Masuma Jaffer

Allah out of His love and mercy tells us what will happen if we do certain things in order to warn us - it's like as an adult I know that if I throw a rock up it will fall back down due to the law of gravity - a child may not  know this - as a loving parent would I not tell my child that if you throw the rock up it will come back down and hurt you.

There is a system of cause and effect and Allah is explaining this to us. So we know if we do somethin what the effect of it will be. 

It is important to fear disappointing Allah rather than fearing Him. 

The mission statement of the Holy Prophet (S) was that he had come to perfect the distinction of our Akhlaq. So all that he taught (Aqaid and Fiqh) would lead to good, no perfect Akhlaq. 

Akhlaq is the fruit of the tree of Islam whilst the Aqaid are the roots and the Fiqh  the branches. Without fruit the tree hasn't fulfilled is purpose. And in the same way without good Akhlaq we haven't really followed the Holy Prophet (S).

The dunya is the womb for the soul - just as the foetus needs the womb of the mother to grow and when it has outgrown the womb it comes out into this world - the  soul requires this world to grow and when it has outgrown this world it moves on in its journey to eternal life. Unfortunately not all souls outgrow this world but the body becomes weak through illness or old age and so can no longer hold onto the soul and do the soul leaves not having reached is potential. 

If a person who is fasting eats or drinks by mistake, and not intentionally his fast is in order.

The best age is in the 'hands' of Allah - He will call us to His house when it is the best time for each of us.

Hajj becomes obligatory (Wajib) on a Muslim as soon as s/he becomes baligh and is able financially, physically, and time-wise and so should be performed in that year, no matter what the age is.

According to Ayatullah Sistani:

Question: If a person breaks his oath, what is he supposed to do?

Answer: If a person takes an oath that he will perform an act (e.g. that he will fast) or will refrain from doing an act (e.g. that he will not smoke), but does not intentionally act according to his oath, he should give Kaffarah for it, which means he should set a slave free, or should fully feed ten indigent persons, or should provide them with clothes. And if he is not able to perform these acts, he should fast for three consecutive days.

As you are traveling 5 days out of 7 for a year (20 days in a month) you are considered for that year to be khateer-e-safar (frequent traveler) and so you have to pray full and fast.

To become khateer-e-safar you are required to travel on average 10 days in a month

Tawbah is not accepted from one who just says: “I'm sorry” There are a number of conditions that must be fulfilled in order for the Tawbah to be accepted - as mentioned by Imam Ali (A) in Nahjul Balagha Hadith no. 417:

Someone said before Amir al-mu’minin (A): "Astaghfiru'llah" (I ask Allah's forgiveness), then Amir al-mu’minin (A): Your mother may lose you! Do you know what "istighfar" (asking Allah's forgiveness) is? "Istighfar" is meant for people of a high position. It is a word that stands on six supports. The first is to repent over the past; the second is to make a firm determination never to revert to it; the third is to discharge all the rights of people so that you may meet Allah quite clean with nothing to account for; the fourth is to fulfill every obligation which you ignored (in the past) so that you may now do justice with it; the fifth is to aim at the flesh grown as a result of unlawful earning, so that you may melt it by grief (of repentance) till the skin touches the bone and a new flesh grows between them; and the sixth is to make the body taste the pain of obedience as you (previously) made it taste the sweetness of disobedience. On such an occasion you may say "astaghfiru'llah".