What should I do if a namaaz (in my case Magrieb) falls within a critical time of my job

Respected Brother In Islam

Assalamualikum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuhu

May Allah keep you firm and steadfast on Islam.  Allah has bestowed you with His special favour by guiding you to the truth.  The foundation of Islam is based on education.  Knowledge and understanding is our pride.  The very first word of revelation was Iqra which means to read.  The first five verses of revelation emphasize on the power of Allah and knowledge.  You should not excuse yourself for asking questions.  That is a means of learning and educating oneself.  We therefore welcome your questions and are pleased and not shocked in the least. Before we address the issue of chess being permissible or not, we wish to advise you that as Muslims, the Quran is our first source of guidance and the teachings of Rasulullah Sallalahu Alayhi Wasallam is the second source of our guidance.  The teachings of Rasulullah Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam are known as Hadith.  Hadith elaborates on the meanings of the Quran.  The third source of our guidance is the consensus of the Sahaabah, the companions of Rasulullah Sallalahu Alayhi Wasallam. The fourth source of guidance is the deductions of the Fuqahaa (jurists).  The general function of the Fuqahaa is to deduce the rulings of Shariah which are not expressly mentioned in the preceding three sources.  There are four famous and popular jurists who had oceans of knowledge regarding the Quran and Hadith. They were experts and understood the spirit and purport of Shariah.  These Fuqaha were academics and honest.  They recorded their honest decrees on various issues.  As is normal and natural among academics, these Fuqaha also differed in their opinions.  This makes it for difficult a layman to determine who is right.  It is therefore emphasized that a layman follow any one particular Jurist in all issues of Shariah.  The Jurist is simply a guide to adhere to the Quraan and Hadith. Flowing from that introduction, we now revert to your query.  There are differences of opinions among the Jurist regarding chess.  According to the Hanafi school of thought, it is prohibited.  According to the Shafi school of thought, it is permissible.  We are also required to follow the ruling of one school of thought.  That we subscribe to.  As a new Muslim, you should adopt one school of thought and go by that.  Our advice is if you are residing in Kwa Zulu Natal or Gauteng , adopt the Hanafi school of thought as the Muslims here are predominantly Hanafis.  If you are residing in Cape Town , adopt the Shaafi school of thought as most of the Muslims there are Shaafis.  Your choice of school of thought based on the area you live will make it easy for you to learn the rulings of that school of thought and easily practise on that.  In order to simplify the issue, we present to you the following example.  Every country is governed by a constitution which contains        rules and principles.  Every person is expected to abide by the constitution of his country.  You have been granted a right in the constitution and you want to claim your right through the courts.  For that you will seek legal counsel and require a legal representative.  There are many such experts.  What would you do in such a situation?  You will identify a suitable expert and trust in his advice and guidance.

 

Similarly, in Shariah, as a new Muslim, identify one of the four Jurists and their school of thought, namely, the Hanafi, Shaafi, Maaliki and Hambali schools of thought, trust the guidance of the Jurist of your choice, and adhere to his rulings in all issues of Shariah.  You cannot pick and choose a particular school of thought for a particular issue and another for another issue.  That will be following ones whims and desires and defeat the purpose of submission to Allah.  A human being by nature is prone to follow what suits him fine.  Islam teaches us to go against that and follow the commandments of Allah against our desires. 

 

As regards your second query pertaining to Maghrib salaah, be advised that the Maghrib time expires when the twilight in the horizon disappears.  In summer that is just more than an hour after sunset.  You should obtain a perpetual salaah calendar and follow the salad time through that. You may delay your Maghrib salah till before the expiry time of Maghrib salaah.  If you cannot perform the salaah soon after sunset. You should do everything possible to perform your salaah within the time of each salaah.

 

And Allah Knows Best

 

Mufti Ebrahim Desai