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| Seeing the Holy Prophet in Dream |
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| We all see dreams during sleep. Some of us see many, and their dreams are vivid and colorful. When they wake up they are able to recount their dreams in full. Other people dream little and they are likely to forget their dreams the moment they wake up. There is no particular significance in either situation. It is all due to the make up of each person. However, when we see a dream concerning someone who is important to us, or when the dream is related to something we hold dearly, we are likely to retain that dream in our memory, even if we belong to the second type of people who normally forget their dreams on waking up. Since we have been talking in this series of articles about the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his personality, it is pertinent to ask whether it is possible to see the Prophet in our dreams. The answer is that this is quite possible. In fact some of us see him several times in their lives. They are delighted with the fact, and some of them are ready to report their seeing the Prophet whenever an occasion arises. A dream involving seeing the Prophet is likely to have a profound effect on us. Even a person of the type who forgets their dreams on waking up will remember this dream because of the special position of the Prophet. A friend of mine once told me that he never remembers his dreams, even though he only occasionally sees a dream. Nevertheless, he saw the Prophet in a dream once, many years ago. Yet whenever he wants, he recalls this dream in all its vividness. This is not surprising, because the Prophet is held so dearly by all Muslims. They love him and cherish him. Their ultimate wish is to be close to him on the Day of Judgment. So, when he appears to them in a dream, they feel such closeness to him to be real. The Prophet has made it clear that such dreams in which he appears are true. Anas quotes the Prophet as saying: �Whoever sees me in a dream has actually seen me. Satan cannot appear in my guise.� He also said: �Dreams by a believer count as one part of 46 parts of prophethood.� (Related by Al-Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Dawood, Al-Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah). In this Hadith, the Prophet makes two points, and he repeats them in other ways. An authentic Hadith reported by Abu Qatadah quotes the Prophet as saying: �Whoever sees me in a dream actually sees me in truth.� (Related by Al-Bukhari and Muslim.) A different Hadith reported by Abu Hurayrah quotes the Prophet as saying: �Whoever sees me in a dream will see me when awake. Satan cannot put on my appearance.� (Related by Al-Bukhari, Muslim, Al-Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah). The first point the Prophet makes in all these Hadiths is that a dream in which he is seen by anyone is a true dream. This applies whether he is seen in his real form, which has been described by a number of his companions, or in a different form. There will always be a clear indication in the dream to inform the dreaming person that he is seeing the Prophet. Therefore, it is not necessary that the Prophet would appear to that person in his own figure and form. Anyway, most people do not know how exactly the Prophet looked. The Prophet�s statement, �whoever sees me in a dream will see me when awake,� may be interpreted in two ways. It either relates to his contemporaries telling them that if they see the Prophet in their dreams, then they would be sure to see him in reality. If any such person lived far away from Madinah, he would be sure to visit it or see the Prophet in some other place. Alternatively, it may mean that such a person will inevitably see the Prophet on the Day of Judgment. This signifies that he or she will have nothing to fear on that day. Both interpretations may be correct, with the first one applying during the Prophet�s lifetime and the second after he has passed away. Both add to the meaning that a dream in which the Prophet figures is a true dream and when any of us sees such a dream, he has truly seen the Prophet, even though the Prophet appears in that dream in a form and shape different from what he looked like in reality. The second point is that Satan cannot put on a guise that makes him look like the Prophet, so that he could deceive people and divert them from the right path. In fact it is God who has willed that Satan cannot look like the Prophet, even in dreams. Otherwise, people would listen to Satan, thinking that they were taking orders from the Prophet. This God will not allow. Therefore, He has willed to deprive Satan of this ability so that he would never look like the Prophet, not even in people�s dreams. Again this is a special blessing, because if we talk to the Prophet in a dream and he tells us something, whatever he tells us is correct. It does not constitute any new teachings, because the divine message he delivered is complete and nothing can be added to it. Yet the Prophet may give us some guidance, which will prove to be of real benefit to us. Perhaps we should also explain that if one leads a life of piety and diligence following the Prophet�s guidance but does not see the Prophet throughout his life, this is no indication that he lacks anything. It is no reflection on his status as a good Muslim. Seeing the Prophet in dream is an act of God�s kindness, which He gives to whomever He wills, but does not add to the status of that person. Our status is determined by our actions and the intentions behind them. |
