Counseling

Question:
What is the du'a (supplication) one should say when they get married?

Answer:
Marriage is a great moment in one’s life. It is, therefore, important for the couple to turn to Allah in humble supplication in this crucial juncture of their life in order to receive His blessings; only thus they can hope to make their union a source of bliss for them as well as a great provision for their journey to Allah. Turning to Allah at every step of marriage is therefore the key to a blissful marital life: At the time of marriage contract those who solemnize marriage may offer the following supplication:

Allaahumma bariklahumaa wa ijma’ baynahumaa fee khayrin

(O Allah, bless them in their union and unite them on all that is good and beneficial).

Question:

Respected scholars, as-salamu `alaykum.

I totally forgot that I was fasting and had a cup of coffee when I got to work. Will this break my fast?

Jazakum Allahu khayran.

Answer:

If you did so forgetfully, then it did not break your fast, as long as you stopped it [eating and drinking] from the moment you remembered that you were fasting.

Question:
1. I had a wet dream while fasting. Does it affect my fasting?
2. Are husband and wife allowed to hug during fasting ?

Answer:
1. If you experience a wet dream, it does not affect the validity of your fast. Your fast is broken only if you ejaculate because of deliberate activity or thinking on your part. Since you have no control over your dreams while sleeping, it does not affect the validity of your fast.

Question:

I am 4 months pregnant with my first baby and would like to fast Ramadan this year but my husband doesn't want me to as the chemical imbalance caused by fasting may harm the baby especially because the days will be long this year. Is this true? What evidence is in the Quran tells me if I can or cannot fast? If I cannot fast, what should I do? I don't know 60 poor people to feed.

Question:

How much nudity is allowed during intercourse in Islam?

Answer:

The Prophet, peace be upon him, is reported to have said, “Guard your private concealed except from your marriage partner!”

Based on this, there is no restriction on the married couple exposing in the presence of one another for their mutual enjoyment or pleasure.

Question:

My parents treat my two younger brothers as 'the key to their success, while they treat me and my four older sisters with hatred and disgust. My parents forced 3 of my sisters at 16, 17, and 18 to marry- the same year. For me & my older sister we worked & educated ourselves, while watching my parents spend on our younger brothers. I am barely making it, while my parents spend foolishly on my two brothers, and don’t require them to work. Is it fair for my parents to spend thousands of dollars on my brothers to go to school (far away) while they 'don’t want to bother with us.' Please help!

Question:

Can you name your child a name that is in another language other than Arabic, as long as it has a good meaning?

Answer:

Children are a trust in the hands of parents. Parents, therefore, have a duty to receive this divine gift with a true sense of gratitude and do everything at their disposal to provide the best nurturing. There is nothing better than can do in this regard than by providing them a home filled with love and kindness, and thus contributing to their over all physical, intellectual, ethical and spiritual growth and development. Such a duty begins way before the birth of the child and extends all through their lives.