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Book of Namaz

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these things are more valuable than wheat, they are more useful to<br />

the poor]. Instead <strong>of</strong> any <strong>of</strong> these, gold or silver <strong>of</strong> the same value<br />

can be given. [The isqât cannot be performed with paper money].<br />

It is not necessary to give fidya for sajda-i tilâwat.<br />

How to Make Isqât and Dawr<br />

If the money to be given for fidya exceeds one-third <strong>of</strong> the<br />

property, the walî cannot spend more than the one-third without<br />

the inheritors’ consent. It is written in the book Qunya that if the<br />

deceased had debts, it is not permissible to carry out his will even<br />

if his creditors give approval for the fulfillment <strong>of</strong> the will. For,<br />

Islam commands that the debts must be paid first. Paying the debt<br />

cannot be postponed with the creditor’s consent.<br />

In case that it is not known at what age the person died, who<br />

had enjoined the isqât <strong>of</strong> all his prayers <strong>of</strong> namâz, his will is<br />

acceptable when one-third <strong>of</strong> the property he has left does not<br />

suffice for the isqât <strong>of</strong> his prayers <strong>of</strong> namâz. If one-third <strong>of</strong> the<br />

property equals and even exceeds (the amount to be spent for) the<br />

isqât, his will is not acceptable; it becomes invalid. For, when the<br />

one-third does not suffice for the isqât, the number <strong>of</strong> the prayers<br />

<strong>of</strong> namâz for which the isqât is to be performed with the one-third<br />

will be known, and so his will shall be sahîh (valid) for those<br />

prayers <strong>of</strong> namâz; and (the part <strong>of</strong>) his will concerning his<br />

remaining prayers <strong>of</strong> namâz will become laghw, that is, empty<br />

words. When the one-third is in excess, his lifetime, and hence the<br />

number <strong>of</strong> his prayers <strong>of</strong> namâz, will not be known, and so his will<br />

shall become invalid.<br />

If the deceased person did not have any property, or if onethird<br />

<strong>of</strong> the property he left behind does not suffice for the isqât,<br />

or if he did not make a will and the walî (custodian) wants to<br />

perform the isqât with his own property, he will perform dawr. But<br />

the walî does not have to perform dawr. To perform dawr, the walî<br />

borrows as much gold or silver - gold coins, bracelets, rings, valid<br />

silver coins - as will suffice for a month’s or a year’s isqât. The<br />

years <strong>of</strong> debt are calculated by subtracting twelve years - if the<br />

deceased person is a man - or nine years - if the deceased person is<br />

a woman - from their lifetime. Ten kilograms <strong>of</strong> wheat is to be<br />

given for one day’s six prayers <strong>of</strong> namâz and three thousand and<br />

six hundred kilograms for a solar year.<br />

For example, when one kilogram <strong>of</strong> wheat cost 1.85 liras for the<br />

– 178 –

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