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| Is It Necessary to Remarry After Embracing Islam? |
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| Q. My wife and I were married under the civil law of our country, where Muslims are only a minority. At the time, my wife had not yet embraced Islam. Now she is a Muslim, thank God. Do we have to remarry under Islamic law? N. Militon A. No you do not have to remarry. Your marriage is valid under Islamic law. During the Prophet�s lifetime, there were many cases of husbands and wives embracing Islam at different times. Sometimes the woman accepted Islam before her husband and sometimes it was the husband who was the first to become a Muslim. The Prophet approved all their marriages. He did not ask any couple to revalidate their marriage under Islamic law. In the case of the Prophet�s own daughter, Zaynab, she embraced Islam many years before her husband. She became a Muslim in the early days of Islam, while he only became a Muslim in year 6 after the Hijrah, i.e. 19 years after the start of the prophethood of Muhammad (peace be upon him). For four years before that, she lived with her father, the Prophet, in Madinah while her husband, Abu Al-Aas, lived in Makkah. Yet when he embraced Islam, they rejoined in marriage, without going through a new marriage contract. Trading in Shares Q.1. I trade in shares and this means that at times I keep shares for a long while, and I may sell them on the same day I buy them. Is this permissible? Can I invest in all stocks? Q.2. Can we read the Qur�an and request that the reward of such reading be given to our dead relatives? In this connection, can we visit dargahs as we visit graves? . What is the correct way of ablution, or ghusl, for both husband and wife after in Q.3. Is the prohibition of wearing gold by men mentioned in the Qur�an? Aishah A.1. To start with, buying and selling shares for profit is permissible. The shares thus bought and sold should be treated in the same way as other merchandise. Therefore, on the day when the holder pays his zakah, he should include the value of all the shares he is holding, whether he has retained them for a long while or just bought them, as part of his assets and must pay zakah on them according to their value on the day. The rate of zakah on such assets is 2.5 percent of the total value. Here we distinguish such a person from one who buys shares in a particular company and retains them as he feels the company is trading well. He is looking to receive dividends for his investment. Such a person pays zakah on the dividends he receives at the rate of 10 percent. His zakah is due on the day he receives the dividends. As for the type of shares one can buy and sell, the important point to clarify is the position of a person so trading in shares for the duration between buying and selling them. Is this person an owner of a portion of the company whose shares he holds, or simply a co-traveller for part of the way, or indeed neither? Equally important is to consider whether by buying and selling these shares he is promoting its business. If he is an owner of part of the business, even though it is a tiny part, he must not hold shares in any business that Islam forbids. Thus, he cannot be a shareholder in wine brewing or selling companies, or in usurious financial institutions, or entertainment companies that rely on practices which Islam forbids. It is indeed far more preferable to avoid dealing in such shares whatever his position is. A.2. If you want to gift the reward of your Qur�anic recitation to your parents or someone else who is deceased, you should make this intention at the time of your reading. You request God to credit this reward to them. You do not need to say that you gift it first to the Prophet and then to your parents. It should be to your parents directly. The Prophet (peace be upon him) receives this reward for all the good deeds Muslims do, because he taught them to do these deeds. A dargah is a place where someone is buried whom people think to have been a saint. They do some rituals there and appeal to that dead person to help them with things in their lives. Some functions are also held there, particularly on the death anniversary of that person. All this is forbidden in Islam. Some of these practices are tantamount to associating partners with God, and this takes a person out of Islam altogether. Never visit such a place for any reason. A.3. The prohibition of wearing gold and silk for men is not mentioned in the Qur�an, but in an authentic Hadith. This means that the prohibition is no less valid because God commands us in the Qur�an to do whatever the Prophet bids us and to refrain from whatever he forbids us. |
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