Answer

Wa `alaykum As-Salamu wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful. 

All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.

In this fatwa:

1- One must not be deterred by those who seem to be so obsessed with the letter of the Law to such an extent that they fail to see its true spirit and soul.

2- Thus, can anyone find anything better to bless an occasion or open a session auspiciously than by reading the Quran?

In responding to your question about reading the Quran for aqeeqah, Sheikh Ahmad Kutty, a senior lecturer and Islamic scholar at the Islamic Institute of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, states:

The aqeeqah is a great sunnah. It is part of the legacy inherited from Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) and a great sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him). The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “Every child is mortgaged to his `aqeeqah.” (At-Tirmidhi)

It is unfortunate to see that today many people tend to use the word bidah (reprehensible innovation) carelessly. This is the case when they use it as a means of opposing every single custom or practice they do not agree with, regardless of whether it is good or bad.

The case you referred to in your question definitely is one of those instances. Bidah when properly understood denotes innovations in religion which are against the established norm and practice of the early generations and therefore must be rejected.

Reading the Quran when people gather together cannot fall in this category. How can anyone say otherwise when we read in the traditions that the blessing of Allah descends upon those who gather on the word of Allah and His remembrance?

We read in an authentic report that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “Whenever people gather together in any of the houses of Allah reading and studying the book of Allah, tranquility from Allah will descend upon them, and Allah’s mercy will cover them, and the angels will make a ring of protection around them and Allah will mention their names proudly in His assembly.” (Muslim)

Furthermore, the Quran, the Noble Word of Allah, is the true source of mercy, guidance, light, and healing and blessing for the faithful. Thus, can anyone find anything better to bless an occasion or open a session auspiciously than by reading the same?

It is, therefore, my humble opinion that one must not be deterred by those who seem to be so obsessed with the letter of the Law to such an extent that they fail to see its true spirit and soul.

Almighty Allah knows best.

Editor’s note: This fatwa is from Ask the Scholar’s archive and was originally published at an earlier date.