What is the ruling on working in the lands of the disbelievers in order to earn money?
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The questioner : The second question asks: What is the ruling on working in the lands of the disbelievers to bring in money?
The Shaykh : We see, based on our understanding of the Book of Allah and the hadith of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and the practice of the righteous predecessors, that traveling to the lands of disbelief for the sake of trade is permissible. However, settling in the lands of disbelief for this reason or for any other reason that some Muslims today travel there for is not permissible. Nevertheless, regarding the first matter, which we base on the practice of the Companions of the Messenger of Allah in traveling to Sham for trade and the winter and summer journeys mentioned in the noble verse, this requires two conditions in my derivation and understanding. It is obligatory for every Muslim who wants to go to those lands for trade to be protected and to protect others. By "protected," I mean protected in his conduct and morals, and protected for others, meaning he must be married so that he can guard his chastity through his wife in those lands, where open sinfulness, corruption, and lewdness are more prevalent in these days than they were in the past. For if the People of the Book have strayed far astray with their disbelief in what the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) brought them, they used to hold fast to much of the morals, etiquette, and conduct that conformed to what the Messenger (peace be upon him) brought. But today, they have deviated not only from Islam but from the Torah, the Gospel, and the Psalms. So, nothing remains of the influence of their books, which they call the Holy Books, except for very formal matters. Therefore, whoever wants to go to those lands to achieve a specific, temporary benefit must be known for his good morals and conduct, and he must also be married to a righteous wife who protects him from stumbling. This is the answer to this question.
The Shaykh : We see, based on our understanding of the Book of Allah and the hadith of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and the practice of the righteous predecessors, that traveling to the lands of disbelief for the sake of trade is permissible. However, settling in the lands of disbelief for this reason or for any other reason that some Muslims today travel there for is not permissible. Nevertheless, regarding the first matter, which we base on the practice of the Companions of the Messenger of Allah in traveling to Sham for trade and the winter and summer journeys mentioned in the noble verse, this requires two conditions in my derivation and understanding. It is obligatory for every Muslim who wants to go to those lands for trade to be protected and to protect others. By "protected," I mean protected in his conduct and morals, and protected for others, meaning he must be married so that he can guard his chastity through his wife in those lands, where open sinfulness, corruption, and lewdness are more prevalent in these days than they were in the past. For if the People of the Book have strayed far astray with their disbelief in what the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) brought them, they used to hold fast to much of the morals, etiquette, and conduct that conformed to what the Messenger (peace be upon him) brought. But today, they have deviated not only from Islam but from the Torah, the Gospel, and the Psalms. So, nothing remains of the influence of their books, which they call the Holy Books, except for very formal matters. Therefore, whoever wants to go to those lands to achieve a specific, temporary benefit must be known for his good morals and conduct, and he must also be married to a righteous wife who protects him from stumbling. This is the answer to this question.
Source
www.al-albany.com
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.