Ruling on directing a vow to a cause other than the one intended by the one who made the vow
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Question:
If I vowed a sum of five thousand pounds to Allah, and this amount would be sufficient to build a small mosque in my village, do I receive reward for building this mosque, or is the reward only for fulfilling the vow?
Answer:
If you vowed to Allah dirhams or anything else, you must fulfill it as you vowed or as you intended; do not change it. If you said, “It is obligatory upon me to give charity of five thousand,” and your intention was for the poor, then give it to the poor. If your intention was to build a mosque, and that is your intention, then build a mosque with it, or participate in its renovation. If your intention was to use it to renovate a school for teaching the Qur'an and studying the noble hadith, then do so. If your intention was to spend it on the mujahideen in the path of Allah, then do so, based on his saying (peace and blessings be upon him):Sahih al-Bukhari 1 It is agreed upon as authentic.
Therefore, it is obligatory upon you to direct the vow to the cause you intended or explicitly stated; based on the aforementioned hadith, and his saying (peace and blessings be upon him):Sunan Ibn Majah 2126Sahih (Darussalam) It was narrated by Imam Muslim in the Sahih.
And Allah has praised those who fulfill their vows in the Qur'an in Surat al-Insan, and He said: [al-Insan:7], and He says: [al-Baqarah:270]; meaning: He will reward you for it .
Therefore, it is obligatory upon everyone who makes a vow of obedience to fulfill it; whether it is in establishing a school, or a mosque, or charity in other charitable works.
If I vowed a sum of five thousand pounds to Allah, and this amount would be sufficient to build a small mosque in my village, do I receive reward for building this mosque, or is the reward only for fulfilling the vow?
Answer:
If you vowed to Allah dirhams or anything else, you must fulfill it as you vowed or as you intended; do not change it. If you said, “It is obligatory upon me to give charity of five thousand,” and your intention was for the poor, then give it to the poor. If your intention was to build a mosque, and that is your intention, then build a mosque with it, or participate in its renovation. If your intention was to use it to renovate a school for teaching the Qur'an and studying the noble hadith, then do so. If your intention was to spend it on the mujahideen in the path of Allah, then do so, based on his saying (peace and blessings be upon him):
The reward of deeds depends upon the intentions and every person will get the reward according to what he has intended.
إنما الأعمال بالنيات وإنما لكل امرئ ما نوىTherefore, it is obligatory upon you to direct the vow to the cause you intended or explicitly stated; based on the aforementioned hadith, and his saying (peace and blessings be upon him):
Whoever vows to obey Allah, let him obey Him, and whoever vows to disobey Allah, let him not disobey Him.
من نذر أن يطيع الله فليطعه، ومن نذر أن يعصي الله فلا يعصهAnd Allah has praised those who fulfill their vows in the Qur'an in Surat al-Insan, and He said:
They [are those who] fulfill [their] vows and fear a Day whose evil will be widespread.
يُوفُونَ بِالنَّذْرِ وَيَخَافُونَ يَوْمًا كَانَ شَرُّهُ مُسْتَطِيرًاAnd whatever you spend of expenditures or make of vows - indeed, Allah knows of it
وَمَا أَنفَقْتُم مِّن نَّفَقَةٍ أَوْ نَذَرْتُم مِّن نَّذْرٍ فَإِنَّ اللّهَ يَعْلَمُهُTherefore, it is obligatory upon everyone who makes a vow of obedience to fulfill it; whether it is in establishing a school, or a mosque, or charity in other charitable works.
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.