What is the authenticity of the hadith: “Every game is forbidden except three,” and what are the permissible games?

The questioner : In *Fiqh al-Sunnah*, there is a hadith that states: , and it mentions: .

The Shaykh : This is not correct. The correct statement is the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): is not forbidden. These things are not among the vain. Vain actions are the opposite of idle talk in speech. If a person engages in idle talk, and if there is ... in it, it is forbidden; but if there is no ... of the forbidden in it, it is a waste of effort and speech without benefit, and thus it is idle talk. Similarly, if play involves physical or athletic benefit and the like, it is not vain. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) brought these four examples as models upon which other things are measured. However, if there is only a waste of time, such as being engrossed in certain amusements like billiards, chess, and dice—which are explicitly prohibited—and the like, then it is not merely vain, but some of it is forbidden, as we mentioned regarding playing billiards, which is dice.