Miscellaneous Issues on Endowments 4item Should money donated to buy tools and appliances for the ḥusayniyyahs/masjids be deemed as endowment, or do the tools bought require uttering endowment formula? In order for an endowment trust to be valid, is it conditional that the special words should be pronounced? Assuming so, is it necessary to be in Arabic? I built a building in a village intending it to be used as a masjid. Since there are already two masjids in the village, it clearly doesn’t need another masjid. The village is in desperate need for a place of learning. It is to be noted, however, that neither an endowment deed has been concluded, nor a prayer performed at the premises as praying in a masjid. I am prepared to change my intention by placing the building at the disposal of the Education Department. What is the ruling in this matter? A person directed in his will that his orchard should be assigned as an endowment for fifty years where the returns should be used in hiring someone to say prayers and perform fasts on his behalf. He further instructed that after the lapse of the first fifty-year period, the endowment should pay for charity work during the celebrations of the Night of Qadr (destiny) of Ramadan. The trustees of the will are the man’s four sons. Since the orchard has fallen into a state of disrepair and can hardly yield anything, can his sons sell the property and use the proceeds to hire someone to perform 200 years of prayer and fasting on deceased’s behalf?