If a person is a thief and lives by theft, then repents, is it obligatory for him to return everything he did? Second, if a person acquires wealth that is not lawful, then repents, what is the ruling on this wealth?
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The questioner : If a person is a thief and lives by theft, then repents, is it obligatory for him to return everything he did? Second, if a person acquires wealth that is not lawful, then repents, what is the ruling on this wealth?
The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions. As for what follows, if a person repents from theft, then part of the completion of his repentance is that he returns the wealth to its owners if they are alive, or to their heirs if they are dead.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And his repentance is not complete except by doing so. If he does not know them, such as if he has forgotten them or their locations have changed and he does not know where they went, then he gives it in charity. It is not to draw near to Allah, because it does not draw him near to Allah.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Because Allah is Pure and does not accept except what is pure. But he gives it in charity... to get rid of it and clear his conscience of its liability. So he gives it in charity with the intention that it belongs to the owner from whom he took it, and Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, is All-Knowing of that. He knows its owner and benefits him with it.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : As for what he took from the people of wealth by a forbidden way, this is divided into two categories: one is that it is with the consent of the payer, and the second is that it is without his consent.
So what he took with the consent of the payer, if the payer demanded compensation for it, he does not return it to him, because if he returns it to him, he combines for him both the compensation and the compensated item.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And if the payer did not take compensation for it, he returns it to him.
An example of the first is a man who employed a fortune-teller in fortune-telling, so he divined for him, and fortune-telling is forbidden.
The questioner : Yes, yes.
The Shaykh : .
The questioner : O Allah, send blessings.
The Shaykh : For this reason, his earnings are corrupt and forbidden. But let us suppose that the matter occurred, so he divined for him and gave him his fee, meaning his wage. Then this fortune-teller repents. He does not return this fee to the one who gave it to him, because the one who gave it to him has already taken his compensation where the fortune-teller divined for him.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : But he, the fortune-teller, gives this compensation that he took in a forbidden way in charity, and does not return it to its owner.
And as for if he took it with the consent of its owner and did not compensate him for it, then he returns it to him. For example, if he intermediates for a person in a matter that is obligatory upon him to intermediate in, such as removing injustice from him. A person intermediated for a person to remove injustice from him.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : So this is obligatory upon every Muslim to help his brother by removing injustice from him. If he does not do it except for a compensation that he takes, then this compensation is forbidden for him. So if he repents, it is obligatory for him to return the compensation to the one who entrusted it to him.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And that is because it is in exchange for a matter that is obligatory upon the doer. And whatever is obligatory upon him, it is not permissible for him to take compensation for it. This is if it is with the consent of the payer and he knows it. In this, there is this division: if he has taken compensation for it, he does not return it to him; otherwise, he returns it to him.
As for if the acquisition is without the consent of the payer, such as if he claims against a person something he does not have, then he brings a false witness and judgment is ruled in his favor against this defendant.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : So he takes it. Then it is obligatory for him, if he repents to Allah, to return it to its owner in all cases.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And likewise, if he usurps something from someone. Usurpation is not theft, because theft is taking it secretly from its protection, and usurpation is taking it openly by force. Likewise, if he usurps something from someone and then repents to Allah, it is obligatory for him to return this usurped item to its owner, because he took it without his consent.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : May Allah reward you.
This is a message that reached us about missing the Friday prayer once in order to leave the town. Its sender says: Mutayr ibn 'Aifan al-Zaydi from the Noble Makkah, the primary school in al...
The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions. As for what follows, if a person repents from theft, then part of the completion of his repentance is that he returns the wealth to its owners if they are alive, or to their heirs if they are dead.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And his repentance is not complete except by doing so. If he does not know them, such as if he has forgotten them or their locations have changed and he does not know where they went, then he gives it in charity. It is not to draw near to Allah, because it does not draw him near to Allah.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Because Allah is Pure and does not accept except what is pure. But he gives it in charity... to get rid of it and clear his conscience of its liability. So he gives it in charity with the intention that it belongs to the owner from whom he took it, and Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, is All-Knowing of that. He knows its owner and benefits him with it.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : As for what he took from the people of wealth by a forbidden way, this is divided into two categories: one is that it is with the consent of the payer, and the second is that it is without his consent.
So what he took with the consent of the payer, if the payer demanded compensation for it, he does not return it to him, because if he returns it to him, he combines for him both the compensation and the compensated item.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And if the payer did not take compensation for it, he returns it to him.
An example of the first is a man who employed a fortune-teller in fortune-telling, so he divined for him, and fortune-telling is forbidden.
The questioner : Yes, yes.
The Shaykh :
And whoever comes to a fortune-teller and believes in what he says has disbelieved in what was revealed to Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him)
ومن أتى كاهناً فصدقه بما يقول فقد كفر بما نزل على محمد صلى الله عليه وسلمThe questioner : O Allah, send blessings.
The Shaykh : For this reason, his earnings are corrupt and forbidden. But let us suppose that the matter occurred, so he divined for him and gave him his fee, meaning his wage. Then this fortune-teller repents. He does not return this fee to the one who gave it to him, because the one who gave it to him has already taken his compensation where the fortune-teller divined for him.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : But he, the fortune-teller, gives this compensation that he took in a forbidden way in charity, and does not return it to its owner.
And as for if he took it with the consent of its owner and did not compensate him for it, then he returns it to him. For example, if he intermediates for a person in a matter that is obligatory upon him to intermediate in, such as removing injustice from him. A person intermediated for a person to remove injustice from him.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : So this is obligatory upon every Muslim to help his brother by removing injustice from him. If he does not do it except for a compensation that he takes, then this compensation is forbidden for him. So if he repents, it is obligatory for him to return the compensation to the one who entrusted it to him.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And that is because it is in exchange for a matter that is obligatory upon the doer. And whatever is obligatory upon him, it is not permissible for him to take compensation for it. This is if it is with the consent of the payer and he knows it. In this, there is this division: if he has taken compensation for it, he does not return it to him; otherwise, he returns it to him.
As for if the acquisition is without the consent of the payer, such as if he claims against a person something he does not have, then he brings a false witness and judgment is ruled in his favor against this defendant.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : So he takes it. Then it is obligatory for him, if he repents to Allah, to return it to its owner in all cases.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And likewise, if he usurps something from someone. Usurpation is not theft, because theft is taking it secretly from its protection, and usurpation is taking it openly by force. Likewise, if he usurps something from someone and then repents to Allah, it is obligatory for him to return this usurped item to its owner, because he took it without his consent.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : May Allah reward you.
This is a message that reached us about missing the Friday prayer once in order to leave the town. Its sender says: Mutayr ibn 'Aifan al-Zaydi from the Noble Makkah, the primary school in al...