This excerpt is taken from Dr. Yusuf al-Qaradawi's book Halal and Haram in Islam, translated into Urdu by Muhammad Tahir Naqqash.
Seeking excuses for Haram is also Haram:
Where Islam has prohibited those apparent means that lead to forbidden acts, it has also declared forbidden those hidden means and satanic tricks through which the forbidden can be made permissible.
The tricks that the Jews used to make what Allah had forbidden permissible were strongly condemned by Islam. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said:
لا ترتكبوا ما ارتكبت اليهود، فتستحلوا محارم الله بأدنى الحيل
Do not do what the Jews did, that is, make what Allah has forbidden permissible through trivial tricks.
Reference: Ibn Battha in Ibatal al-Hiyal, p. 34, as in Ghaya al-Maram, and it was declared weak by Al-Albani, but he mentioned it in Adab al-Zifaf, p. 192, and after realizing it was weak, he retracted, may Allah have mercy on Al-Albani
Allah had forbidden the Jews from hunting on the Sabbath (Saturday), but they used tricks to make the forbidden permissible. They would dig trenches by the sea on Friday so that fish would gather in them on the Sabbath (Saturday), and on Sunday they would catch them. According to these tricksters, this was permissible, but according to Islamic jurists, it is forbidden because it goes against Allah’s command, whose intention was to stop hunting, whether directly or indirectly.
Changing the name or appearance of a forbidden thing while its original reality remains intact is an impermissible kind of trickery. Mere change of name or appearance cannot be accepted. If people start inventing new forms for forbidden things or resort to trickery for impure things like usury, or give a beautiful name to wine and consider drinking it permissible, then in such cases, their prohibition and sin will not change. This warning is present in the hadith where it is said:
ليستحلن طائفة من أمتي الخمر يسمونها بغير اسمها
“A group from my Ummah will change the name of wine and make it permissible.”
Reference: Musnad Ahmad 5/318, Nasa’i Kitab al-Ashriba, chapter on the status of wine, hadith 5661, Ibn Majah Kitab al-Ashriba, chapter on wine, they call it by other than its name, hadith 3385
يأتي على الناس زمان يستحلون الربا باسم البيع
“A time will come when people will make usury permissible by calling it ‘trade’.”
Reference: Ighathat al-Lahfan by Ibn al-Qayyim, may Allah have mercy on him, 1/519
And these are the deceptions of the times that people have named immoral dancing as “art,” called wine “spiritual drinks,” and usury “profit.”
Good intention does not make the forbidden permissible:
It is true that Islam has given importance to good intention and sincerity in Shariah matters, as the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said:
إنما الأعمال بالنيات وإنما لكل امرئ ما نوى
"Actions are judged by intentions, and every person will have only what they intended."
Reference: Bukhari, Book of the Beginning of Revelation, Chapter: How the Revelation Began to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), Hadith 1; Muslim, Book of Leadership, Chapter: His Saying 'Indeed, deeds are by intentions', Hadith 1907
On the basis of good intention, permissible and habitual acts become acts of obedience and nearness to Allah. For example, a person who eats with the intention that by sustaining life and strengthening the body through this means, he will be able to fulfill the duties imposed by his Lord and his national responsibilities, then his eating and drinking are all acts of worship and nearness. Similarly, a person who has intercourse with his wife for the sake of offspring or chastity, his act is also worship for which he deserves reward. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said:
وفي بضع أحدكم صدقة، قالوا يا رسول الله أيأتي أحدنا شهوته ويكون له فيها أجر؟ قال أرأيتم لو وضعها فى حرام أكان عليه فيها وزر؟ فكذلك إذا وضعها فى الحلال كان له أجر
"Even intercourse with your wife among you is charity." The Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) said: O Messenger of Allah! If a person satisfies his desire, will he also get reward? He said: If he committed unlawful intercourse, would he not be sinful? Likewise, he deserves reward for lawful intercourse."
