I have been playing gambling for a long time, and I used to leave off the prayer, but in the month of Ramadan I fast and pray, and after that I leave it off. I am married and I have children.
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The questioner : I have been playing gambling for a long time, and I used to leave off the prayer, but in the month of Ramadan I fast and pray, and after that I leave it off. I am married and I have children, and my wife also prays. But one day I lost a lot in this gambling, and I was pained, and I swore an oath that I would not play gambling anymore. But I played a second time. The oath I swore was that I said, by the forbidden, by divorce, by three, that I would not play gambling anymore. So, is my wife divorced in this case, and she does not know about this oath, as I said? Also, as I told you, I used to leave off the prayer, and she prays. And I am now repentant and confused. What is the ruling of the Shari'ah in your view regarding my action? I want to repent, and I have now started praying and left gambling. I ask for an answer to my question with respect.
The Shaykh : The answer to this question is that gambling is the maysir (gambling) that Allah (Mighty and Majestic) has forbidden, and He associated it with intoxicants and the worship of idols, where He (Exalted and Majestic is He) said:[Al-Ma'idah 5:90-91] The earnings you have acquired from it are forbidden earnings. It is obligatory for you to get rid of them by giving them in charity as a means of purifying yourself from their sin, not as a means of drawing near to Allah (Mighty and Majestic), because drawing near to Allah with forbidden earnings does not benefit anything. The conscience is not cleared by that charity, and drawing near to Allah the Exalted is not achieved by it, because it is established from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he said: Sahih Muslim 1015 Therefore, what is obligatory for you regarding these earnings is to remove them from your ownership as a means of purifying yourself and repenting to Allah (Mighty and Majestic).
As for what concerns your oath by divorce and the forbidden that you would not return to it, meaning to playing gambling, and then you returned to it, it is obligatory for you, according to the stronger opinion among the opinions of the scholars, it is obligatory for you to pay the expiation for an oath. The expiation for an oath is feeding ten poor people, or clothing them, or freeing a slave. The way to feed them is to prepare food for lunch or dinner, then invite these ten people until they eat, or you distribute to them rice or the like of what is of the middle quality of what you feed your family, for each of the poor people about a kilo, and it is good to include with it something to make it filling, such as meat or the like. And since you have now repented to your Lord and regretted the sin that occurred, ask Allah the Exalted for steadfastness in that, and thank Him for this great blessing, for repentance is among the greatest blessings of Allah upon the servant. For this reason, Allah bestowed upon His servants Islam, where He (Mighty and Majestic) said:[Al-Hujurat 49:17] And He the Exalted said: [Al-Ma'idah 5:3].
The questioner : May Allah bless you.
This is a message we received from Fakhri Abdullah Abd al-Salam, an Egyptian residing in Iraq, Anbar. He says in his first question.
The Shaykh : The answer to this question is that gambling is the maysir (gambling) that Allah (Mighty and Majestic) has forbidden, and He associated it with intoxicants and the worship of idols, where He (Exalted and Majestic is He) said:
(90) O you who have believed, indeed, intoxicants, gambling, [sacrificing on] stone alters [to other than Allah], and divining arrows are but defilement from the work of Satan, so avoid it that you may be successful. (91) Satan only wants to cause between you animosity and hatred through intoxicants and gambling and to avert you from the remembrance of Allah and from prayer. So will you not desist?
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ ءامَنُوا إِنَّمَا الْخَمْرُ وَالْمَيْسِرُ وَالأَنصَابُ وَالأَزْلامُ رِجْسٌ مِنْ عَمَلِ الشَّيْطَانِ فَاجْتَنِبُوهُ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ * إِنَّمَا يُرِيدُ الشَّيْطَانُ أَنْ يُوقِعَ بَيْنَكُمُ الْعَدَاوَةَ وَالْبَغْضَاءَ فِي الْخَمْرِ وَالْمَيْسِرِ وَيَصُدَّكُمْ عَنْ ذِكْرِ اللَّهِ وَعَنِ الصَّلاةِ فَهَلْ أَنْتُمْ مُنتَهُونَAllah is Good and He therefore, accepts only that which is good
إن الله طيب لا يقبل إلا طيباًAs for what concerns your oath by divorce and the forbidden that you would not return to it, meaning to playing gambling, and then you returned to it, it is obligatory for you, according to the stronger opinion among the opinions of the scholars, it is obligatory for you to pay the expiation for an oath. The expiation for an oath is feeding ten poor people, or clothing them, or freeing a slave. The way to feed them is to prepare food for lunch or dinner, then invite these ten people until they eat, or you distribute to them rice or the like of what is of the middle quality of what you feed your family, for each of the poor people about a kilo, and it is good to include with it something to make it filling, such as meat or the like. And since you have now repented to your Lord and regretted the sin that occurred, ask Allah the Exalted for steadfastness in that, and thank Him for this great blessing, for repentance is among the greatest blessings of Allah upon the servant. For this reason, Allah bestowed upon His servants Islam, where He (Mighty and Majestic) said:
Rather, Allah has conferred favor upon you that He has guided you to the faith, if you should be truthful."
بَلِ اللَّهُ يَمُنُّ عَلَيْكُمْ أَنْ هَدَاكُمْ لِلإِيمَانِ إِنْ كُنتُمْ صَادِقِينَThis day I have perfected for you your religion and completed My favor upon you and have approved for you Islam as religion.
الْيَوْمَ أَكْمَلْتُ لَكُمْ دِينَكُمْ وَأَتْمَمْتُ عَلَيْكُمْ نِعْمَتِي وَرَضِيتُ لَكُمُ الإِسْلامَ دِينًاThe questioner : May Allah bless you.
This is a message we received from Fakhri Abdullah Abd al-Salam, an Egyptian residing in Iraq, Anbar. He says in his first question.