What is the ruling on decorating mosques?

The questioner : We want to ask about decorating mosques.

The Shaykh : Decorating mosques is among the religious innovations that entered Islam. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: The one who narrated this hadith was Abdullah ibn Abbas, and after narrating the hadith, he said: "You will decorate them just as the Jews and Christians decorated them." Therefore, it is not permissible to decorate mosques for this reason first. Second, it involves wasting the wealth of Muslims. Third, it occupies the minds of the worshippers in these mosques with the decorations painted on their walls. For this reason, it is reported in Sahih al-Bukhari that when 'Umar ibn al-Khattab renovated the construction of the Prophet's Mosque, he said to the builder: "Protect the people from the heat and the cold, but do not paint it red or yellow."