Fatwa ID: 05814
Answered by: Maulana Syed Johir Miah
Question:
I have some CDs which have Quran recordings and talks on them. Can I dispose of them in the bin if Allah’s name or Quran verse is not on the cd?
Also, if Allah is written in English or Abdullah is written on a piece of paper in English does that have to be disposed of like the Quran and other Islamic literature?
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
Answer:
If the Quran becomes in a condition in which it is not read, it will be buried like a Muslim. 1
If the Quran becomes old and in a condition where it cannot be read and there is fear that it will be lost, it should be put in a clean rag and buried because if a Muslim dies, he is buried.
Therefore, if the Quran became the same, then it is better to bury it than to keep it at a place where there is a fear that impurity will fall upon it.2
As regards to Islamic literature, the best method in which to dispose of any unwanted Islamic literature is that it should be buried where no one would normally walk.
Then again, one may, after erasing the name of Allah (عز و جل), His Messengers (عليهم الصلوة و السلام) and the angels’, burn the rest or put it in flowing water.
The same rule will apply to shredding; hence, a person should remove the name of Allah (عز و جل), His Messengers’ and His angel’s names before shredding the literature.
This literature should be courteously buried or could be put into a river or into the sea.
Any material containing translation or even transliterations of the verses of the Quran must be disposed of either by burying it or placing it in moving water.
You can dispose of these by burning them, but only after erasing the name of Allah, His Angels and Messengers. It is best to bury them so they will vanish on the earth.
However, there is nothing wrong with casting them into a flowing river.
As long as the cd’s don’t have any verses of the Quran on them, it will be permissible to dispose of them as you wish.
However, if they have verses of the Quran, then they should be disposed of by being buried.
If “Allah” is written in English or “Abdullah” is written on a piece of paper in English, then it can be disposed of like any other Islamic literature by rubbing the “Allah” or His name, or “Abdullah” and dispensing them in the manner possible.
Only Allah knows best.
Written by Maulana Syed Johir Miah
Checked and approved by Mufti Mohammed Tosir Miah
Darul Ifta Birmingham
1 المصحف إذا صار بحال لا يقرأ فيه يدفن كالمسلم، ويمنع النصراني من مسه
Raddul Muhtar, 177/1, Darul Fikr, Beirut, Lebanon, 1412 H.
2 المُصْحَفُ إذا صارَ كُهْنًا أيْ عَتِيقًا وصارَ بِحالٍ لا يُقْرَأُ فِيهِ وخافَ أنْ يَضِيعَ يُجْعَلُ فِي خِرْقَةٍ طاهِرَةٍ ويُدْفَنُ؛ لِأنَّ المُسْلِمَ إذا ماتَ يُدْفَنُ فالمُصْحَفُ إذا صارَ كَذَلِكَ كانَ دَفْنُهُ أفْضَلَ مِن وضْعِهِ مَوْضِعًا يُخافُ أنْ تَقَعَ عَلَيْهِ النَّجاسَةُ أوْ نَحْوُ ذَلِكَ والنَّصْرانِيُّ إذا تَعَلَّمَ القُرْآنَ يُعَلَّمُ والفِقْهُ كَذَلِكَ
Al-Bahrur Raaiq, Ibn Nujaim, 212/1, Darul Kutub Al-Islami.
