Ask a muslim scholar July 2020

Is it permissible to donate blood?

Blood donation is considered an extremely meritorious and rewarding act of charity in
Islam; since Islam exhorts us to be charitable to all of God's creation; we cannot think of
any charity greater
than a gift of life. It is a matter of common knowledge that in many cases, persons injured
in accidents, etc. can only be saved from imminent death if they are given enough blood to
replace what they have lost.
So by giving blood, which is in short supply today, Muslims are helping people live; by
doing this they are indeed carrying out the order of Allah,"Whoever saves the life of a single
person, it is as if he has saved  all of humanity." (Al-Ma'idah: 32)
Based on the above and similar considerations, scholars and jurists have agreed that
Muslims should have no inhibitions whatsoever in donating blood in the communities they
are living. They should consider such activities as a most rewarding act of charity.
We cannot make any distinction between Muslims and non-Muslims in donating and
receiving blood; all of our bodies and faculties are in a way Muslim (obedient to the laws of
Allah). Just as Islam encourages us to be charitable to all regardless of differences of
religion or race, there is no distinction to be made in giving or receiving blood; for there
can be no greater gift of charity than blood donation as it amounts to saving a life. The
Quranic mandate for Muslims is to foster life and be engaged in activities that strengthen
and maintain it in all forms the opposite of which is fasad or destruction-including all
activities that diminish or destroy life in various forms.
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) has exhorted the faithful to be engaged in
charitable deeds every single day; he is reported to have said,"Everyday that sun shines,
every one of you ought to do some charitable deeds."He then counted numerous examples of
charity all of which are intended to enhance the quality of life. He also said," You will be
rewarded for any act of compassion rendered to any creature with a throbbing heart/liver."
In other words, fostering and maintaining life in all forms, human and others, is indeed one
of the most meritorious acts, entailing greatest of rewards in the sight of Allah. How can it
be otherwise, when humans are the trustees of the earth, and as such we are to enhance
God's work?

In conclusion: Blood donation undoubtedly tops the list of charitable deeds in Islam.
Therefore, Muslims should consider it a priority in participating in all such life-saving
ventures/projects-including organizing blood banks.
I pray to Allah to give us the honor of saving lives and thus earn His goodly rewards in both
worlds-Aameen."
How do you gain back control over your body or your nafs? I feel as though I'm becoming a
slave to my bodily desires (food/sleep/sexual desires). I have no illness or anything my
bodily desires just seem to be overpowering me and it's hard for me to control it. I'm not
asking about the punishments of such sort of sins that I'm involved in as a result of me
giving into my desires (as I'm already WELL aware of them) I'm just asking about how to
overcome such a challenge that's leading me down a path of sin.
I commend you for your feeling of remorse over your sins. Recognizing the gravity of sins
is, however, the first step; following it up by taking immediate, active steps towards
repentance and doing what it takes to remain steadfast on it is even more important. You
can only achieve success in this through self-motivation by convincing yourself of the
gravity of the situation and linking your behavior with pure pain and suffering. Once you
have done so by gaining enough knowledge of the gravity of sins, the next step is to start
doing the opposite. For we cannot get rid of any bad habit, unless we replace it by another
good one; habits are repeated actions that we do day in and day out
As salam alaikum .i live with my inlaws and Due to some problems at home my husband
stopped talking with his mother and i have also limited myself as well to avoid
unnecessary arguments with her so that to prevent myself from doing sin by making an
argument with her . But we respect her and i pray for her well being always . So i want to
know weather we are doing right or will my husband be punished for not talking with his
mother who does not make an attempt to sort out things and gets angry alwsys on little
things
I would urge your husband to ask forgiveness of his mom and resume talking to her
immediately.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “It is not permissible for a person who believes in Allah
and the Last Day to stop talking to his brother for more than three days: they avoid each other
when they meet. The best of the two is the one who starts talking first.” (Reported by Ibn
Hibban and others)

If this is is what is expected of us in dealing with fellow Muslims, then imagine the gravity
of the situation in regards to our parents, even more so one’s mother. The right of a
mother takes precedence over even that of a father or other relations; it comes second
only to our duties towards Allah.
Therefore, the Prophet (peace be upon him) considered displeasing one’s parents as the
greatest of all sins, second only to shirk. “Shall I tell you of three gravest sins: it is to associate
partners with Allah; displeasing one’s parents and bearing false witness – he repeated the last
one three times.” (Reported by Bukhari)
So, he should seize the opportunity of the blessed months when there remain a few days
to seek repentance and come clean. Otherwise, I am afraid he will end up as one of the
losers as the Prophet (peace be upon him) warned: “He or she is indeed is the loser who
comes out of the month of Ramadan without attaining forgiveness of Allah.” (Reported by
Tirmidhi)
The fact that his mother is acting rudely towards him does not justify his boycott of his
mother. He should forgive her and tolerate her irritable behavior (perhaps it could be due
to old age), and continue speaking with her most kindly. He should never react to her
mistakes in this way. He should rise above her standards; after all, she is the mother; and
she gave birth to him and endured so much nurturing and caring for him.
You should also take immediate steps to mend your relations with her. And never
condone your husband’s behavior towards his mother. You may do well to take the
initiative in achieving reconciliation between them to the best of your ability. If you do,
you will earn double rewards. I pray to Allah to help us all seize the blessings of the month
to repent and come out as winners with clean slates.