Islamic Ruling on producing TV reports, and ruling on the wealth earned thereby
I work as a sound technician in a national media association. We record many reports. The team includes me, a journalist, a cameraman, and lights technician. Allah has guided me several months ago, Alhamdulillah. But now I am very confused regarding my job. As these reports are about sports, economics, and news, but sometimes they ask us to cover parties, plays and concerts. I refuse entering such places now and give my machines to the journalist to do the job for me, although there is a committee for controlling and supervising.
The question:
Is my work halal or haram? Shall I gather money through my work to perform hajj. Most of which I gathered before my straightness. Is this money halal or haram? if it is haram, then can I give it to my mother to perform hajj? Is there any way by which I can purify my money if it was not halal? Can I stay in this work until I find another, knowing that we do not have Islamic channels here, and other channels are bad? Please guide me, shall I continue working or stay work-less? My mother refuses totally that stay without work. She advises me to be patient until Allah grants me another job. Please enlighten me, I hate my work and even myself.
Praise be to Allah. Firstly:
We praise Allah for having blessed you with guidance and we ask Him to help you to be guided more, and to make your heart steadfast in faith and to cleanse you of sin.
You should realize that no matter how vast this world may seem to a person, his fate is a constricted abode which is the grave. No matter how great its delights, the fate of his body is to be food for the worms. Remember that the real life is the life of the Hereafter, and that the place where the Muslim wants to live is Paradise, where there is no worry or grief or sickness or boredom, and he will enjoy the blessings and bounties of Allah.
With regard to your current work, you do not doubt that it involves many haram things, and that is indeed the case. Every report that you help to prepare contains something haram, such as music, adorned women or promotion of something haram that goes against shariah, so you have a share of sin commensurate with your participation in preparing it. This is a kind of cooperating in sin and transgression which Allah has forbidden: “but do not help one another in sin and transgression. And fear Allah. Verily, Allah is Severe in punishment” [Al-Ma’idah 5:2].
Allah has commanded us to strive on earth and seek provision, but He has forbidden us to earn by haram means. All work which plays a part in creating evil and spreading it among people is haram work, and it is obvious to you that the people getting used to evils such as adornment of women, mixing and music and so on is largely caused by the media.
Thirdly:
What we advise you to do is to look for a permissible job in the same field, and do not hasten to leave if you find another field which is Islamic-ally acceptable, even if that leads to your working in a field that is not your specialty. But if you find an opportunity in your field and the work is permissible, then move to that job. If that is not possible and there are few opportunities to find permissible work in your department or in another department, then you have no choice but to leave this job, seeking reward with Allah for leaving it, and hoping that by obeying your Lord and keeping away from everything that may anger Him, Allah will honour you in this world and the next. Remember that if you fear Allah with regard to yourself and your job and wealth, then you have a promise from Him of good in this world and in the Hereafter, as He says (interpretation of the meaning):
“And whosoever fears Allah and keeps his duty to Him, He will make a way for him to get out (from every difficulty).
3. And He will provide him from (sources) he never could imagine. And whosoever puts his trust in Allah, then He will suffice him. Verily, Allah will accomplish his purpose. Indeed Allah has set a measure for all things”
[At-Talaq 65:2-3]
Fourthly:
As for the wealth that you previously acquired, it is subject to further discussion.
1. If you did not know that your work was haram, then the money that you earned and accumulated is permissible, and you may dispose of it as prescribed by Allah. We have quoted the fatwa of Shaykh ‘Abdul-‘Aziz ibn Baz (may Allah have mercy on him) concerning a similar case in the answer to question no. 12397.
2. If you did know that your work was haram, then if you can work out what proportion of your work was haram and take out the proportionate amount from your wealth and donate it to various charitable causes, and make use of the rest, then that is permissible for you. That applies if not all of your work is haram, and working out the rate is up to you.
3. There is nothing wrong with you giving your mother some of the money that you intend to spend on Hajj – if your situation matches the second scenario above – and there is nothing wrong with her accepting it, because money that is haram because of how it is acquired is only haram for the one who acquires it, not the one to whom it is transferred.
And Allah knows best.
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