Question

1. There is a saying in west that if a mountain doesn’t come…….I won’t say whole of it as I have heard that it’s not good for Muslim to repeat it I can tell you that it originated from francis bacon’s writing so that you can search for it. I first heard it in a tv show I stopped watching it then as this saying has no evidence in Islam rather it’s fabricated. Will it nullify religion or will it be kufr if I watch other programs made by that channel through online sites? so that makers won’t get profit .

2. The channel I am referring to suppose it’s A and it has another sister channel called X . One of my friend works for X and in her country its available in local version and shows programs that are made by local production houses . But if she’s working for that channel by working in a production house that works for channel X so is she committing kufr?? As there’s a relation between those channels A and X .

Can you tell which school of thought do you follow as I am follower of Hanafi school of thought.

Answer:

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

As-salāmu ʿalaykum wa-rahmatullāhi wa-barakātuh.

At the outset, answers given through fatwa.ca are according to Hanafi school of thought.

1.) Regarding listening to kufr statements, discussions or programs that may be questionable from the Islamic viewpoint, if it is for learning purposes, to utilize such knowledge for the sake of informing and equipping oneself to protect oneself and community from the misguidance & ploys of the kuffar, then this is permissible for those who are firm in faith.

وَأَعِدُّوا لَهُمْ مَا اسْتَطَعْتُمْ مِنْ قُوَّةٍ وَمِنْ رِبَاطِ الْخَيْلِ تُرْهِبُونَ بِهِ عَدُوَّ اللَّهِ وَعَدُوَّكُمْ (سورة الأنفال: 60)

“Prepare against them whatever you can of power and war-horses, awing thereby the enemy of Allah, and your enemy…” (Qurʾan 8:60)

As for those who may fall into doubts and confusion by listening or watching such material then they should avoid it.

إِذَا رَأَيْتَ ٱلَّذِينَ يَخُوضُونَ فِىٓ ءَايَٰتِنَا فَأَعْرِضْ عَنْهُمْ حَتَّىٰ يَخُوضُواْ فِى حَدِيثٍ غَيْرِهِۦ ۚ وَإِمَّا يُنسِيَنَّكَ ٱلشَّيْطَٰنُ فَلَا تَقْعُدْ بَعْدَ ٱلذِّكْرَىٰ مَعَ ٱلْقَوْمِ ٱلظَّٰلِمِينَ (سورة الأنعام: 68)

“When you come across people who speak with scorn about Our revelations, turn away from them until they move on to another topic. If shaytan should make you forget, then, when you have remembered, do not sit with those who are doing wrong.” (Qurʾan 6:68)

Hakim al-Ummah Mawlana Ashraf ‘Ali Thanwi (may Allah have mercy upon him) was asked a similar question regarding the media outlets of his time which had all sorts of permissible, impermissible and misguided information therein. The fatwa has been translated for your benefit below[1]:

Question: What do the honorable scholars say about that individual who reads the newspapers in which there are all sorts of narratives, which could be true or false.

Some of the narratives may be complaints, baseless information, and other matters that are completely in opposition to the Sharia.

Some say that there might be some worldly and after worldly benefit in reading such newspapers. There are many lessons that can be derived from these articles and the and we come to know of the condition of Muslims from all around the world. Such as if they were Muslims who are suffering, or Muslims that have been attacked by disbelievers, by which we can come to know of it in order to help them one way or the other.

 In some articles there are objections against Islam which is important for Muslims to know about in order to defend their faith. It is through the news (media) by which we come to know of this. In this discussion whose statement is true and which opinion should we follow?

Answer: That individual who can guard himself from the harms and attain benefit from such news and media, it is permissible for him otherwise deferring of harm takes precedence over accruing of benefit.[2]

With that being understood, what you have mentioned would not nullify one’s faith or constitute an act of disbelief. As far as you not watching a specific channel to not support them through the profits they receive, if the channel is educational/informational and there is no direct support of that which is blatantly anti-Islamic, then you should not delve into this matter too deeply.

2.) This brings us to the matter of working for a specific channel that may have questionable material, or something that may be un-islamic.

First and foremost, it is inappropriate for a Muslim to work for any company that promotes open sinfulness, lewdness, immodesty, shamelessness, or un-Islamic material. Similarly, media industry in most of its forms have many other impermissible elements in them, like tasawīr (imagery) and music. One would need to be very careful about their job duties, and who one is working for.

If the channel is educational, or purely informational, then this is not direct involvement in promoting un-islamic material [3]. And this would not constitute kufr. The involvement, however, will still need to be reviewed so that the barakah (blessings) of one’s income is not tainted with participation or promotion of any impermissible elements. One’s employment that brings in the income for the family should not only be Halal (void of anything haram) rather also Tayyib (wholesome) void of any karahiya (dislikeness).

And Allah Ta’āla Knows Best

Maulana Tameem Ahmadi
Union City, CA.
U.S.A

Checked and Approved by:

Mufti Faisal bin Abdul Hamīd al-Mahmudi
www.fatwa.ca

[1] امداد الفتاوى، جديد مطوّل حاشيه: 9/153-154؛ دار اشاعت، كراجي

[2] (شرح الحموي على الأشباه و النظائر؛ 1/264، ‏منشورات إدارة القرآن والعلوم الإسلامية، 1424ھ)

در المفاسد أولى من جلب المصالح، فإذا تعارضت مفسدة ومصلحة قدم دفع المفسدة غالبا؛ لأن اعتناء الشرع بالمنهيّات أشد من اعتنائها‏ بالمأمورات، ولذا قال عليه الصلاة والسلام إذا أمرتكم بشيء فاتوا منه ما استطعتم وإذا نهيتكم عن شيء فاجتنبوه

و روي في الكشف حديثا لترك ذرة مما نهى الله عنه أفضل من عبادة الثقلين

[3] العناية شرح الهداية: كتاب الكراهية فصل في البيع؛ 6/141-142، دار الكتب العلمية
قال: “ويكره بيع السلاح في أيام الفتنة” معناه ممن يعرف أنه من أهل الفتنة؛ لأنه تسبيب إلى المعصية وقد بيناه في السير، وإن كان لا يعرف أنه من أهل الفتنة لا بأس بذلك؛ لأنه يحتمل أن لا يستعمله في الفتنة فلا يكره بالشك.

قال: “ولا بأس ببيع العصير ممن يعلم أنه يتخذه خمرا”؛ لأن المعصية لا تقام بعينه بل بعد تغييره، بخلاف بيع السلاح في أيام الفتنة لأن المعصية تقوم بعينه.

قال: “ومن أجر بيتا ليتخذ فيه بيت نار أو كنيسة أو بيعة أو يباع فيه الخمر بالسواد فلا بأس به” وهذا عند أبي حنيفة، وقالا: لا ينبغي أن يكريه لشيء من ذلك؛ لأنه إعانة على المعصية. وله أن الإجارة ترد على منفعة البيت، ولهذا تجب الأجرة بمجرد التسليم، ولا معصية فيه، وإنما المعصية بفعل المستأجر، وهو مختار فيه فقطع نسبته عنه، وإنما قيده بالسواد لأنهم لا يمكنون من اتخاذ البيع والكنائس وإظهار بيع الخمور والخنازير في الأمصار لظهور شعائر الإسلام فيها. بخلاف السواد. قالوا: هذا كان في سواد الكوفة، لأن غالب أهلها أهل الذمة. فأما في سوادنا فأعلام الإسلام فيها ظاهرة فلا يمكنون فيها أيضا، وهو الأصح