What is the ruling on lost property that we used to find and spend when we were young?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner:
She has gathered several questions for him, one of which is: The topic I am going to ask about, Honorable Shaykh, is that my sisters and I, when we were young, used to take any amount of money we found lying on the ground, whether it was a riyal, fifty riyals, or anything else. Now we have grown up and we regret it. Is anything obligatory for us now? If you know the amount you took, and it is
The Shaykh:
a large amount, then you must give it in charity with the intention of the reward for its owner, unless you know the owner, in which case it is obligatory to return the amount to him, or to ask him for forgiveness if you know him. But if you do not know him, then you give it in charity with the intention of the reward for its owner. This is if you know this amount and it is a large amount that is of concern to people of moderate means. But if it is a small amount, or if you do not know the amount, then it is obligatory for you, if you do not know its amount, to make an effort to estimate it, to determine it, and to pay what you arrive at by your estimation, giving it in charity for its owner. And if that is not possible, then there is no blame on you.
The questioner:
May Allah reward you with good. If they did that before the age of accountability, Shaykh Salih, is the ruling the same?
The Shaykh:
Yes, the property of people must be guaranteed by the one who is accountable and by the one who is not accountable. What involves destruction, it is obligatory to guarantee it for the young person, the adult, the insane person, and the one who is of sound mind.
The presenter:
May Allah bless you.
The Shaykh:
Because the property of people is guaranteed, yes.
She has gathered several questions for him, one of which is: The topic I am going to ask about, Honorable Shaykh, is that my sisters and I, when we were young, used to take any amount of money we found lying on the ground, whether it was a riyal, fifty riyals, or anything else. Now we have grown up and we regret it. Is anything obligatory for us now? If you know the amount you took, and it is
The Shaykh:
a large amount, then you must give it in charity with the intention of the reward for its owner, unless you know the owner, in which case it is obligatory to return the amount to him, or to ask him for forgiveness if you know him. But if you do not know him, then you give it in charity with the intention of the reward for its owner. This is if you know this amount and it is a large amount that is of concern to people of moderate means. But if it is a small amount, or if you do not know the amount, then it is obligatory for you, if you do not know its amount, to make an effort to estimate it, to determine it, and to pay what you arrive at by your estimation, giving it in charity for its owner. And if that is not possible, then there is no blame on you.
The questioner:
May Allah reward you with good. If they did that before the age of accountability, Shaykh Salih, is the ruling the same?
The Shaykh:
Yes, the property of people must be guaranteed by the one who is accountable and by the one who is not accountable. What involves destruction, it is obligatory to guarantee it for the young person, the adult, the insane person, and the one who is of sound mind.
The presenter:
May Allah bless you.
The Shaykh:
Because the property of people is guaranteed, yes.
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، ما حكم اللقطة من المال الذي كنا نجده وننفقه ونحن صغار؟ الشيخ صالح الفوزان — youtube.com
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.