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How can I dispose of riba?

How can I dispose of riba?
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March 22, 2024
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Both receiving and paying interest (riba) are a major sin, as riba is strictly prohibited in Islam and Allah has declared war against those who deal with riba.

Ask your bank not to deposit interest in your account. However, if this is not possible, take out the interest and give it in charity to a poor individual or charity. The money can be given to Muslims and not just ‘dirty’ projects like constructing toilets but any charity. Giving away the riba money will not earn you reward, as it is not from halal earnings. When giving the money away, you do not need to declare that it is interest money to the individual or charity when giving it. An individual might find it offensive.

Receiving riba in charity is halal for the poor, because they are not acquiring it through a prohibited channel. However, the riba money must be given in a way that does not bring any benefit to you directly or indirectly. For instance, you could give it to your brother-in-law who is poor and needs help, but he cannot use it to pay your father’s debt as this would mean that you indirectly benefit from it.

There is no sin on the one who receives riba in charity

This is based on the principle which some jurists follow that wealth becomes pure when it changes hands. This principle essentially means that when wealth transfers ownership from one person to another through a lawful transaction, it becomes purified from any impurities or unlawful elements associated with its previous ownership or acquisition.

This principle is rooted in several Quranic verses and Hadiths that emphasize the importance of lawful earnings and transactions in Islam. It highlights the idea that once wealth is acquired through lawful means and transactions, it becomes permissible for its new owner to use it in accordance with Islamic teachings.

However, it’s important to note that this principle doesn’t justify the acquisition of wealth through unlawful or prohibited means. Rather, it emphasizes the purification of wealth through lawful transactions and exchanges.

Shaykh Haytham Tamim

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Shaykh Haytham Tamim is the founder and main teacher of the Utrujj Foundation. He has provided a leading vision for Islamic learning in the UK, which has influenced the way Islamic knowledge is disseminated. He has orchestrated the design and delivery of over 200 unique courses since Utrujj started in 2001. His extensive expertise spans over 30 years across the main Islamic jurisprudence schools of thought. He has studied with some of the foremost scholars in their expertise; he holds some of the highest Ijazahs (certificates) in Quran, Hadith (the Prophetic traditions) and Fiqh (Islamic rulings). His own gift for teaching was evident when he gave his first sermon to a large audience at the age of 17 and went on to serve as a senior lecturer of Islamic transactions and comparative jurisprudence at the Islamic University of Beirut (Shariah College). He has continued to teach; travelling around the UK, Europe and wider afield, and won the 2015 BISCA award (British Imams & Scholars Contributions & Achievements Awards) for Outstanding Contribution to Education and Teaching.

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