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:

Asslamalaikum

Maulana I have an overseas account in India (currently Iam working in UAE). I have kept some amount of money in my overseas accout for more than 2 years now. The bank pays me some interest every 6 months. By Allah`s Mercy I have never taken interest for my own use, but take the money and give to poor or needy people. My question is that what Iam doing is halall or haram. If it is halaal upto what extent and can I give the same money for the construction of a mosque or a orphanage. Pls answer as soon as possible. Because this doubt is rovering above my head from long time.

Barakallah

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Answer:

What to do with interest money

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 Question: My question is that what Iam doing is halall or haram.

Allah and His Messenger (saws) have indeed declared the receiving and paying of ‘riba’ as absolutely Haraam and prohibited for the believers in very strong terms, and it is the prescribed duty of every believer, who sincerely believes in Allah and the Last Day, to abstain from dealing in ‘riba’.

Allah says further in the Holy Quran Chapter 2 Surah Baqarah verse 278:

O Believers!, fear Allah and give up that ‘riba’ which is still due to you, if you are true believers. But if you do not do so, then you are warned of the declaration of war against you by Allah and His Messenger!

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 4 Surah Nisa verse 161:

That they took ‘riba’, although they were forbidden. And that they devoured men’s substance wrongfully. We have prepared for those among them who reject faith a grievous punishment (of Hell Fire)!

My beloved brother in Islam, first and foremost one who believes in Allah and the Last Day, must immediately abstain and stop taking any interest.

It is not as if it is deemed permissible in Islam for one to continue taking interest as long as he spends it on charity; for Allah does not accept anything in His Cause unless and until it is pure and lawful.

Sahih Muslim Hadith 2214 Narrated by Abu Hurayrah

Allah's Messenger (saws) said: ‘O people, Allah is Good and He, therefore, accepts only that which is good!’

Now the question arises what should one do with the interest money one has already accumulated in the past in ignorance of the Laws of Allah?

For the unlawful ‘interest’ money that one has accumulated in one’s past in ignorance of Allah’s Laws, the person has two choices:

1. One may leave it in the bank.
2. Or, one may take it and dispose it.

Some scholars are of the opinion that it does not help the cause of the believers to leave the interest in conventional banks for at best it helps them to generate more interest, and at worst, they may dispose it to an institution which might work against the Cause. In cases where one has already accumulated interest money in ignorance of Islamic Law, and Allah Subhanah has guided them, and they now wish to dispose off that illegal money, the scholars are of the opinion that one may take this interest with the intention that he wants to rid himself of this evil thing, and give it away to some charity without seeking any reward from Allah Subhanah for this spending. His only intention should be get rid of this unwanted and illegal money, and thus purify himself from the evil of ‘riba’. The believer who does this only because he fears the accounting of Allah on an Inevitable Day, will, if Allah Wills, be rewarded for keeping himself pure from the evils of ‘riba’.

The spending of illegally and unlawfully earned wealth does not have any worth in the Sight of Allah; for Allah is Good and Pure, and He accepts only what is good and pure.

The issue with the illegally and unlawfully accumulated money is not how best to spend it, but how soon can one rid himself of this illegal and unlawful wealth. His only intention in giving this money away should be to purify oneself and get rid of the evil that is with him. This illegal and unlawful money earned from interest can be compared to a burning coal in one’s hand! When one unintentionally and accidentally holds a burning coal, his only intention is to get rid of the burning coal from his hand; not where best to place it so that it can be of some benefit to others!

Your Statement: I have an overseas account in India (currently Iam working in UAE). I have kept some amount of money in my overseas accout for more than 2 years now. The bank pays me some interest every 6 months

Dear and beloved brother, a better and purer option would be to invest your wealth rather than simply putting it in an interest-bearing account…and if investment is not an option, then at least deposit the money in a good Islamic Bank so that you may save yourself from the evil of riba….and if even that is not an option, it would be best to leave your wealth in a non-interest bearing current account….basically do whatever it takes to save yourself from the evil of ‘riba’ and interest.

Al-Tirmidhi Hadith 2827 Narrated by Abdullah ibn Mas'ud

Allah's Messenger (saws) said, "Even though usury be much, it leads in the end to penury."

Sahih Al-Bukhari Hadith 4.28 Narrated by Abu Huraira

The Prophet (saws) said, "Avoid the seven great destructive sins. “The people enquired, "O Allah's Messenger (saws)! What are they? " He (saws) said,

1. "To join others in worship along with Allah, to practice sorcery,
2. to kill the life which Allah has forbidden except for a just cause, (according to Islamic law),
3. to eat up riba (usury),
4. to eat up an orphan's wealth,
5. to give back to the enemy and
6. fleeing from the battlefield at the time of fighting, and
7. to accuse chaste women, who never even think of anything touching chastity and are good believers.”

(The Prophet (saws) included ‘riba’ in one of the ‘Seven Destructive Sins’. If we read the other sins which accompany the list, one can imagine the magnitude of the sin of indulging in ‘riba’)

Al-Tirmidhi Hadith 2829 Narrated by Ali ibn AbuTalib

Ali said he heard Allah's Messenger (saws) invoke the curse of Allah on those who took usury, those who paid it, those who recorded it, and those who refused to give sadaqah.

Your Question: If it is halaal upto what extent and can I give the same money for the construction of a mosque or a orphanage

Beloved brother in Islam, the Messenger of Allah (saws) forbade the believers to build mosques with ‘zakah’ funds, leave alone build the blessed Houses of Allah with ill-gotten and haraam wealth originating from the evil of ‘riba’. It would be absolutely impermissible and unacceptable in Islam for a believer who sincerely believes in Allah and the Last Day to spend of what he has earned unlawfully on building a House of Allah on this earth.

Sahih Muslim Hadith 2214 Narrated by Abu Hurayrah

Allah's Messenger (saws) said: ‘O people, Allah is Good and He, therefore, accepts only that which is good!’

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

Your brother and well wisher in Islam,

Burhan