WAQF

“Ibn Umar reported, Umar Ibn Al-Khattab got land in Khaybar, so he came to the Prophet and asked the Prophet to advise him about it. The Prophet said, ‘If you like, make the property inalienable and give the profit from it to charity.”

Waqf, or ‘endowment’, is a long-standing Islamic tradition. It refers to the dedication of some valuable goods – land, a building, or even money – such that it no longer belongs to anybody, and cannot be bought or sold. The profits which are then generated from this endowment are given away as charity.
When ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab acquired a piece of land, and asked the Prophet, peace be upon him, how best to use it, the Prophet advised him to establish it as waqf: “make the land inalienable (unable to be sold or given away), and give its profit away as charity.” The harvest and profits of this land were then donated to the poor, travelers through the land and others who were in need.
Over the centuries, this tradition was continued – land and buildings have frequently been given  as waqf and used to build schools, hospitals, and mosques, amongst other functions to benefit
the community.

Today, modern Islamic charitable organisations like Sakinah Medical Outreach accepts monetary or real estate donations as waqf, which is invested wisely (for example, funds collected are used in purchasing property to be rented out) and using the profits to fund their charity projects or development programs, helping the poorest communities around the
world.

An exemplary case was that of the story of Uthman’s well. When people of Madinah were suffering draught of water and there was sufficient water in a well belonging to one Jew. The
Jew named Rumat al Giffari was selling water to the poor inhabitants of Madinah with a high price (as many of us would do today). The Messenger of Allah (SAW) assured Paradise to those who will buy the well and endow it to the entire residents of Madinah (both poor and rich).

Uthman bin Affan (RA) at once set out for the Jew and purchased the well in two batches paying a hefty price (38,000 dirham – silver coins – a huge sum in those times) and registered as an endowment (WAQF) to poor natives of Madinah.

This prolonged charity (i.e. the well) is still intact and tons of water are being pumped out of it using an electrical motor which is used to irrigate the farmland beside it, quench the taste of pilgrims and vast communities in need of water.

Can you imagine the enormous benefit of such an act?
You can support Sakinah Medical Outreach through WAQF donations;
Please contact us;
– Through General Donation Account (with a narration, ‘WAQF’)
JAIZ BANK
Account Number: 003613555
Account Name: Sakinah Medical Outreach
Or
– Visit Our Office: 21, Salvation Road, Opebi, Ikeja, Lagos
– Call Us On: +2348156266007, +2348069128857
– Send us an email: info@sakinahoutreach.org