Changing the Endowment
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Q: We have an agricultural plot that we inherited from our father. It is cultivated when it rains and has no irrigation system. When it receives rain, we plant it, and the harvest is divided into two halves: one half for us, and the other half as a path (charity) for the crops and pasture, to be given to those who are eligible. Due to the scarcity of rain, no one is interested in farming it anymore, either because of physical inability or financial inability due to the high cost of plowing or leveling its clay soil for planting. Therefore, we wish to replace the agricultural plot with a piece of land from our own property to build a mosque on it for the village, which currently has a population of (35) people and no mosque. This would serve as a continuing charity for our father and a public benefit for the Muslims by establishing congregational prayer for the villagers and for those who pass through the village, instead of each of them praying in their own homes. We ask Your Eminence about this action: Is it permissible, and will our conscience be cleared from the deficiency in this path (the agricultural plot) whose charity is limited in benefit
by a specific time due to the rainfall? Please clarify for us whether this is permissible or not, so that we may be on clear certainty? It is known that all the heirs (a brother and a sister) agree to this action.
A: It is obligatory to adhere to what the endower specified, and it is not permissible to change the endowment to something other than what it was endowed for. Allah the Exalted said regarding bequests:[Al-Baqarah 2:181] Thus, Allah the Exalted made it clear that whoever changes the condition that the bequeather stipulated in transferring his ownership after hearing it, upon him is sin, and He threatened the one who changes it by saying: [Al-Baqarah 2:181] . If the condition does not contradict the pure Shari'ah, it is obligatory to act upon it and fulfill it according to the condition of the endower, based on the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): narrated by Abu Dawud and al-Tirmidhi, If the endowment becomes inactive, the judge in your town should be consulted to look into it and transfer it to something similar that fulfills the condition of the endower. And Allah knows best.
by a specific time due to the rainfall? Please clarify for us whether this is permissible or not, so that we may be on clear certainty? It is known that all the heirs (a brother and a sister) agree to this action.
A: It is obligatory to adhere to what the endower specified, and it is not permissible to change the endowment to something other than what it was endowed for. Allah the Exalted said regarding bequests:
Then whoever alters the bequest after he has heard it - the sin is only upon those who have altered it. Indeed, Allah is Hearing and Knowing.
فَمَنْ بَدَّلَهُ بَعْدَمَا سَمِعَهُ فَإِنَّمَا إِثْمُهُ عَلَى الَّذِينَ يُبَدِّلُونَهُ إِنَّ اللَّهَ سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌIndeed, Allah is Hearing and Knowing.
إِنَّ اللَّهَ سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌMuslims are bound by their conditions
المسلمون على شروطهم
Source
www.alifta.gov.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.