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Invoking the curse of Allaah

Question

I want to known detail about Mubaahala if two friends working together as partner in business. Later among them some problem occurs now they can to Mubaahala among them. One of my friend said that we can only do for Islaam activities not any other world things. Is it right? Send me detailed answer with Qur'aan and Hadeeth base.

Answer

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger. We ask Allaah to exalt his mention as well as that of his family and all his companions.

Al-Mubaahala is invoking sincerely the curse of Allaah on the liar. When people differ about something they gather and say: 'May the curse of Allaah be on the wrongdoer among us.' Al-Mubaahala is permissible if the dissenter persists after the evidence had become clear to him/her. The Prophet  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allaah exalt his mention ) invoked sincerely the curse of Allaah on the Christians of Najraan after establishing the evidence against them that 'Easaa (Jesus)  may  Allaah  exalt  his  mention is a slave and Messenger of Allaah. When they insisted on their disbelief and lies the Prophet  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allaah exalt his mention ) called them for Mubaahala, then the following verse of Allaah was revealed to him: Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): {Then whoever argues with you concerning him ('Easaa --being a slave of Allaah and having no share in Divinity) after [this] knowledge has come to you-say, “ Come, let us call our sons and your sons, our women and your women, ourselves and yourselves, then supplicate earnestly [together] and invoke the curse of Allaah upon the liars [among us].}[3:61].

Some of the companions  may  Allaah  be  pleased  with  them called to Al-Mubaahala as well, like Ibn Mas'ood and Ibn 'Abbaas, Al-Awzaa'e, and a group of scholars may  Allaah  have  mercy  upon  them called to it as well.

Ibn Hajar  may  Allaah  have  mercy  upon  him said: 'It is known by experience that he who calls to Al-Mubaahala while being a liar, one year would not pass after the day of Al-Mubaahala except that he is perished. This indeed happened to me with a person who used to be inclined toward atheists and he did not live after this more than two months.'

As regards whether Al-Mubaahala can be on worldly matters, then the verse and the acts of the companions  may  Allaah  be  pleased  with  them and the scholars after them illustrate that this is done on Islamic matters.

The Prophet  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allaah exalt his mention ) called to it about the reality of 'Easaa  may  Allaah  exalt  his  mention Ibn Mas'ood  may  Allaah  be  pleased  with  him called to it regarding the waiting period of a widowed woman before she could remarry, and Ibn 'Abbaas  may  Allaah  be  pleased  with  him called to it about a matter of inheritance. Imaam Ibn Al-Qayyim  may  Allaah  be  pleased  with  him also called to it regarding the attributes of Allaah, and Ibn Hajar  may  Allaah  be  pleased  with  him called a man to it in order to deter him from being inclined to atheists and so on. So we do not know of any one of our righteous predecessors may  Allaah  have  mercy  upon  them who invoked the curse of Allaah in a worldly matter, and we have never come across one.

Finally, our advice to these partners is to endeavour to solve the problems between themselves in good words and in good manner and to fear Allaah. It is not appropriate for a Muslim to invoke the curse of Allaah upon his Muslim brother in worldly matters, as this world is worthless. But they can take their case to an Islamic judge or whoever can serve as a judge to solve their problems.

Allaah knows best.

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