If forty believers say during the funeral prayer of a...

If forty believers say during the funeral prayer of a believer that they did not know about him any thing but good, Allah says to His angels: 'So many of My creatures knew the deceased person's wrong-doings, and yet they have covered it up. Therefore, I too should cover his sins up with My mercy and forgive his wrong-doings.'" Q.

52: IF A MUSLIM DIES IN UNBELIEVERS' COUNTRY In his Ruling 317 of Minhajus-Saleheen, our present Marja' says: "It is not lawful to bury Muslim in the graveyard of unbelievers or to bury an unbeliever in the graveyard of Muslims". What is the judgement of our Marja' regarding a Muslim living in a non-Muslim country where there are no Muslim grave-yards? Where should he be buried?

What is the judgement of our Marja' regarding a Muslim deceased in a non-Muslim country where there is nobody to carry out the obligatory bathing and then to offer the prayer ofJanaza? Will the soul of the deceased have to suffer on account of that? A. I had written you once that the shari'ah recognises the difference between Darul Islam and Darul kufr, because not all the rules can be enforced in a place dominated by unbelievers.

Therefore, a Muslim who dies in such a country will be buried in the place reserved by the town authorities for burial. As for the second question, please remember that "No bearer of burden shall bear the burden of another." (Qur'an, ch. 53, v. 38; ch. 35.V.18). So in both cases, there will be no trouble for the dead Muslim at all. A man gets reward or punishment for what he has done; not for what others have done or not done to his dead body.

Q.53: DOLLS KEPT IN A ROOM Can we keep statues or dolls in our homes, if we do not pray in that room? A. According to Ayatullah al-Khoui, it is allowed. Q.54: ZAKAT MONEY Regarding Zakat money should I pay it to Shi'a brothers only or to any poor in the town? A. It is only for the Shi'a Ithna-'asheri poor. Q. 55: ABOUT SAHM-E-IMAM Am I allowed by shari'ah to pay my Khumus Sahm-e-lmam (a.s.) to those Zakirs who come to Zanzibar for reciting majlis of Imam Husain (a.

s.) whether they be Sadat or not? Or should I pay to those Zakirs only who are Sadat? A. Khums Sahm-e-lmam must be handed over to the Mujtahid or his authorised agent. It is used by the Mujtahid for religious, education and missionary work.