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Fatwa CenterFeeding poor non-Muslims
Question
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم Assalamu Alaikum Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatuh Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds; and may his blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad and upon all his Family and Companions. Dear Sheikh, my question is regarding the feeding of poor. I would be very much grateful to your for your quick reply. Hadith on Feeding the Poor/Hungry The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: "Feed the hungry, visit the sick and set free the captives." - Sahih Al-Bukhari, Volume 7, Hadith 552 "(The righteous are those) who feed the poor, the orphan and the captive for the love of God, saying: 'We feed you for the sake of God Alone; we seek from you neither reward nor thanks.'" - The Holy Quran, 76:8-9 My first question is, I am inshallah planning to feed 70 poor indigents, since I am staying in a gulf country and I can’t find any poor or beggars (Alhamdulliah) as compare to my country (India) where I can see much poor and beggars. Can I feed poor Non-Muslims working and staying in camps incase I am unable to find poor Muslims staying in groups. Is the reward of feeding the Muslim is greater then feeding a Non-Muslim. My second question is regarding the Captives, where can we find a captive so that we can set them free. My third question is how to give Sadqa for life and wealth ??? For example if we are in a constant danger from enemies i.e. open or hidden enemies who are performing black magic to kill. I know that black magic can be treated through al-Ruqiyah al-Shar`iyyah, i.e. reciting verse 255 of al-Baqara Surah, the last two verses of the same Surah, Surahs Nos. 112, 113 and 114, and other Qur'anic verses but also how can we perform Sadqa for life. Do we have to sacrifice a sheep or give alms to a poor and if any what is the actual quantity of the above. I would be very much pleased if you answer my above questions. Jazakaallahu Khaira
Answer
All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad 
is His slave and Messenger.
First of all, may Allaah reward you for being keen on donating and being generous, and we ask Him to enrich your record of good deeds.
It is permissible to be kind and generous to a non-Muslim as Allaah Says (what means): {Allaah does not forbid you from those who do not fight you because of religion and do not expel you from your homes — from being righteous toward them and acting justly toward them. Indeed, Allaah loves those who act justly.}[Quran 60:8].
You undoubtedly know that in your country –India –there are Muslims who are most in need of your donation. Therefore, in our view, you should donate for them there, as donating for a Muslim is better than donating for a non-Muslim, and donating for a relative is better than donating for other people, because donating for a relative is a charity as well as keeping ties with kinship. The above ruling applies to optional donations for a non-Muslim, because it is not permissible to donate the obligatory donation [Zakah] for non-Muslims. For more benefit in this regard, please refer to Fatwa 90749.
We do not know, from a religious point of view, what is called 'donation for life'. A Muslim may donate as a sign of being grateful to Allaah for the bounties of good health and so forth.
As regards spending in charity, it is either the obligatory charity (Zakah) and this is detailed in the books of Fiqh as to how much exactly one should pay –or the voluntary charity which one may donate according to his ability and will.
In any case, a donation wards off calamities and protects a person from an evil end, and if it is donated to a relative, it becomes a reason for having one's life-span expanded.
Allaah Knows best.
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