2 min read
Things have been going a little fast in the technology landscape in Pakistan with a moon-sighting website and app launched plus plans to introduce mobile payments to replace debit and credit cards. To tone things down a bit, a renowned religious scholar Mufti Naeem has said that during Aitekaf, if you keep your phone with you, it will invalidate it because you are still connected with worldly affairs.
As you all know, Aitekaf is a practice of devoting the last 10 days of Ramadan in worship and secluding oneself from the world and other affairs. Considering that most people have smartphones nowadays with the internet, we are essentially breaking our Aitekaf since the last condition of seclusion is not being fulfilled. If you are texting and calling someone, you are not involved in the act of worship and hence are distracted.
He made these remarks on a TV show where he said:
If people who are in Aitekaf are constantly on the phone and connected to the world, they are wasting their worship. They keep asking people at home how their business is doing.
It has to be noted that if someone’s Aitekaf is broken, it becomes compulsory for them to perform it next year. In order to abide by the injunctions set for performing a proper Aitekaf, it is advised to refrain from using your phone so that the person doesn’t get distracted and remains fully focused on the act of worship.
