What is the ruling on playing chess?

The questioner : The ruling on chess?

The Shaykh : Say, chess. There is no authentic hadith regarding the prohibition of chess, but its status is like that of many newly invented pastimes—and peace and mercy of Allah be upon you. If there is no clear contradiction of the Shari'ah in it, then it is permissible to play it occasionally, as a way to relax the mind, not as a habit or a matter of preoccupation; for it will lead its practitioner to neglect many of the obligations that he must be committed to and mindful of.
However, chess—up to this day—has an inherent defect in its pieces, as it contains some idols, such as the elephant and the horse, and the like. For this reason, if a person has chess in his home and wants to play with it under the aforementioned condition—that is, occasionally—he must change these images and statues, and destroy them by cutting off their heads; because, as came in the hadith, . In that case, it is possible to play with them under the condition I mentioned earlier. It was also narrated from 'Ali (may Allah be pleased with him)—and when I say "narrated," I mean what I say, i.e., with a chain that has weakness—that he: "Passed by a group of people bent over playing chess, and he said to them: What are these statues that you are devoted to?" Because, in reality, the sitting of these players and the spectators around them, he saw them so preoccupied, bent over the game, 'Ali cited this verse in disapproval of them and said: . So, before anything else, these statues must be changed. After that, if one plays with it occasionally, as we said, it should not prevent him from attending the mosque and praying with the Muslims, nor should it occupy him from fulfilling his religious and domestic obligations and the like.