Q: I would like to know how to find the qibla direction without a compass?

Q: My father saves enough money and my mother has jewellery. I know the nisaab for savings, gold and silver. As per the criteria, Zakat is wajib on my parents. Till now, in their entire life they didn't pay zakat. They did toubah (repented) for not paying it. Now how do they pay zakah for all the previous years because they don't know when they became sahib-e-nisaab.

Also determining the savings of my father for all the previous years is quit complicated. How much should they start giving from this year?

Q: A boy wants to marry me and he is already engaged. He proposed to me even before his engagement, but there were problems from my side so I responded with a NO. Now he is not happy with his engagement and is having understanding issues with his fiance and wants to get engaged to me. He has good character and is really interested and now I feel the same. He wants to break his engagement in a proper way without degrading his fiance or her family. I want to ask if it is Ok for me to accept the proposal and let him do what he wants or will it be a injustice to that girl? 

Q: Is there any significance to lightly nodding the head during zikr? Is this a sunnah practice?

Q: My mom circles money around my head and sometimes even eggs for some kind of protection. I have a feeling this practice is not Islamic so I was wondering if it it permissible in Islam.

Q: I am a 26 years old male. My right hand has got fractured and with plaster of Paris... Due to it I cannot use it and can't remove my upper clothes (shirt, etc.). I can go to the washroom on my own but I can't take a bath due to the injury. However I can only perform wudu (with masah on injured hand) and can wash lower part of my body i.e. legs and face and head. What is the ruling if ghusal gets obligatory upon me.... Should I make tayammum instead of ghusal or washing lower part of body, face and head and wet hand on upper body will suffice?

Q: I understand that it is shirk to intend to do worship for the sake of Allah as well as someone else (that the intention should only be for Allah). Is it shirk to have both the intention to achieve something as well as to please Allah when you're doing tasks that normally are not worship?

Say for example, you are cooking, both to feed your family but also because you hope Allah will be pleased with you and reward you for feeding your family. Or, giving your mother a foot massage both to please your mother and to please Allah. Is this shirk? If not, how does it differ?

Q: A person once vowed that if certain thing happens he will never eat chicken. After that thing happened he did not fulfill his vow and ate chicken several times. He offered one expiation. Now can he eat chicken?

Q: Due to a conflict between my in-laws and me, I left my wife at her parents home with the condition to solve this prolonged issue within 10 (ten) days. I said to her to tell her parents that if this issue is not sorted out by her parents withen 10 days then you (she) must stay at your (her) parents home. I will not be responsible for you and your future. After this period all efforts from your parents side will be useless. They did not contact me at that time, and now they approached me after three months. Can we continue our marital life now or is the separation done?

Q: I am working as a pharmacist in a big hospital. Our market is a generic market where the doctor prescribes the chemical name on the prescription rather than the brand name. The brand is selected by the pharmacist. The same medicine will be sold by different pharmaceutical companies under different brand names but will have the same chemical name. Example, the chemical paracetamol is in brand names like adol, calpol, panadol, tylenol, etc.

My question is that representatives from the pharmaceutical companies come to us and tell us that if we sell their company brand, they will give us some vouchers or a gift. Is taking this gift or voucher from the reps of the pharmaceutical companies allowed in Islam?