Reference: Muslim, Book of Zakat, Chapter: Clarifying that the name 'Sadaqah' applies to every kind of good deed, Hadith 1006
Also, it is narrated in a hadith:
ومن طلب الدنيا حلالا تعففا عن المسألة وسعيا على عياله وتعطفا على جاره لقي الله ووجهه كالقمر ليلة البدر
"A person who seeks lawful things in this world to maintain his dignity, provide for his family, and be kind to his neighbor, will meet Allah with his face shining like the full moon on the fourteenth night."
Reference: Abu Nu'aym (may Allah have mercy on him) in Al-Hilyah 3/109-110, from the chain of Al-Tabarani 315 and others, and Al-Bayhaqi (may Allah have mercy on him) in Al-Sha'b 7/29, 1374, its chain is weak due to discontinuity.
Thus, every permissible act performed by a believer becomes worship based on good intention. On the contrary, a forbidden act remains forbidden no matter how good the intention is or how noble the purpose may seem. Islam does not approve of making forbidden means a way to achieve a noble goal. In Islam, both the nobility of the goal and the purity of the means to achieve it are required. Islamic Shariah does not accept the principle that the end justifies all means. Nor does it accept the principle that to achieve a correct goal, one must adopt many wrong methods. On the contrary, Islam requires that for a correct goal, the correct Shariah-compliant methods must be adopted.
Therefore, if a person earns money through usury, bribery, forbidden games, gambling, and other prohibited means with the intention of building a mosque or performing welfare services, the purity of the goal does not remove the prohibition. Because in Islam, goals and intentions do not affect the prohibition. The Prophet (peace be upon him) taught us this. He said:
إن الله طيب لا يقبل إلا طيبا وإن الله امر المؤمنين بما آمر المرسلين فقال : يَا أَيُّهَا الرُّسُلُ كُلُوا مِنَ الطَّيِّبَاتِ وَاعْمَلُوا صَالِحًا إِنِّي بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ عَلِيمٌ وقال : يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا كُلُوا مِنْ طَيِّبَاتِ مَا رَزَقْنَاكُمْ ثم ذكر الرجل يطيل السفر أشعث أغبر يمد يديه إلى السماء يا رب يا رب ومطعمه حرام ومشربه حرام وملبسه حرام وغذي بالحرام فأنى يستجاب لذلك
"Allah is pure and only accepts what is pure. He has commanded the believers with what He commanded His messengers. Thus, the Quran says: 'O Messenger! Eat of the pure things and do righteous deeds. Indeed, I am aware of what you do.' Also, He said: 'O you who believe! Eat from the good things We have provided you.' Then the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: A person travels a long journey, his hair disheveled, his feet dusty, raising his hands to the sky saying: O Lord, O Lord, but his food is unlawful, his drink is unlawful, his clothing is unlawful, and he is nourished with unlawful things. How can his supplication be accepted?"
Reference: Muslim, Book of Zakat, Chapter: Acceptance of Charity from Good Earnings, Hadith 1015; Tirmidhi, Book of Tafsir al-Quran, Chapter: From Surah Al-Baqarah, Hadith 2989
And he said:
من جمع مالا من حرام ثم تصدق به لم يكن له فيه أجر وكان اصره عليه
"He who collects unlawful wealth and then gives it as charity will have no reward for it, but the sin of unlawful earning will be upon him."
Reference: Mustadrak Hakim 1/390, Sahih Ibn Hibban Al-Ihsan 3206, Mawarid 836, 797, Sharh al-Sunnah 1591, its chain is weak
Also, he said:
لا يكسب عبد مالا حراما fيتصدق به فيقبل منه، ولا ينفق منه فيبارك له فيه، ولا يتركه خلف ظهره إلا كان زاده إلى النار إن الله تعالى لا يمحو السيئ بالسيئ، ولكن يمحو السيئ بالحسن، إن الخبيث لا يمحو الخبيث
"A servant who earns unlawful wealth and gives charity, it is not accepted. Whatever he spends from it has no blessing, and what he leaves behind becomes provision for Hellfire. Indeed, Allah does not remove evil with evil, but removes evil with good. Dirt does not remove dirt."
