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:

May Allah Subhana help and reward you for your efforts for Islam.

I am 43years old, married and Allah Subhana has blessed with me two most beautifull kids, one daughter 10 and one son 4. My wife is devoted to family and at present stays away with kids since I have put up my childrens in school in another city. She stays with them and take care of their education. We meet each other by visiting each other whenever we get an oppertunity. I miss them very much and they miss me very much, though we have telecon everyday. The people known to us feel that this kind arrangments IS NOT PRACTICAL BUT we are facing no problems as such beside my personal followings problem:

1. I used to be a social drinker but lately I have started drinking alcohal quite regularly to beat my lonliness. I know I am comittig sin and repent and do tauba but when I am alone at night I get a strong urge for alcohal. Although quantity wise it is never more than 2 drinks but still I am unable to avoid it. Please advise dua and tasbeeh to help me to come out of this addiction.

2. I have a settled family business and financially we are better off than many unfortunate people but lately due to the compitition in market and our greed for better material life I have borrowed from bank and other sources to expand my business. Future looks promising but anxity due to repayment of borrowed money have deprived me of peace and thought of something going wrong always bothers me.

I am very well aware of the sin I am in by borrowing and paying intrest but to get out of this vicious cycle may take lots of time since I do not have any personal capital. Please advise me about how Allah Subhana has guided belivers to free oneself from such situation in Holy Quran majid

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Answer:

Alcohol and debt problem

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: I used to be a social drinker but lately I have started drinking alcohal quite regularly to beat my lonliness. I know I am comittig sin and repent and do tauba but when I am alone at night I get a strong urge for alcohal. Although quantity wise it is never more than 2 drinks but still I am unable to avoid it. Please advise dua and tasbeeh to help me to come out of this addiction.

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

O you who have believed! ‘Khamr’ (all types of intoxicants), games of chance, idols, and divining arrows are all abominable works of Shaitaan; therefore, stay (far) away from these so that you may attain success. Indeed, Shaitaan seeks to sow enmity and hatred among you by means of ‘khamr’ (intoxicants) and gambling, and to prevent you from the Remembrance of Allah and from Salaah. Will you not, then, abstain from these things?

Allah Subhanah in the above aayah clearly declares that ‘khamr’ or all types of intoxicants are the abominable works of Shaitaan, and commands the believers to stay far away from them! The term used by Allah in the Quran to guide the believers to stay away is ‘fajj-tanebu’, commanding the believers that this ‘khamr’ is so hated by Allah for the believers, that they not only should abstain from consuming it, they should stay far away from it! Some scholars have opined that the term ‘fajj-tanebu’ is stronger than the term ‘haraam’, and a believer who sincerely fears Allah and the Last Day, must not even put himself in a position that he sits with those who consume intoxicants!

Allah and His Messenger (saws) have declared several things haraam (like the flesh of swine, dead animals, gold and silk for the male believers, etc.), but nowhere has it been mentioned that we cannot go near them! But for intoxicants, gambling, idols, and divining arrows… Allah has commanded the believers to stay far away from it!!!

Sunan of Abu-Dawood Hadith 3672 Narrated by Abdullah Ibn Abbas

The Messenger of Allah (saws) said: “Every intoxicant is khamr (alcohol, wine, etc.), and every intoxicant is haraam.”

Sunan of Abu-Dawood Hadith 3679 Narrated by Aisha

I heard the Messenger of Allah (saws) say: “Every intoxicant is haraam; if a quantity of anything causes intoxication, a handful of it is (also) haraam.”

Sahih Muslim Hadith 4962 Narrated by Jabir ibn Abdullah

Allah's Messenger (saws) said: “Every intoxicant is haraam! Verily Allah, the Exalted and Majestic, made a covenant to those who drank intoxicants to make them drink ‘Tinat al-Khabal’. The companions asked: “Allah's Messenger, what is Tinat al-Khabal?’ He (saws) said: “It is the sweat of the denizens of Hell, or the discharge of the denizens of Hell.”

Q-1A: I know I am comittig sin and repent and do tauba but when I am alone at night I get a strong urge for alcohal.

All praise is due to Allah Subhanah who has guided you to understand and firmly believe that consuming alcohol is a sin in the Sight of the Majestic Lord, and all praise is due to Him Alone Who has guided you to seek repentance for this evil addiction.

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 39 Surah Zumur verses 53-54:

(O Prophet) say: “O My servants who have wronged their own souls….Do not despair of Allah’s Mercy! Surely, Allah forgives all sins. He indeed is the All Forgiving, All Merciful. Return to your Lord and submit to Him before the scourge overtakes you; for then you may get no help from anywhere.”

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 3 Surah Ale Imraan verse 135-136:

Allah likes such good people very much, who, if ever they commit a base deed or wrong their own soul by the commission of a sin, remember Allah instantly, and ask for forgiveness from Him for their shortcomings. For who, but Allah, can forgive sins? (And Allah loves those) who do not knowingly persist in the wrongs they did. These will be rewarded with forgiveness from Allah, and with Gardens beneath which canals flow, and they will reside therein forever! How excellent is the reward of those who do good deeds!

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 6 Surah Anaam verse 54:

When those come to you who believe in Our Signs, say: "Peace be on you! Your Lord had inscribed for Himself (the rule of) Mercy. Verily if any of you did evil in ignorance, and thereafter repented and amended (his conduct), Lo! He is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful."

Question 1B:Please advise dua and tasbeeh to help me to come out of this addiction.

My dear and beloved brother, remain constant in your supplications to your Lord Most Merciful and continue to sincerely seek repentance and forgiveness from Him; it is expected that you will find your Lord Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.

