Defeat upon defeat

A person does great harm to himself by keeping a dog in his yard for the sake of mere pleasure. We want blessing in our home. The Farishta (angels) who are a cause of blessing in the house stop coming when one keeps a dog in the house. This deprives us of divine blessing. In addition, one suffers another defeat in terms of rewards. That is, the value of one or two Qiraat decreases daily from our rewards. This is what is called defeat upon defeat.

However if someone keeps a dog for some needs such as hunting, guarding the yard or guarding a herd of animals, etc, then in these cases it is permissible to keep it. And this is a valid excuse. That is why he is not subjected to any penalty regarding its rewards.

In the above cases, do the angels continue to stop coming? According to Allaamah Al-Khattaabi (passed away in 388H), the presence of a dog that is permissible to keep in the house does not prevent the Farishta of blessing from coming to that house. But according to Allaamah An-Nawawi, the presence of a dog prevents the angels of blessing from entering that house even in the case where it is permissible because Hazrat Jibril (Alaihis salam) refused to enter the house of Nabi (Sallallaahu Alaihi Wasallam) due to the presence of a puppy under the bed. Yet Nabi (Sallallaahu Alaihi Wasallam) did not even know that there was a dog. And that was a valid reason but it prevented Hazrat Jibril (Alaihis Salam) from entering. Thus, as far as possible one must refrain. One must not legalise that which is not allowed by using pretexts that do not exist.

[English version of "Garde li chien" – Al Jamiat – Vol.6 No.13]