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:

Dear Brother Burhan,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuhu.

A Muslim woman who is my neighbour had eloped and married (Hindu style) to a Non-Muslim man some 18 years ago. Out of fear of the soceity, she is still living like a Hindu woman. But, when we recently discovered that she is actually a muslim by birth, she began admitting that she had committed a sin.. and living with that sin. She has 2 children who are in their teenages. She also admits that she attemted to revert her husband to Islam, but he didn`t agree. She says she is helpless. She says that she is offering namaaz regularly, Observes fasting in Ramadan etc etc

My question to you is:

1. Is her relationship with husband and children considered haraam?
2. Is what ways she can make her husband revert him to Islam? If so, are her children considered halaal then?

3. Is she able to please Allah by her Ibaadat at present?

4. What kind of repentence she need to ask Allah?

5. If this situation of living with her husband continues, what is the step she should take finally?

6. I feel that we should not have any contacts with her at present. Am I correct?

I would request you to answer my questions as early as possible, with relevant references of Quran and Hadiths, so that it would be easy for me to convey the message to her.

Was-salaam 

(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:

Married a hindu

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 none 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: Is her relationship with husband and children considered haraam?

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 2 Surah Baqarah verse 221:

Do not marry unbelieving women (idolaters) until they believe; a slave woman who believes is better than an unbelieving woman even though she allure you. Nor marry (your girls) to unbelievers until they believe: a man slave who believes is better than un unbeliever even though he allure you. Unbelievers do (but) beckon you to the fire. But Allah beckons by His grace to the Garden (of Bliss) and forgiveness and makes His Signs clear to mankind: that they may celebrate His praise.

It is absolutely and categorically prohibited for a believing woman to seek to marry any but a believer in Shariah Law. A ‘marriage’ between a believing woman and a disbelieving man will be absolutely illegal, invalid, unlawful and an extremely grave sin in the Sight of Allah Subhanah.

The relationship of the believing woman in such an unlawful marriage will be akin to the grave sin of ‘zina’ in the Sight of Allah Subhanah; and the children resulting from such a marriage will be considered unlawful in the Sight of Shariah Law.

Your Question: Is what ways she can make her husband revert him to Islam? If so, are her children considered halaal then?

The time to invite her husband to revert to Islam was before she married the disbelieving person. Since the children were born from an inherently unlawful relationship, they will hold no legal basis and will be considered children born out of wedlock in the Sight of Shariah Law.

The absolute best way for anyone who wishes that their loved ones turn to the Truth of Al-Islam would be to invite them to read the Message of the Glorious Quran with understanding in a language they understand best, even only once.

Your Question: Is she able to please Allah by her Ibaadat at present?

It is possible that one may do many a good deed, but their one act of evil is so detested and so hated by Allah Subhanah and all their good deeds are cancelled; and it is also possible that one may be involved in evil, but the weight of his one good deed might have so much weight in the Scales of Allah Subhanah, that He may forgive all the evils of that person.

The one thing the sister can and should do if indeed her intention is to earn the Pleasure and Good Will of her Lord is to turn towards Him in ‘taubah’ and seek sincere repentance for her past transgressions; if she is sincere in her ‘taubah’, it is expected that she will find her Lord Forgiving and Merciful.

Your Question: What kind of repentence she need to ask Allah?

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!

Sincere ‘taubah’ and repentance in this particular case would mean that the sister is sincerely ashamed at the state of her unlawful marriage for 20 long and daring years, she fears her Day of Severe Accounting in the Tribunal of her Lord…..and asks her husband whether he is willing to revert to Islam or not; and if her husband who has refused the same for 20 years, refuses….she must fear Allah and manifest her repentance unto her Lord by immediately distancing and separating herself from the marriage.

Your Question: If this situation of living with her husband continues, what is the step she should take finally?

Either the sister seeks sincere repentance for her daring deeds of transgressing the Prescribed Boundaries of her Lord and living in an unlawful marriage for the past 20 years, and amends her conduct; or she continues living in her unlawful relationship with her husband and prepares herself for an extremely severe accounting in the Presence of her Lord Most Majestic Most Supreme!

Your Question: I feel that we should not have any contacts with her at present. Am I correct?

Beloved brother, if your family feels that by meeting and keeping relations with the sister your family might be able to instill the fear of Allah and the Last Day into her and thus guide her towards repentance and her salvation; there is absolutely no harm if your family chooses to meet or keep cordial relations with the sister.

But if you find that the sister neither fears Allah, nor the Last Day, nor is she ashamed in the least regarding her manifest and constant transgressions of the Boundaries of her Lord, nor is she keen to turn in ‘taubah’ and seek repentance from her Lord…..it would indeed be best for your family to keep their distance from such an evil and impious person.

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