Fatwa ID: 04546

Answered by: Maulana Muhammad Adnan

Question

A very good friend of mine, who is also to the best of my knowledge quite a strong and practicing Muslim, is in the habit of smoking marijuana, he was doing it all this time cause he thought it was just the same as smoking cigarettes. After I explained to him that it was well and truly haraam he feels really bad, and he wants to know whether smoking weed invalidates his salah for 40 days?

                                                                بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمنِ الرَّحِيْم

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

Answer

Imam Nawawi states repentance is essential from every sin, even if it is something between a person and Allaah and has nothing to do with the rights of another person. There are three conditions of repentance: 

1-     You should give up the sin

2-     You should regret having done it

3-     You should resolve never to go back to it. 

If one of these three is missing, then your repentance is not sincere. If the sin has to do with the rights of another person, then there are four conditions: the three mentioned above and restoring the rights of that person. If it is money or property, etc, it must be returned to him; if it had to do with slandering him etc, then you should allow him to insult him in return, or ask for his forgiveness; if it had to do with backbiting about him, then you have to ask for his pardon.

Furthermore,  The Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) said, “Whoever drinks wine, his prayer is not accepted from him for 40 days. If he repents, Allah forgives him” [Tirmidhi]

Drinking wine or other intoxicants is a major sin. In order for one to eradicate the sin, one engages in sincere repentance. “Not accepted” in the hadith means that the prayers are not accepted in terms of reward, but the obligation is fulfilled.

Only Allah Knows Best

Written by Maulana Muhammad Adnan

Checked and approved by Mufti Mohammed Tosir Miah

Darul Ifta Birmingham