Reference: Musnad Ahmad 1/387, its chain is weak
Avoiding Doubts to Prevent Falling into the Forbidden:
It is the mercy of Allah Almighty that He has not left the matter of halal and haram ambiguous for people. Rather, He has made halal clear and explained the details of haram:
وقد فصل لكم ما حرم عليكم
"He has explained to you in detail what He has forbidden you."
Reference: Al-An'am: 119
Therefore, there is no harm in choosing what is clearly halal. And what is clearly haram cannot be chosen except in a state of necessity, which is explicitly stated in the Quran itself. Besides this, there is also a category of doubtful matters between clear halal and haram. In such matters, people tend to feel confusion. The reason for this is that sometimes the evidences themselves are unclear, and sometimes applying the text to a specific incident causes great confusion. Avoiding such doubtful matters is called caution and piety (taqwa) in Islam. This caution acts as a preventive measure and trains a person on the right path; otherwise, there is a fear that a person might fall into haram by engaging in doubtful matters. This principle is based on the saying of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him):
الحلال بين والحرام بين وبين ذلك أمور مستبهات، لا يدري كثير من الناس أمن الحلال هي أم الحرام، فمن تركها استبراء لدينه وعرضه فقد سلم، ومن واقع شيئا منها يوشك أن يواقع الحرام كما أن من يرعى حول الحمى أوشك أن يواقعه، ألا وإن لكل ملك حمى ألا وإن حمى الله محارمه
"Halal is clear and haram is clear, and between them are doubtful matters about which many people do not know whether they are halal or haram. Whoever avoids these doubtful matters to protect his religion and honor will be safe. But whoever falls into any of these doubtful matters is likely to fall into haram. Just as a shepherd grazes his animals near a forbidden pasture, it is likely that they will enter it. Listen! Every king has a forbidden pasture, and listen! Allah’s forbidden pasture is what He has prohibited."
Reference: Bukhari, Book of Faith, Chapter: The Virtue of One Who Guards His Religion, Hadith 52; Muslim, Book of Transactions, Chapter: Taking the Halal and Avoiding the Doubtful, Hadith 1599; Tirmidhi, Book of Sales, Chapter: What Has Been Related About Avoiding Doubtful Matters, Hadith 1205 (and the wording is his)
Forbidden, forbidden for everyone:
The ruling of prohibition (haram) in Islamic Shariah is general. It is not the case that something is haram for a non-Arab but halal for an Arab, or forbidden for a black person but permissible for a white person. Nor is the permissibility or allowance of something restricted to a particular class or group so that priests, rabbis, kings, or nobles exploit their status and name for their selfish desires. Even a Muslim has no special privilege that something is halal for a Muslim but haram for others. Rather, just as Allah is the Lord of all humans, His Shariah is the guide for all. Therefore, whatever He has declared halal in His Shariah is halal for all humans, and whatever He has declared haram is haram for all until the Day of Judgment.
For example, stealing is haram whether a Muslim steals or a non-Muslim, and whether the stolen item belongs to a Muslim or a non-Muslim. Similarly, punishment for the thief is mandatory regardless of his lineage or affiliations. This is the principle that the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) himself implemented and declared in these words:
وايم الله لو سرقت فاطمة بنت محمد لقطعت يدها
“By Allah! If Fatimah bint Muhammad (may Allah be pleased with her) were to steal, I would cut off her hand as well.”
Reference: Bukhari, Book of Hudood, Chapter: Disliking Intercession in Hudood, Hadith 6788; Muslim, Book of Hudood, Chapter: Cutting the Hand of a Noble Thief and Others, Hadith 1688
Similarly, during the time of the Prophet, there was an incident of theft in which suspicion fell on a Jew and a Muslim. The Muslim’s relatives, based on some circumstantial evidence, accused the Jew, although in reality, the Muslim had stolen. At that moment, divine revelation ensured absolute justice and acquitted the Jew. Thus, the Quran states:
اِنَّاۤ اَنْزَلْنَاۤ اِلَیْكَ الْكِتٰبَ بِالْحَقِّ لِتَحْكُمَ بَیْنَ النَّاسِ بِمَاۤ اَرٰىكَ اللّٰهُؕ وَ لَا تَكُنْ لِّلْخَآىٕنِیْنَ خَصِیْمًاۙ 105 وَّ اسْتَغْفِرِ اللّٰهَؕ اِنَّ اللّٰهَ كَانَ غَفُوْرًا رَّحِیْمًا
“This is the Book We have revealed to you, full of truth, so judge between them by what Allah has shown you. And do not be an advocate for the treacherous. And seek forgiveness of Allah. Indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful. And do not argue on behalf of those who betray themselves. Indeed, Allah does not like the treacherous and sinful.”
