Accepting gifts from non-Muslims on their festivals

24-7-2011 | IslamWeb

Question:

As salam wa alaikum We stay in India. during kuffar festivals they give gifts/bonus to the employee. Is it ok to accept them? especially sometimes they give gifts like goldcoins with pictures of theire gods/godeses. what todo about such gifts can we melt these coins to destroy the imeges & use the money or give the money in charity? what about the gifts & discout vouchers give on shopping during theit festivles? Plesae answer, May Allah bless you. & guide us on straight path.

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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, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His Slave and Messenger.

It is permissible for you to accept those gifts and bonuses given to you by those non-Muslims during their festivals or on any other occasion, especially if accepting them may attract their hearts (towards Islam), and influence them, perchance Allaah would guide them to Islam at your hands, although some scholars disliked accepting those gifts from them for such reasons.

As regards the gifts that carry unlawful images like gold coins with images of their gods, then it is permissible for you to accept them provided that you should erase those unlawful images, and then benefit from the gold in what is permissible.

However, you should be cautious about joining those people on their festivals. Rather, you should abhor their disbelief in Allaah and their deviation from His straight path. For further information, please refer to Fatwa 129821.

Allaah Knows best.