A young man asks, saying that he is in a military service and twenty young men live with us, and the mosque is approximately one kilometer or a little more away.
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The questioner : May Allah reward you, O Shaykh: This is one of the young men asking, saying: He is in a military service, in a residence in a military service. He says: And twenty young men live with us, and the mosque is approximately one kilometer or a little more away. So only a few of us pray in this mosque, and the rest pray in their places in their rooms. We advised them and directed them, but they excused themselves by the distance. So this person proposed that a prayer place be established in this residence which is this far from the mosque. What is your opinion?
The Shaykh : Our opinion is that he should return to the person in charge of this unit and let him decide what he sees as best, or he should direct a question on the matter to the Department of Ifta, or to me. The important thing is that the question comes from the head of this unit, because in such a matter, I say this about myself and I advise my brothers with it:
If there is a unit in one of the jobs, and the question comes from one of those who work under his leadership, do not answer it, because you will cause fitnah (trial, discord or temptation). If you issue a fatwa to this worker based on what he sees as the truth, he will stand up to argue with the responsible authority, and there will be division and disagreement.
But if the question comes from the one who has authority and prohibition in this unit, and who is able to rule over them with what becomes clear to him from the Shari'ah, then at that time it is obligatory for you to answer. This is a matter to pay attention to, because we have tried it. For example, a soldier comes and says: What do you say about such and such? You issue a fatwa to him for the sake of a sound heart that this is haram (forbidden). What does he do?
He goes to oppose his superior in this, saying: You say do such and such, and this is the fatwa of so-and-so. In this, a greater and more severe fitnah (trial, discord or temptation) occurs. It is rare for any of the superiors to be free from the dislike of those under his command, or some of them, except what Allah wills. So you find that if he dislikes his superior, he goes to dig up to see if there are errors on his part in religious matters so that he can ask about them. Then he brings the answer from the scholar respected by everyone, and he rebuffs him in that. So the important thing is that I advise you, especially the students of knowledge, to pay attention to such matters. Yes?
The questioner : His EminenceThe Shaykh : This person will return to the religious affairs department and consult them, but he wants a religious ruling?
The Shaykh : He returns to them and consults them, or informs them about the matter.
What do you say, Ya Sa'id?
The questioner : I did not pay attention.
The Shaykh : Then, we ask Musa. Then?
Well, in any case, this session is actually a short one, because it may be half an hour or a little more. And the reason, as I told you, is that after the long absence, our tasks have multiplied. And if not for my brother Musa, may Allah reward him with good, who reminded us yesterday, we would have forgotten it. But praise be to Allah, good happened, and questions occurred. We ask Allah for us and for you beneficial knowledge and righteous deeds, and until we meet next week, if Allah wills, unless you see that we should postpone it to next week—because I may have a trip to the area around al-Qassim—then that is better and wider for you, because in this trip I must pray there. The place between us and them is one hundred kilometers or more, and I must go before the midday prayer. Do you agree to this?
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : May Allah reward you with good, and may Allah make things easy for you.
The Shaykh : Our opinion is that he should return to the person in charge of this unit and let him decide what he sees as best, or he should direct a question on the matter to the Department of Ifta, or to me. The important thing is that the question comes from the head of this unit, because in such a matter, I say this about myself and I advise my brothers with it:
If there is a unit in one of the jobs, and the question comes from one of those who work under his leadership, do not answer it, because you will cause fitnah (trial, discord or temptation). If you issue a fatwa to this worker based on what he sees as the truth, he will stand up to argue with the responsible authority, and there will be division and disagreement.
But if the question comes from the one who has authority and prohibition in this unit, and who is able to rule over them with what becomes clear to him from the Shari'ah, then at that time it is obligatory for you to answer. This is a matter to pay attention to, because we have tried it. For example, a soldier comes and says: What do you say about such and such? You issue a fatwa to him for the sake of a sound heart that this is haram (forbidden). What does he do?
He goes to oppose his superior in this, saying: You say do such and such, and this is the fatwa of so-and-so. In this, a greater and more severe fitnah (trial, discord or temptation) occurs. It is rare for any of the superiors to be free from the dislike of those under his command, or some of them, except what Allah wills. So you find that if he dislikes his superior, he goes to dig up to see if there are errors on his part in religious matters so that he can ask about them. Then he brings the answer from the scholar respected by everyone, and he rebuffs him in that. So the important thing is that I advise you, especially the students of knowledge, to pay attention to such matters. Yes?
The questioner : His EminenceThe Shaykh : This person will return to the religious affairs department and consult them, but he wants a religious ruling?
The Shaykh : He returns to them and consults them, or informs them about the matter.
What do you say, Ya Sa'id?
The questioner : I did not pay attention.
The Shaykh : Then, we ask Musa. Then?
Well, in any case, this session is actually a short one, because it may be half an hour or a little more. And the reason, as I told you, is that after the long absence, our tasks have multiplied. And if not for my brother Musa, may Allah reward him with good, who reminded us yesterday, we would have forgotten it. But praise be to Allah, good happened, and questions occurred. We ask Allah for us and for you beneficial knowledge and righteous deeds, and until we meet next week, if Allah wills, unless you see that we should postpone it to next week—because I may have a trip to the area around al-Qassim—then that is better and wider for you, because in this trip I must pray there. The place between us and them is one hundred kilometers or more, and I must go before the midday prayer. Do you agree to this?
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : May Allah reward you with good, and may Allah make things easy for you.