There are several duas and supplications in the Quran and the authentic Sunnah, but amongst the best supplications for seeking Allah’s forgiveness are those that He Himself has related in His Glorious Quran:

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 2 Surah Baqarah verse 286:

286 On no soul doth Allah place a burden greater than it can bear. It gets every good that it earns and it suffers every ill that it earns. (O Believers, thus pray thus): "O our Lord! Condemn us not if we forget or fall into error; O our Lord! Lay not on us a burden like that which Thou didst lay on those before us; O Our Lord! Lay not on us a burden greater than we have strength to bear. Blot out our sins and grant us forgiveness. Have Mercy on us. Thou art our Protector; help us against those who stand against faith."

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 7 Surah Aaraaf verse 23:

23 They (Adam and 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."

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 21 Surah Anbiyaa verses 87-88:

87 And remember Zun-nun (Prophet Yunus (a.s.)) when he departed in wrath: he imagined that We had no power over him! But he cried through the depths of darkness "There is no god but Thou: Glory to Thee: I was indeed wrong!"

88 So We listened to him: and delivered him from distress: and thus do We deliver those who have faith.

Duas and supplications that one earnestly makes to his Lord will signify that without His Help and Mercy, we are absolutely helpless in fighting sin by ourselves. Thus, my beloved brother, constantly seek the Help and Mercy of your Lord Most Merciful in fighting your addiction; but Allah is our witness, nothing stops a human being from doing sin except the ‘fear’ that One Inevitable Day his Majestic Lord will gather him to give a full accounting of his deeds. It is this fear of standing in front of the Majestic Lord that helps a believing slave from transgressing the boundaries of the Majestic and Supreme Lord.

Thus my dear and beloved brother, every time you feel the urge to consume alcohol, remember Allah, remember that One Inevitable Day He will bring you to account for your deeds, remember how much He hates and despises the consumption of intoxicants, remember the punishments He has prescribed for those who transgress His Boundaries and disobey His Commands, and remember that there is none that can save you from His Wrath and His Anger except Him! Every time you become a slave to your addiction, try to bring Allah and His Majesty and Magnificence to remembrance and sincerely seek His help in fighting your addiction; it is expected you will find your Lord is willing to Help those who want to help themselves from sin.

Your Question-2: I am very well aware of the sin I am in by borrowing and paying intrest but to get out of this vicious cycle may take lots of time since I do not have any personal capital. Please advise me about how Allah Subhana has guided belivers to free oneself from such situation in Holy Quran majid. 

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 2 Surah Baqarah verse 274-276:

But those who devour ‘riba’ become like the one whom Shaitaan has bewitched and maddened by his touch. They have been condemned to this condition because they say, “Trade is just like ‘riba”, whereas Allah has made trade halaal and ‘riba’ haraam. Henceforth, if one abstains from taking ‘riba’ after receiving this admonition from his Lord, no legal action shall be taken against him regarding the ‘riba’ he had devoured before: his case shall ultimately go to Allah. But if one repeats the same crime even after this, he shall go to Hell, where he shall abide for ever! Allah deprives ‘riba’ of all blessing and develops charity, and Allah does not like an ungrateful, sinful person.

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!

Al-Tirmidhi Hadith 2829 Narrated by Ali ibn AbuTalib

Ali 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-2A: Please advise me about how Allah Subhana has guided belivers to free oneself from such situation in Holy Quran majid. 

Sahih Al-Bukhari Hadith 4.676 Narrated by Abu Said Al Khudri

The Prophet (saws) said, "Amongst the men of Bani Israel there was a man who had murdered ninety-nine persons. Then he set out asking (whether his repentance could be accepted or not). He came upon a monk and asked him if his repentance could be accepted. The monk replied in the negative and so the man killed him. He kept on asking till a man advised to go to such and such village. (So he left for it) but death overtook him on the way. While dying, he turned his chest towards that village (where he had hoped his repentance would be accepted), and so the Angels of Mercy and the Angels of Punishment quarrelled amongst themselves regarding him. Allah ordered the village (towards which he was going) to come closer to him, and ordered the village (whence he had come), to go far away, and then He ordered the Angels to measure the distances between his body and the two villages. So he was found to be one span closer to the village (he was going to). So he was forgiven!"

Beloved brother, in light of the guidance from the above hadith, first and foremost seek sincere repentance and forgivness from your Lord Most Gracious for your past deeds which entangled you in ‘riba’; then make intention and a solemn commitment and covenant with your Lord that you wish to save yourself from the clutches of ‘riba’, and that from this day forward you will not take a cent on interest. Once you have made the intention and a solemn covenant with your Lord, regardless of how long it takes, start the process of paying back the interest-based loans from your profits or assets as fast and as soon as possible. If you bring yourself to make this intention, and earnestly to the best of your capability try to save yourself from the clutches of what has been clearly declared forbidden by Allah and His Messenger (saws), it is expected you will find your Lord Forgiving and Merciful.

And above all, remain steadfast and constantly seek the help of your Lord by making this beautiful supplication taught by the Messenger of Allah (saws): it is expected that your Lord Most Gracious will deliver you from your debt, even if it be as great as a mountain!

Fiqh-us-Sunnah Fiqh 4.131b

Ali related that a slave, who had agreed on terms of his freedom with his master, came to him and said, "I cannot pay my master as I agreed in the terms of freedom, so help me." Ali said to him, "Let me teach you the supplication that the Prophet (saws) taught me. If you say it, Allah will cause your debt to be paid even if it be as great as a mountain. Say, 'O Allah, make Your lawful bounties sufficient for me so as to save me from what is unlawful, and from Your Grace grant me sufficient abundance to make me free from the need of all except You'."

Related by Tirmidhi.

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