A man built a house and there is an ant nest in it that is bothering him; is it permissible to destroy it?
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The questioner : Your Eminence, this man built a house on a piece of land, and there are ants in this land. So, does he say, "I will destroy them," because they have become a nuisance to him, since he built the house and the ants were there before him in this location?
The Shaykh : The ants do not own the land. Yes, if it is not possible to repel them except by destroying them, then destroy them.
But if you poured tar on them, they would flee. We have tried this with ants; you pour tar on them, and then they leave and relocate. So, if it is possible to remove them without killing them, that is better. And if it is not possible except by killing them, then there is no harm.
The questioner : Now, it was said to him, "O Shaykh: If you want to destroy them, read Surat al-Nahl in water of health and then pour it on them." Is this correct, O Shaykh?
The Shaykh : By Allah, I do not know. I do not know. What I have tried is tar, and also for ants, only for ants. That is all.
The questioner : A question from someone new to you, and I thought...
The Shaykh : And all praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions.
Until we meet again, if Allah wills. And I hope you will not put yourselves in an awkward position by asking questions after this, because I have a mosque ahead of me and the people are waiting for me, and I cannot say, "By Allah, the people held me up," so they will say, "Why did the people hold you up?"
The Shaykh : The ants do not own the land. Yes, if it is not possible to repel them except by destroying them, then destroy them.
But if you poured tar on them, they would flee. We have tried this with ants; you pour tar on them, and then they leave and relocate. So, if it is possible to remove them without killing them, that is better. And if it is not possible except by killing them, then there is no harm.
The questioner : Now, it was said to him, "O Shaykh: If you want to destroy them, read Surat al-Nahl in water of health and then pour it on them." Is this correct, O Shaykh?
The Shaykh : By Allah, I do not know. I do not know. What I have tried is tar, and also for ants, only for ants. That is all.
The questioner : A question from someone new to you, and I thought...
The Shaykh : And all praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions.
Until we meet again, if Allah wills. And I hope you will not put yourselves in an awkward position by asking questions after this, because I have a mosque ahead of me and the people are waiting for me, and I cannot say, "By Allah, the people held me up," so they will say, "Why did the people hold you up?"