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:

Assalam,

I WANT TO ASK U ONE QUESTION,IS IT RIGHT TO OFFER FATEHA ON FOOD AND SHARBAT WHICH WE DISTURIBUTE ON 10th OF MOHARRAM,PLZ TRY TO MAKE ME CLEAR IN LIGHT OF QURAN FRKAAN E MAJID AND SUNNAT.

JAZAK ALLAH KHAIR.

KHUDAHAFEES

(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:

Food and drink in Muharram niaz

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.

Your Statement: IT RIGHT TO OFFER FATEHA ON FOOD

Al-Muwatta Hadith 49.32

Malik related from Abu Nuaym that Wahb ibn Kaysan said, "The Messenger of Allah (saws) was brought food while his stepson Umar ibn Salama was with him. The Messenger of Allah (saws) said to him, 'Say "Bismillah," and eat what is in front of you.'"

The believers who sincerely believe in Allah and the Last Day are guided by Allah and His Messenger (saws) to recite the Blessed Name of Allah Subhanah or ‘Bismillah’ before they intend to eat or drink any of the halaal sustenance provided by the Lord Most Bounteous. There is absolutely nothing in the Quran or the Sunnah which declares that one is required to recite the first Surah of the Quran or Surah Fatehah before eating or drinking anything, nor did the Messenger of Allah (saws) ever practice the recitation of Surah Fatehah before he consumed anything; He would simply praise Allah Subhanah, recite ‘Bismillaah’ and consume the food and drink provided to him by his Lord.

Your Question: IT RIGHT TO OFFER FATEHA ON FOOD AND SHARBAT WHICH WE DISTURIBUTE ON 10th OF MOHARRAM,PLZ TRY TO MAKE ME CLEAR IN LIGHT OF QURAN FRKAAN E MAJID AND SUNNAT.

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 76 Surah Dhahr verses 8-12:

8 And they (the Righteous) feed for the love of Allah the indigent the orphan and the captive

9 (Saying) "We feed you for the sake of Allah Alone: No reward do we desire from you nor thanks.

10 "We only fear a Day of distressful Wrath from the side of our Lord."

11 But Allah will deliver them from the evil of that Day and will shed over them a light of Beauty and a (blissful) Joy.

12 And because they were patient and constant He will reward them with a Garden and (garments of) silk.

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 90 Surah Al-Balad verses 14-18:

14 Or the giving of food in a day of privation

15 To the orphan with claims of relationship

16 Or to the indigent (down) in the dust.

17 Then will he be of those who believe and enjoin patience (constancy and self-restraint) and enjoin deeds of kindness and compassion.

18 Such are the Companions of the Right Hand.

Allah and His Messenger (saws) have time and again encouraged the believers to spend out of what Allah Subhanah has provided for them for the poor and needy of the society, be it in cash, in supplies, in food, etc. Whoever feeds another from the halaal sustenance that Allah Subhanah has provided for him with the intention to earn the Pleasure and Good Will of Allah Subhanah, will have his due reward from his Lord on the Day of Resurrection.

It is absolutely imperative and obligatory that every good deed must be done to earn the Pleasure and Good Will of Allah Subhanah Alone; if one does a good deed with the intention to earn the pleasure or good-will or in the name of anyone other than Allah Subhanah, then the doer of that deed should not expect, nor will he have any reward from Allah Subhanah on the Day of Resurrection.

Thus what needs to be determined is whether the food and drinks distributed on the 10^th of Muharram is done to earn the Pleasure and Good Will and in the Blessed Name of Allah Subhanah, or to earn the pleasure and good will and in the name of someone other than Allah?

It is absolutely obvious that the food and ‘sharbat’ distributed on the 10^th of Muharram is done to earn the pleasure and good will and in the name of the Martyr of Karbala and the noble companion and grand-son of the Messenger of Allah (saws), Hadrat Hussain ibn Abi Taalib (r.a.) and therefore the food or drinks distributed are called ‘Sabeel-e-Hussain’.

Regardless of how pious the person in whose name the food and drink is distributed and consumed, if it is distributed to earn the pleasure and good-will or in the name of anyone or anything other than the One and Only Lord All-Mighty; in light of the clear guidance of the Glorious Quran, the distribution and consumption of such foods and drinks would be absolutely prohibited for those who believe in Allah and the Last Day.

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 16 Surah Nahl verse 115:

115 He (Allah) has only forbidden you dead meat, and blood, and the flesh of swine, and any (food) over which the name of other than Allah has been invoked.

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 2 Surah Baqarah verse 173:

173 He (Allah) hath only forbidden you dead meat, and blood, and the flesh of swine, and that on which any other name hath been invoked besides that of Allah

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 5 Surah Maidah verse 3:

3 Forbidden to you (for food) are: dead meat blood, the flesh of swine, and that on which hath been invoked the name of other than Allah

Even though the food is ‘halaal’ in its essence, but because the food has been distributed in the name of someone other than Allah Subhanah, regardless of how pious the person is or even if it was distributed (Allah forbid) in the name of Prophet Mohamed (saws), the consumption of all such foods distributed in the name of someone other than Allah Subhanah is absolutely forbidden to those who sincerely believe in Allah and the Last Day.

The distribution and consumption of such foods would be no different from what is distributed during the Christian ‘mass’, or the ‘prasad’ offered after the Hindu or pagan ‘poojas’, etc. Even though the food being served is halaal in its essence, but because the food is being distributed in the name of someone other than Allah Subhanah; that food would be deemed absolutely forbidden for the believers.

Just as the declaration and recitation of ‘Bismillaah’ over the food distributed at a Christian ‘mass’ or the ‘prasaad’ at a Hindu ‘pooja’ would not make it’s consumption halaal, the food and the ‘sharbat’ distributed as ‘Sabeel-e-Hussain’ in Muharram would not become halaal for the believers; because all such foods are distributed in the name of someone other than Allah Subhanah, the One and Only Lord of the Worlds. The believers, who sincerely believe in Allah and the Last Day, must abstain from the consumption of any such food and drinks.

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