Excerpt from "Aḥkām o Masāʾil Kitāb o Sunnat kī Roshnī Mein" by Shaykh Mubashir Ahmad Rabbānī
Are religious madāris (seminaries) and institutions included in the category of "fī sabīlillāh" (in the way of Allah)? Can spending on them—such as arranging salaries for teachers—be considered part of fī sabīlillāh? Kindly explain in light of the Qurʾān and Sunnah.
In the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, the term "fī sabīlillāh" (in the way of Allah) applies both to jihād and to various acts of righteousness.
Where the Qurʾān mentions the eight categories of zakāh recipients, one of them is "fī sabīlillāh", which primarily refers to jihād, and some commentators have also included ḥajj (pilgrimage) in its meaning.
"As for 'fī sabīlillāh', it refers to the warriors (ghuzāt) who do not receive a stipend from the treasury. According to Imām Aḥmad, Ḥasan al-Baṣrī, and Isḥāq ibn Rāhwayh, ḥajj also falls under 'fī sabīlillāh' based on a hadith."
Numerous authentic, noble, and well-known ḥadīths demonstrate that the term "fī sabīlillāh" is also applied to other virtuous deeds besides jihād.
Imām al-Bukhārī رحمه الله narrates the ḥadīth of ʿUbāyah ibn Rifāʿah:
"Abū ʿAbs رضي الله عنه met me while I was going to Jumuʿah and said: I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say:
‘Whoever's feet become dusty in the path of Allah, Allah will make the Fire forbidden upon him.’"
This indicates that Abū ʿAbs ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Jabr رضي الله عنه considered going to Jumuʿah to be fī sabīlillāh.
Imām al-Tirmidhī رحمه الله narrates from Anas ibn Mālik رضي الله عنه:
"Whoever goes out in search of knowledge is in the path of Allah until he returns."
Imām al-Tirmidhī classified the ḥadīth as gharīb, but Shaykh al-Albānī رحمه الله graded it ḥasan li-ghayrih, and ʿAllāmah Mubārakpūrī رحمه الله noted that it is also narrated by al-Dārimī and al-Ḍiyāʾ al-Maqdisī.
From Abū Hurayrah رضي الله عنه, the Prophet ﷺ said:
"Whoever comes to my mosque only to learn or teach knowledge, he is like one striving in the path of Allah. And whoever comes for another purpose is like a man looking at others’ belongings."
This ḥadīth shows that learning and teaching religious knowledge is considered fī sabīlillāh.
Based on the evidences from Qurʾān and Sunnah:
✔ Madāris (religious seminaries) that are engaged in promoting and teaching the sciences of the Qurʾān and Sunnah and preparing scholars, teachers, preachers, and even warriors for the cause of Islam—they too are serving in the path of Allah.
✔ Supporting such institutions financially, including arranging salaries for teachers, is rightly counted as fī sabīlillāh.
✔ It is through the blessing of these institutions that mujahidīn have emerged to resist disbelief in various regions of the world.
❖ Question:
Are religious madāris (seminaries) and institutions included in the category of "fī sabīlillāh" (in the way of Allah)? Can spending on them—such as arranging salaries for teachers—be considered part of fī sabīlillāh? Kindly explain in light of the Qurʾān and Sunnah.
❖ Answer:
In the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, the term "fī sabīlillāh" (in the way of Allah) applies both to jihād and to various acts of righteousness.
Where the Qurʾān mentions the eight categories of zakāh recipients, one of them is "fī sabīlillāh", which primarily refers to jihād, and some commentators have also included ḥajj (pilgrimage) in its meaning.
❖ Imām Ibn Kathīr رحمه الله writes:
"As for 'fī sabīlillāh', it refers to the warriors (ghuzāt) who do not receive a stipend from the treasury. According to Imām Aḥmad, Ḥasan al-Baṣrī, and Isḥāq ibn Rāhwayh, ḥajj also falls under 'fī sabīlillāh' based on a hadith."
Reference: Tafsīr Ibn Kathīr, 3/403, ed. ʿAbd al-Razzāq al-Mahdī
❖ Broader Application in Hadith:
Numerous authentic, noble, and well-known ḥadīths demonstrate that the term "fī sabīlillāh" is also applied to other virtuous deeds besides jihād.
① Walking to Jumuʿah as Fī Sabīlillāh
Imām al-Bukhārī رحمه الله narrates the ḥadīth of ʿUbāyah ibn Rifāʿah:
"Abū ʿAbs رضي الله عنه met me while I was going to Jumuʿah and said: I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say:
‘Whoever's feet become dusty in the path of Allah, Allah will make the Fire forbidden upon him.’"
Reference: Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, Kitāb al-Jumuʿah, Bāb al-Mashī ilā al-Jumuʿah, no. 907
This indicates that Abū ʿAbs ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Jabr رضي الله عنه considered going to Jumuʿah to be fī sabīlillāh.
② Seeking Islamic Knowledge as Fī Sabīlillāh
Imām al-Tirmidhī رحمه الله narrates from Anas ibn Mālik رضي الله عنه:
"Whoever goes out in search of knowledge is in the path of Allah until he returns."
Reference: Sunan al-Tirmidhī, Kitāb al-ʿIlm, Bāb Faḍl Ṭalab al-ʿIlm, no. 2647
Imām al-Tirmidhī classified the ḥadīth as gharīb, but Shaykh al-Albānī رحمه الله graded it ḥasan li-ghayrih, and ʿAllāmah Mubārakpūrī رحمه الله noted that it is also narrated by al-Dārimī and al-Ḍiyāʾ al-Maqdisī.
③ Teaching and Learning in the Masjid
From Abū Hurayrah رضي الله عنه, the Prophet ﷺ said:
"Whoever comes to my mosque only to learn or teach knowledge, he is like one striving in the path of Allah. And whoever comes for another purpose is like a man looking at others’ belongings."
Reference: Sunan Ibn Mājah 227; Ṣaḥīḥ al-Targhīb wa al-Tarhīb 1/146; Musnad Aḥmad 2/350, ḥadīth 8587
This ḥadīth shows that learning and teaching religious knowledge is considered fī sabīlillāh.
❖ Conclusion:
Based on the evidences from Qurʾān and Sunnah:
✔ Madāris (religious seminaries) that are engaged in promoting and teaching the sciences of the Qurʾān and Sunnah and preparing scholars, teachers, preachers, and even warriors for the cause of Islam—they too are serving in the path of Allah.
✔ Supporting such institutions financially, including arranging salaries for teachers, is rightly counted as fī sabīlillāh.
✔ It is through the blessing of these institutions that mujahidīn have emerged to resist disbelief in various regions of the world.
