What should a person who used to work as an artist do with the money he earned from image-making after he learned that it is forbidden and repented to Allah?

The questioner: Peace be upon you.

The Shaykh : And upon you be peace, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.

The questioner : How are you?

The Shaykh : Welcome. Where did your voice go?

The questioner : My voice is weak.

The Shaykh : It is going away, it is getting lost.

The questioner : One of the brothers used to work as an artist, and then he learned that image-making is forbidden.

The Shaykh : And praise be to Allah.

The questioner : Praise be to Allah, he closed the shop. Now he is asking about the previous income from that shop, which he put into... tiles... vases and other things. That is, he bought many things with the previous income. He is asking now, regarding these previous purchases, what he should do with them, and with the money he used to buy them from the previous income, and the items and other things, what should he do with them?

The Shaykh : May Allah be his helper.

The questioner: Amen, O Lord.

The Shaykh : This is the problem of problems: he spent his life in forbidden earnings. How is he supposed to clear his situation? If he has both forbidden and lawful earnings, he must estimate the lawful earnings and keep them, and estimate the forbidden earnings and give them to the poor. And if all his earnings were forbidden, may Allah help him, he must give out all his money so that he can start a new life filled with lawful earnings. There is no answer other than this.

The questioner : May Allah reward you with good.

The Shaykh : May Allah preserve you.