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If a man want to marry a second, third or fourth wife does he need the permission of his first wife?

The same answer applies for the second, third or fourth, it is not required as long as they are Muslim.

• family relations
• permissibility

Is it correct that Sayyid Sistani has ruled that Muslims living in the West are not allowed to shave their beards even for the sake of gaining employment?

Shaving the beard is not permitted based on obligatory precaution. However, if it imposes unbearable hardship on a person it is permissible to shave it. But usually, a beard does not interfere with gaining employment nor impose any hardship.

• beard
• permissibility

We are a group of believers who have owned Dairy Queen franchises for more than 30 years, this is the only business we have and our livelihood is dependent on it. As part of our contractual obligation we must sell sandwiches made out of pork, which is less than 3% of our total sales. We have been giving the profit earned from this sale to the poor, are we allowed to do so?

Can one of us lead congregational prayers in the absence of the resident scholar of the center or not? And if not, why? Are we considered unjust believers for selling the pork at our franchise? And if this is the reason, does it apply to someone who is retired from the business?

Transactions that involve pork such as buying, selling, serving, and the like are impermissible regardless of their percentage 100% or 3%. However, based on what is mentioned, that there is a contract in place that obligates the selling of pork and not abiding by the contract will impose unbearable hardship on the Muslim sellers such as loss of living income, then the amount received from selling pork must be separated and given to the jurist or obtain his permission in disbursing it on the poor because such revenue cannot be possessed under any condition.

As for leading congregational prayers, it requires conditions including knowing the rulings of salat, reciting correctly, and most important the state of justice (adalah). Being just means to be committed to the obligatory duties in Islam and abstain from forbidden acts. Therefore, if a small sin is committed the person must hasten his repentance to gain back the state of being just. Thus, being involved in prohibited acts makes the person unqualified to lead prayers unless the person has a valid excuse such as the case in question.

• business
• haram
• haram food
• permissibility
• prayer

Workplace toilets (i.e. the seats) in the U.S. are usually soiled with urine. For this reason, I do not use them, however, on some days I find them without any urine. That being said, I do not know how they are cleaned and surmise that it is not with water (as Islam requires) because there are no water hoses in the toilets.

It is permissible to use these toilets?

If water splashes from the parts of the toilet that are soiled with urine onto the body is this najis? How can a person use such toilets without becoming mutanajjis?

It is possible to use these toilets without becoming najis or impure in the following ways:

Using the disposable paper seat covers to sit on while using the toilet, thus, there is no contact between the toilet and the body.

If both the toilet and body are dry then there is no problem because the requirement for transfer of impurity from the toilet to the body is [by] wetness. That is if there is a possibility that the toilet (i.e. seat) has impurity on it.

If water from a part of the toilet that is impure (i.e. mutanajjis), whether that is the seat or otherwise, comes into contact with the body then it will make the body impure.

• bathroom
• impurities
• urine

Q1. Under what circumstances of inability to perform salat normally (i.e. while sitting) on the plane, do you have to repeat your prayers when you arrive at your destination (with the intention of qadha)?

Q2. It is not always easy to determine the time for any salat on the plane. Please advise on how this should be done, particularly when traveling long distances.

A1. You must pray within the time for prayer, even if you cannot fulfill all of the conditions for prayer. So, on the plane, you must try to face the qiblah and pray standing. If, for instance, there is turbulence that does not allow you to get out of your seat, or you are afraid of praying near the bathrooms (where there is a bit of space) because it can cause security issues, then you can pray in your seat. If you can only stand for the takbir, you must do so, and then sit for the remainder of the prayer.

A2. Concerning the times for prayer, you do not have to pray at the earliest time. And it is generally possible to determine the times either because the sky is turning bright again or because it is turning dark, or the sun has crossed the midpoint in the sky and is descending. And if you can't open your own shade, you can still open the ones by the bathrooms.

• prayer
• travel
• travelling

Is selling Life insurance prohibited?

Transacting with all types of insurance is permissible as long as the contract between the agency and the beneficiary does not contain any impermissible conditions.
For more information: https://www.sistani.org/english/book/45/1982/

• investment
• money
• permissibility

How much money does a person have to pay if they break an oath? Also, to whom can they send the payment?

The expiation for breaking an oath is feeding or dressing (i.e. providing clothing) 10 poor people.

For more details and to pay online visit: https://www.stageimam.theedemo.com/product-category/kaffarah/

• expiation
• oath

Are Muslim women allowed to get acrylic nails? If no, please explain why.

Wearing acrylic nails is not prohibited per se, however, it would not be permissible because it constitutes a barrier in wudhu and ghusl when the time of salat or other obligations that require ritual purity occur.

• cosmetic products
• nailpolish
• prayer
• women

I live in Fairbanks, Alaska. The prayer times for fajr and maghrib prayers are the same or maybe a few minutes apart. Is that correct?

Yes, it can be that sunset and dawn are separated by only a few minutes in those very northern regions. Please note that in such circumstances the light recedes little by little after the sun sets (i.e. after maghrib) and then it starts increasing once again, albeit after a very short period. When it starts increasing, it is then the starting time for fajr. And if the darkness or brightness presumably remains the same from the time of sunset until sunrise, the precaution is to take the middle point as the starting time.

Please, use this source to find the most suitable prayer times. http://praytime.info/ Make sure to adjust your time zone with what will appear on this page.

• adhan
• prayer

I know that in this day and age most newly married young couples don’t want to live with their parents. What is the Islamic recommendation?

If the couple is capable of living on their own and such arrangements do not entail any harm to the parents, it would then be an option since it gives the couple more privacy and preserves their ties with their parents, especially if living with parents may sometimes result in problems that lead to disharmony.

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