What is the ruling on using prayer beads?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : Regarding this matter, I have permitted it; as for the prayer beads, it is permissible to use them, meaning they are not considered a religious innovation.
The Shaykh : Yes, but you did not start with me when I told you that you were fiddling with them; you said, "No, I am remembering Allah."
The questioner : Yes, I am remembering Allah.
The Shaykh : No, I did not say that. I said you were fiddling with them. You said, "No, I do not fiddle with them; rather, I am remembering Allah." I did not say that it is permissible to remember Allah through a religious innovation.
The questioner : I mean, with these prayer beads, sometimes I remember Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He) and I do not fiddle with them. So if I remember Allah with them, it is not permissible, and if I fiddle with them, it is permissible?
The Shaykh : Do you see? Is that logic?
The student: If you are playing with them like that, it is not one of the matters of religion.
The Shaykh : We told him, "Are you fiddling with them?" He said, "No."
The questioner : The Shaykh is saying to me...
The Shaykh : I assumed, out of good opinion of you, that you use them to fiddle with them for amusement. He said, "No, I remember Allah with them."
The questioner : By Allah, my Shaykh, it is a notable matter. When a person is committed, he has prayer beads, as if he is remembering [Allah] and is committed to glorification. But we heard that it is a religious innovation and such, so the person ends up forgetting the times for his regular recitations, meaning a specific number of glorifications and seeking forgiveness.
The Shaykh : May Allah send prayers upon Muhammad... Do not be an aid to Satan against your brother.
The questioner : No, I have a specific situation. It is true that I... I glorify [Allah]. This is a special case for me.
The Shaykh : Yes, but here there is... if you notice, in the Syrian expression, "the earth is inhabited"
The questioner : There is no power and no strength except with Allah
The student: By Allah, we know, praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, first by the grace of Allah, then by your grace and your knowledge, we have benefited... and we learned from you long ago that in these matters, a person must glorify [Allah] with his hand, and the Prophet, when he entered upon Aisha, and so on, and that these are things that will be asked about on the Day of Resurrection and will testify for us. We do this, if Allah wills. I do not say we are adding to the Sunnah, but rather it is a reminder so that a person remembers Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He) in all his states. So a person, when he finds something, sometimes a person is... Subhan Allah, Alhamdulillah, La ilaha illa Allah, Allahu Akbar, and there is no power or strength except with Allah.
The Shaykh : And the evidence is that the doctor glorifies [Allah] with them.
The questioner : Without being committed to a specific recitation or a specific form.
The student: Okay... So now, as for the report from one of the Mothers of the Believers, Juwayriyah, it is weak.
The Shaykh : Yes, I am saying, my brother, I have two things in my mind that I see as contradictory, so we need a solution to this contradiction. We say, "We learned from you, by the grace of Allah, then by your grace," but then you say, "I am not strict like in your story," so I do not know how to reconcile these two.
The student: No, he learned, praise be to Allah, from your knowledge.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The student: Sound creed.
Another student: Please, Shaykh.
The Shaykh : Give them news so the women can prepare, because their conversation is long, behind the doors, you know.
The student: In half an hour, for example.
The Shaykh : No, now you tell them, it is not your concern.
The student: No... but he still has some things.
The Shaykh : ...
The student: ... some of the reckless ones, may Allah guide us and him.
The Shaykh : Ameen
The student: ... the one who is spiritually attracted... to a man, once, actually, I asked him about you, and he spoke well of you.
The Shaykh : Yes, but you did not start with me when I told you that you were fiddling with them; you said, "No, I am remembering Allah."
The questioner : Yes, I am remembering Allah.
The Shaykh : No, I did not say that. I said you were fiddling with them. You said, "No, I do not fiddle with them; rather, I am remembering Allah." I did not say that it is permissible to remember Allah through a religious innovation.
The questioner : I mean, with these prayer beads, sometimes I remember Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He) and I do not fiddle with them. So if I remember Allah with them, it is not permissible, and if I fiddle with them, it is permissible?
The Shaykh : Do you see? Is that logic?
The student: If you are playing with them like that, it is not one of the matters of religion.
The Shaykh : We told him, "Are you fiddling with them?" He said, "No."
The questioner : The Shaykh is saying to me...
The Shaykh : I assumed, out of good opinion of you, that you use them to fiddle with them for amusement. He said, "No, I remember Allah with them."
The questioner : By Allah, my Shaykh, it is a notable matter. When a person is committed, he has prayer beads, as if he is remembering [Allah] and is committed to glorification. But we heard that it is a religious innovation and such, so the person ends up forgetting the times for his regular recitations, meaning a specific number of glorifications and seeking forgiveness.
The Shaykh : May Allah send prayers upon Muhammad... Do not be an aid to Satan against your brother.
The questioner : No, I have a specific situation. It is true that I... I glorify [Allah]. This is a special case for me.
The Shaykh : Yes, but here there is... if you notice, in the Syrian expression, "the earth is inhabited"
The questioner : There is no power and no strength except with Allah
The student: By Allah, we know, praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, first by the grace of Allah, then by your grace and your knowledge, we have benefited... and we learned from you long ago that in these matters, a person must glorify [Allah] with his hand, and the Prophet, when he entered upon Aisha, and so on, and that these are things that will be asked about on the Day of Resurrection and will testify for us. We do this, if Allah wills. I do not say we are adding to the Sunnah, but rather it is a reminder so that a person remembers Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He) in all his states. So a person, when he finds something, sometimes a person is... Subhan Allah, Alhamdulillah, La ilaha illa Allah, Allahu Akbar, and there is no power or strength except with Allah.
The Shaykh : And the evidence is that the doctor glorifies [Allah] with them.
The questioner : Without being committed to a specific recitation or a specific form.
The student: Okay... So now, as for the report from one of the Mothers of the Believers, Juwayriyah, it is weak.
The Shaykh : Yes, I am saying, my brother, I have two things in my mind that I see as contradictory, so we need a solution to this contradiction. We say, "We learned from you, by the grace of Allah, then by your grace," but then you say, "I am not strict like in your story," so I do not know how to reconcile these two.
The student: No, he learned, praise be to Allah, from your knowledge.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The student: Sound creed.
Another student: Please, Shaykh.
The Shaykh : Give them news so the women can prepare, because their conversation is long, behind the doors, you know.
The student: In half an hour, for example.
The Shaykh : No, now you tell them, it is not your concern.
The student: No... but he still has some things.
The Shaykh : ...
The student: ... some of the reckless ones, may Allah guide us and him.
The Shaykh : Ameen
The student: ... the one who is spiritually attracted... to a man, once, actually, I asked him about you, and he spoke well of you.