Reference: Tirmidhi, Book of Tafsir al-Quran, Chapter: And from Surah An-Nisa, Hadith 3036
The Jews, who had distorted their scriptures, were guilty of the treachery that usury (interest) is forbidden only when a Jew lends to his Jewish brother, but there is no harm in lending on interest to a non-Jew, as stated in the book of Deuteronomy:
“Lend to a foreigner on interest, but do not lend to your brother on interest.”
The Quran also states about them that they feel no shame or sin in betraying other nations:
وَ مِنْهُمْ مَّنْ اِنْ تَاْمَنْهُ بِدِیْنَارٍ لَّا یُؤَدِّهٖۤ اِلَیْكَ اِلَّا مَا دُمْتَ عَلَیْهِ قَآىٕمًاؕ-ذٰلِكَ بِاَنَّهُمْ قَالُوْا لَیْسَ عَلَیْنَا فِی الْاُمِّیّٖنَ سَبِیْلٌۚ وَ یَقُوْلُوْنَ عَلَى اللّٰهِ الْكَذِبَ وَ هُمْ یَعْلَمُوْنَ
“And among them are those who, if you entrust them with a great amount [of wealth], they will return it to you. But if you entrust them with a [small] amount, they will not return it unless you are constantly standing over them [demanding it]. That is because they say, ‘There is no blame upon us concerning the unlearned.’ And they speak untruth about Allah while they know [it].”
Reference: Al-Imran: 75
Indeed, they fabricated this lie against Allah because in reality, Allah’s Shariah makes no distinction among nations. Allah has declared treachery forbidden through the words of all the Prophets.
Necessities make prohibitions permissible:
Islam has given strict rulings regarding the forbidden, but it has not neglected the necessities of human life and has fully considered human weakness.
This is why Islam has permitted that a Muslim, in case of extreme necessity, may eat forbidden things to the extent necessary to save his life. For example, after Allah Almighty has commanded the prohibition of carrion, blood, and pork, He said:
فَمَنِ اضْطُرَّ غَيْرَ بَاغٍ وَلَا عَادٍ فَلَا إِثْمَ عَلَيْهِ إِنَّ اللَّهَ غَفُورٌ رَحِيمٌ
"So whoever is forced by necessity, neither desiring it nor exceeding the limit, there is no sin upon him. Indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful."
Reference: Al-Baqarah: 173
This ruling has also appeared in four other Surahs with the same meaning. In view of this and other similar verses, Islamic jurists have derived the important principle that necessities make prohibitions permissible.
But it should be noted that these verses have imposed the restriction of غَيْرَ بَاغٍ وَلَا عَادٍ on the distressed person, which has been interpreted to mean that the one who benefits from the forbidden in a state of compulsion should neither seek the pleasure of the forbidden thing nor exceed the limit of necessity in benefiting from it. From this condition, jurists have derived another principle, which is that necessity defines its own limits.
Although a person must bow before compulsion, it does not mean that he should completely surrender himself to compulsion and hand over control of his self to it. Rather, he must necessarily remain connected to the original lawful and keep seeking it. It should not happen that something which became temporarily lawful to repel necessity is taken lightly and pleasure is derived from it. Islam, by permitting prohibitions on occasions of necessity, has created great ease in accordance with its general spirit, essence, and general rules, and this confirms the statement of Allah Almighty:
يُرِيدُ اللَّهُ بِكُمُ الْيُسْرَ وَلَا يُرِيدُ بِكُمُ الْعُسْرَ
"Allah intends for you ease and does not intend for you hardship."
Reference: Al-Baqarah: 185
