem verse 6:O you who have believed, save yourselves (nafs) and your families from a Fire whose fuel shall be men and stones; over which shall be appointed fierce and stern Angels, who never disobey Allah’s Command, and they only do as they are commanded!

Allah Subhanah has only made the payment of ‘zakaat’ obligatory on the believers, and encouraged the believers to share their wealth with the poor and the needy in the form of ‘sadaqah’ or voluntary charity. But some sects (actually only one sect, the Bohras) have made this term ‘Haqqun Nafs’ as a form of obligatory tax which the heirs of the deceased have to pay the priest, and hope that the payment of this self-invented tax will deliver the ‘nafs’ of the deceased! This and many other forms of Bohra taxes like the wajebaat, the khums, the sabeel, the nazrul-maqaam, the najwa, the salaami, etc. are nothing but the inventions of the priestly class to devour the wealth of the believers by their self-imposed forms of taxation.

Allah Subhanah has clearly warned the believers in the Glorious Quran about such ‘supposed’ priests and holy men who devour the wealth of others by evil means; but these same priests have made sure that their followers never understand the Quran so that they are free to continue to take advantage of their followers’ ignorance!

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 9 Surah Taubah verses 34-35 :O you who believe! There are indeed many among the priests and the holy men who devour the wealth of others by evil means, and debar the people from the Way of Allah. Give them the good news of a painful torment, who hoard up gold and silver and do not expend these in the Way of Allah. The Day shall surely come when the same gold and silver shall be heated in the fire of Hell, and with it will be branded on their foreheads, their bodies and their backs. (And it will be said): “Here is that treasure you had hoarded up for yourselves! Taste now the evil of your hoarded treasure!”

The people who collect such self-invented forms of taxations in the name of Allah Subhanah have sold their Hereafter for a paltry worldly gain. Evil is the bargain they have made with their own selves!

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