Question 211 - The Enlightening Answer Across the Ether, Vol 2

Ahmed al-Hasan Response:

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds. Taking payment in exchange for prayer and fasting on behalf of a deceased person is invalid, because there is no intention of drawing near to Allah, Glorious is He, in such prayer or fasting. Were it not for the payment, the person would neither pray nor fast on behalf of the deceased; thus, his prayer and fasting draw near to money, not to Allah, Glorious is He. If there is no eldest son upon whom it is obligatory to make up what the parents owe, or if he exists but is unable to make up what they owe, and there is no volunteer to perform the prayers and fasts owed by the deceased, then charity is given on behalf of the deceased: one mudd of food for each day of fasting, and one mudd of food for the prayers of one day and night. This amount should be used according to the details just stated. Praise be to Allah. Sayyid Ahmed Alhasan Vicegerent and Messenger of Imam al-Mahdi (a)