The Shaykh’s clarification of some examples of forbidden matters that people circumvent by giving them other names to market them to the ignorant among the common people

The Shaykh : The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) informed us by saying: , "They will drink intoxicants and call them by other names." This is a very great news from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he informed us of what is happening today, especially regarding some intoxicants, where they name them with names that beautify the consumption of intoxicants for people, such as their claimed name: "alcoholic beverages." They call intoxicants "alcoholic beverages," meaning: it refreshes the spirit, whereas in reality it destroys it. Likewise, today they call riba (usury or interest)—and I hope you will pay attention and not get entangled in using the innovated term that has replaced the legislated term—they call riba (usury or interest) "profit." Look at the difference now between the Shari'ah term: riba (usury or interest), , what did they call riba (usury or interest)?

The questioner : Profits.

The Shaykh : Profit. And you will find good, righteous Muslims, who does not eat riba (usury or interest) and does not approach it at all, but when he wants to ask, he says, "What is the ruling on profit?!" He has forgotten the name of riba (usury or interest), he has forgotten the name that Allah (Mighty and Majestic) gave to this forbidden money. Therefore, just as the disbelievers have removed the word riba (usury or interest) from their dictionaries, it is obligatory for you, O Muslims who are mindful of the Lord of the Worlds, to remove the word "profit" from your language in the context of money acquired through a forbidden path, and to name it with the name your Lord named it in the Qur'an, which is: riba (usury or interest). Because among the signs of the corruption of society is that they name the things Allah has forbidden by other names, . In the past, some of them got entangled and called intoxicants "nabidh" (wine); knowing that nabidh is an old Arabic term, but its usage was in a legislated and permissible meaning, which is known as: -I do not know what you call it- "naqo'." You say: "naqo'." If we take dates and throw them into water, what do you call it?

The questioner : Naqo'.

The Shaykh : Yes?

The questioner : Naqo'.

The Shaykh : Good, naqo'. This is linguistically called: nabidh, from the root nabadha yabidhu, meaning to throw. So this is nabidh, fa'il in the meaning of maf'ul, meaning something thrown into it. This water has these dates or grapes, or anything of its nature to dissolve and sweeten this water, thrown into it. Then if it continues, it is of its nature to ferment. So nabidh in the language of the Shari'ah does not mean the intoxicating drink, but Satan suggested to some of them in the past to call a type of intoxicants nabidh. As for now, they have called it by another name: whiskey, alcoholic beverages, and the like. The circle of changing these names has expanded with a very astonishing amount. So they call, for example, the forbidden image-making and the forbidden dancing: "fine arts." All of this is forbidden and not permissible. Therefore, do not use the word "profit" in place of riba (usury or interest). Reverse it and you will hit the mark. Furthermore, do not be an agent or an employee in a bank that deals in riba (usury or interest), even if you were the lowest employee in that bank. What is the lowest employee? It is the servant who stands up and sweeps the dust or the smoke, which is a trace of the smoking of those people inside the bank. This is cooperation in evil, and this is not permissible in the Qur'an and also in the Sunnah.
Yes.