• Unlawful earnings: People with unlawful earnings — their food
Is it permissible to eat food offered by Muslims whose known sources of income fall within the range of either forbidden or suspicious? Do people who work in banking or life insurance and those who are known to take bribes fall in this category?
If you know for sure that the earnings of a certain person come largely from forbidden sources, then you should not eat his food or accept his presents. But, then, how can you tell? A Muslim does not allow himself to pass judgments on other people without having all the facts available to him. At the same time, a Muslim does not take much notice of hearsay, but bases his attitude on information of which he is certain. Hence, it is very difficult to establish the legitimacy or otherwise of people's income.
It is true that some people are unscrupulous about the ways they earn their money. Nevertheless, a substantial portion of their income comes from legitimate sources, such as their salaries for their work or their profits from business. If you are invited for a meal by such a person and you feel that maintaining good relations with him is beneficial in the sense that you may be able to influence his attitude to make it more in line with Islam, then you may accept his invitation. You should not forget that it is perfectly permissible to accept an invitation by a Christian or a Jew when their income could include a portion which comes from sources which Islam does not approve.
• Unlawful earnings: Suspicion and assumption
A relative of mine has a modest monthly salary, but he is leading a life of plenty. He seems to be able to have whatever money he needs. I know that his extra earnings are unlawful. Is it permissible to eat anything at his house? How are his children and the rest of the family affected by his actions?
I object to your statement, "I know that his earnings are unlawful". How do you know? I believe that this is only an assumption on your part. Your relative may have another very lawful source of income which you do not know. He might have got into a business partnership with someone and that is giving him his extra income. As Muslims, we always think well of one another. We do not form our judgment on mere suspicion. You may have good reasons for your suspicion, but you do not claim it to be the truth unless you can substantiate it with irrefutable evidence.
Having said that, I move on to answering your specific questions. If you are absolutely certain that the majority of your relative's earnings are unlawful, then it is the right thing for you to avoid eating anything in his house or receive any benefits from him. As for the position of his wife and family, it depends on whether they know of his misdeeds or not. If his wife is aware of the fact that his earnings are unlawful and she encourages him, then she is his partner in sin. If she is unaware of what he does, then she is not accountable for his deeds. His children are not responsible for what their father does, particularly if they are young. However, a Muslim is always keen to feed his children only with what he knows to be lawfully earned. It is that type of lawful earning that brings blessing and good future to a family.
• Unlawful earnings: What to do with it?
A few years back I came to offer the Umrah and I feel that Allah has answered my prayer to help me have only legitimate earnings. Since then, all my income comes from legitimate sources, praise be to Allah. I am, however, confused about my past earnings which included some portions from illegitimate sources. A part of such income has been used in the building of our family home, which is the only shelter for our extended family. I will be grateful for your guidance.
I have previously explained that Allah forgives such offenses and sins which are within the relationship between Himself and His servant. He does not forgive an act of aggression committed against another human being unless that person forgoes his rights first. If Allah, however, wishes to spare any servant of His the difficulty of coming face to face with people who have rights to claim against him, He undertakes to satisfy them so that they forgo their right.
It is of paramount importance, therefore, to try to give every person his right in this life, so that we do not come face to face with opponents who press their claims against us in front of Allah. If they have a rightful claim, then Allah will make sure that it is given them by crediting them with some of our good deeds. No one has a surplus of good deeds to be able to afford repayment in the life to come. Whatever we can repay in this life should be repaid.
Your illegitimate earnings represent rights which other people are entitled to press against you. Therefore, you are required to repay them to their rightful owners. Whatever method you can determine to ensure that any particular person from whom you got some money in an illegitimate way is repaid his right in full is acceptable. You do not need to make it known to him how you got away with what should have been his. You should try to give it back to him and make sure that he knows that it is his right to have it.
There are various reasons which may make it impossible. The most obvious one is that a person may not know the rightful owner of something that he has got unlawfully. In this case, you should give the amount which you have earned unlawfully to charity. It is even better to pay more in sadaqah and charity than what you think you have earned unlawfully. The more you give, the better is your chance that Allah will grant you forgiveness in the hereafter.
If you act on this advice and pay back to anyone you know what you got from him unlawfully or you pay in sadaqah what you can to offset your illegitimate earnings, you may keep your house and other belongings. You remain hopeful that Allah will forgive you, Insha'Allah. You should always try to be charitable to others. There is nothing better to help prevent evil and promote good than sadaqah. The more you give, the better person you are.