Q: There's a guy we know who is 34 (almost 35) year's old, single (never married), and has spent decades unemployed.  He has also never had any real stability in his life as he has come from a broken home yet has managed to get some education, though while studying his studies was invariably being interrupted and disturbed by domestic circumstances and so his education wasn't of a decent quality.  He cannot do anything about this now because his circumstances are still not ideal for him to re-study or train to be something else, and he would rather find work so that he can start living a normal life.

He has intermittently worked but only for very short stints throughout his life with the longest period being one job for 6 months and the rest between one and two months, but the gaps between them were significantly long, usually over a year or more.  He has had many interviews but none successful apart from the unskilled, menial jobs he had managed to get, which were either temporary, subjecting him to unbearable environmental conditions, or haram.  The system in the country he lives in is set up to punish people who are unemployed for substantial periods by making it virtually impossible for them to find work, intentionally creating an underclass.

As a result of this chronic unemployment, he has become seriously depressed and has been suffering mentally.  In addition to his unemployment, it
certainly doesn't help being born and brought-up in a country that has ostracised and ousted him based on his ethnic, religious, and social background, and this has been among the factors that have made him feel compelled to leave that country.

As for his financial circumstances, his income is very low (unemployment benefit) and his rent is very high, so he is barely surviving, and has to
depend on people giving him food regularly, and with the economy not getting better, it can only get worse for him.  He has very little saved, which a large percentage of will have to go to a debt because of his former flat mate who wasn't able to pay his rent, which led to both of them getting evicted. Although there is no immediate requirement to pay what's owed, he wants to pay asap because he doesn't want to remain in debt.

Being unemployed for so long, the government has forced him onto what they call "work programme", which hasn't helped him whatsoever find work even though it was set up to do so.  However, what they call an "employment councillor" had mentioned to him that he doesn't know how to lie and that he, the employment councillor, got that job through lying, alluding that not lying was a factor that was preventing him from finding work.  The employment councillor was not the only person who had mentioned lying as a successful tactic to gaining employment: a colleague of his once told him something along the lines of "it seems that you have to lie to get a job", and an acquaintance, who is also a teacher, advised him to say that he had the experience employers required as they wouldn't check up on it, after coming back from working abroad.

Recently, well just under a year ago, he did a course in teaching English that was free for him as he was and still is unemployed, so he could teach
abroad, specifically Saudi Arabia.  He had heard that it was easy to get a job as a teacher there and they pay relatively well.  Unfortunately, when he
had finished his course and started to look for work he noticed that all the jobs required  1 or more year's experience but most required at least two
year's or more.

It dawned on him that most of those people he knew or heard of going to Saudi Arabia and other countries to teach must have lied to get those jobs.
Countries like Saudi Arabia are investing heavily on foreign staff to teach their people; this also includes giving money to specific nations by
intentionally employing their citizens and promoting their universities, certificates, and citizenships.

He is committed to the religion and doesn't want to do anything haram but he does not understand why it has been so difficult for him to live and find work.  We know that under certain exceptional circumstances it is permissible to lie; so my question is: does the circumstances of this man qualify as one of those instances whereby it is permitted to lie, so as to obtain and maintain employment and nothing more?

Q: Some time ago I asked about a hadith with the words whoever leaves something for the sake of Allah, Allah will grant him something better in return. My curiosity got the better of me and I managed to find the following on a google search. I would like you to please check its authenticity.

It was reported from the Prophet (peace be upon him) that he said: "Anyone leaves something for the sake of Allah, Allah shall compensate him a better one for that."

This Hadith is Da`if (a Hadith that fails to reach the status of Hasan, due to a weakness in the chain of narration or one of the narrators) and was not authentically reported from the Prophet (peace be upon him) by these wordings even if it is well known to many people.

The Hadith was authentically reported by another wording from the Hadith of Abu Qatadah and Abu Ad-Dahma' who said: We came to a man from the people of the desert and asked him: Did you hear a Hadith from the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him)? He said: I heard him saying: “You will never leave something for the sake of Allah, but Allah will give you something better in return.”

Musnad Al Imam Ahmad (5 / 363). Al Haythamy said in Majma` Az-Zawa’id (10/296) “The Hadith is narrated by Ahmad with different chain of narrations and its narrators are the narrators of the Hadiths that were reported in the two books of authentic Hadiths.

Q: If a person prays a fardh or waajib  prayer sitting down, without a valid excuse, is his prayer considered invalid? I recently heard from a Mufti that the prayer itself would be valid, since he did not miss a fardh element of prayer by sitting down (and not standing). What is the position of the Hanafi madhab in this regard?

Q: I was praying my Fardh Fajr Salaah and I did not recite loud like I do in the loud prayers and more like how I recite in the quiet prayers and so I continued reciting how I was so as to keep consistency in the salaah. At the sitting position in the second rak'ah, I said up to "Ashhadu anna Muhammadan 'Abduhu Wa Rasooluh." and said "Assalaamu 'alaykum wa Rahmatullaah" to my right then faced forward and prostrated (I intended to do the two prostrations of forgetfulness for not reciting out loud like I usually do for Fajr Fardh). During this, I got up from prostrating and raised my index finger and was about to start reciting "Attahiyyatu lillaahi Was-Salaatu Wat-Tayyibaatu." But then, I was confused whether I prostrated once or twice, and I leaned to the decision that I had only prostrated once so far and so I said "Rabbighfirlee" three times and prostrated for what I assume to be my second prostration. I sat back up and said the Tashahhud, Durood and Du'a, then I said both Tasleem. Now I wonder is my salaah valid?

Q: What are some of the main and specific reasons as to why a man can perform Hajj by himself and a woman requires a mahram? I understand one of the reasons being the physical intensity of performing hajj but won't one be able to use the excuse of going with a group of women?

Q: I wanted to know if this is allowed: Someone told me to ask a pious person to write out surah ahzab and then I should keep it with my things in order to get proposals. Are we allowed to do this?

Q: Did both Hazrat Aisha (Radiyallahu Anha) and Hazrat Khadija (Radiyallahu Anha) receive Salaams from Allah Ta'ala via Jibra'eel (Alayhis Salaam)?

Q: I was always thought Ghusl is performed in the following manner. First you must clean the area that is napaak. Then you gargle. Then you clean your nose. And then you wash your entire body thoroughly such that no hair on your body is dry. Are these steps correct?

Q: What are the words for the iqamah? I have heard some people say that everything must be repeated twice and some say that most of the words are repeated once and only the ending is repeated twice.

Q: I am running a computer business for the last 18 years alhamdulillah. It was going well but for the last 2 years it has been going slow. I am thinking if I should close down the business or what should I do please advise me.