Discussion of video and that it is more strictly forbidden than photographs.

The Shaykh : ... And now we move on to video. In my opinion, video is worse than these images we spoke of earlier, which are taken with a camera. Why? Because our argument against those who oppose these Prophetic hadiths is that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said in some hadiths Here, the one who draws with his pen and brush, whether on a curtain or in sculpture, is one who rivals the creation of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). And Allah (Mighty and Majestic), in His jealousy for the station of Lordship and Divinity, has forbidden His servants to rival the image of the creation of Allah. So now, is this rivalry with the pen and brush more precise and severe, or with the photographic machine? There is no doubt that it is more precise with the photographic machine. I remember clearly when I was in primary school, the art teacher would sit in the courtyard during the break while the children played. He would sit next to the blackboard and call out to one of them, "Come here, boy." At that time, wearing turbans was widespread among Muslims in general, including the children. He would stand and take the chalk—what they call chalk—and make these lines. If the image of the boy in front of him on the board was drawn by a skilled artist, it would be as if he were playing for a moment, and his picture would appear. You would look and see it was him exactly. But perhaps a hair might be out of place here or there, or behind, and it would not appear. But the photographic image shows it perfectly. Can a rational person, free from bias, say, "No, this one has no rivalry, and that one who scratched these scratches has no rivalry"? No, no one can deny or reject that photographic imaging contains more rivalry with the creation of Allah than the imaging that was known in that era. Likewise, consider the idols that have spread today in homes, in salons, and in shops that sell clothes, especially women's clothing. Recently, today or yesterday? Yesterday, we passed by some shops in the car and stopped at the signal. We looked to the right here, a woman, and here a woman. If a person does not look closely, he might imagine that these are actually women wearing flesh-colored stockings, wearing stockings of revealing colors, the color of the leg, and so on. These idols today are more precise than those idols that were in that era. Perhaps some of you know the story of that Italian painter, the skilled sculptor who is cited as an example in his sculpting of large statues and idols. One day, he finished sculpting an idol that he had worked on for days. Because he was so pleased with its image and his creation, he said to it, "Speak! Why don't you speak?" Then he smashed it to pieces. Do you remember the name of this artist?

The questioner : Picasso, the painter.

The Shaykh : Yes, that is the important point. This person sculpted an idol. These idols have now spread among Muslims. Why? Because the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), out of his compassion for the believers, said When you say that drawing on paper by hand is fine, but do not sculpt an idol, a time will pass and this misguidance will develop from this small misguidance to something greater. When you say, for example, "These images, since they are not three-dimensional, will spread to children's clothes, then from children's clothes to older youth, then from older youth to men, and so on." This is all observed, and the era is not far from you. When we mentioned to you what we see in the mosques now, the spread of images on the backs and chests of young men, and so on. So the point is that imaging with a camera contains more rivalry with the creation of Allah than by hand. Let me now move on to video. Video, you see, the image is as if it is real; it speaks, walks, goes, wrestles, competes, plays ball, and so on, as if you are watching... Who can say that this image is not more dangerous than a camera image and not more dangerous than a hand-drawn image? No one can, unless he is one who has a bias. And therefore, we continue to say that whoever Allah wishes to do good to, He grants him understanding in the religion. All these images, whether known in the past by brush, paint, sculpture, or the like, all fall under the generality of the hadiths. The camera falls under the generality of the hadiths, and video as well. And the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said So this image, if it is of any of these types, is not permissible to be in a Muslim's home. But as the jurists say, "No general statement exists without a specific exception." Are there some images that can be exempted from the prohibition? The answer is yes. It came in the Sunnah that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) The images of the doll, the handmade doll, until one day he came to her and found her playing with her toys, and among them was a horse with two wings. He said to her She said, "O Messenger of Allah, has it not reached you that the horses of Solomon had wings?" So he (peace be upon him) laughed. That is, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to see his wife Aisha while she was a young girl, where he had contracted her marriage when she was seven and consummated it when she was nine. He used to see her playing with her young neighbors and did not disapprove of it. So we took from this image transmitted in the authentic hadith that girls' play is permissible because it has a benefit, which is expressed today as teaching the girl what relates to managing the home, as they say today. And it is even more so that some of the images known today are permissible because there is a greater need and necessity for them than the need of Aisha for her play. For example, photographic images for identity cards and passports, and the like, which realize benefits for every nation, indeed for every people. Likewise, I say now regarding video, unfortunately, if this wonderful, strange device were used to teach Muslims some of the acts of worship that Muslims cannot learn—may Allah will it, it is eleven o'clock now—by hearing, but they can learn it by seeing. If there were an Islamic state that truly taught, for example, the pilgrims every year before Hajj, in the three months of Hajj, to broadcast via television, as it is called, the method of tawaf around the Ka'bah: where to start, how to face the Black Stone, where to go when finished with tawaf? He goes to the Maqam and prays two rak'ahs, and demonstrates the crowd: how to behave in the crowd, and so on. Then the pilgrims would learn Hajj while in their homes. But this... for example, the prayer Most Muslims do not know his (peace and blessings be upon him) prayer, even the jurists among them who are called jurists, let alone the doctors who are called doctors of the end times. They do not know how he (peace and blessings be upon him) prayed. Each one of them studied the description of the prayer within the narrow limits of his school. This Hanafi must place his hands here, meaning at his navel. That Maliki must let his hands hang down. That Shafi'i does it like this, like the sea crab. And so on. Who do you find who places his hands like this on the chest, as the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) did? This one raises his hands the first time, then does not return to them. That one raises them when bowing and when rising from it, but he hardly raises them. What does that equal? ... The important thing is that the raising is done in two ways, as came in the Sunnah: either aligning with the ears, and some of them, what do they equal? Look, it is not correct to raise for alignment unless one does it like this. No, the alignment is like this, or he aligns with the shoulders only. Some of them exaggerate and raise like this, and some of them do it like this. Raising the head from bowing, he does that, not this. That is the raising. If it were shown on television how the Messenger prayed, how the Messenger performed Hajj, how the Messenger performed 'Umrah, imagine the benefits that would spread throughout the Islamic world. These benefits are greater than the benefits of Aisha's play in her home. If the Messenger permitted that, then this is permissible a fortiori. I think I have answered your question.

The questioner : I mean, Shaykh, if a person, for example, speaks about the prayer and describes the prayer practically, and then one of our brothers who has a video comes and films this practical lesson on the prayer, or how to pray the funeral prayer, or such matters that are learned here, is there no harm for the one who gives the lesson and performs it?

The Shaykh : There is no harm, yes.

The questioner : May Allah reward you.

The Shaykh : Glory be to You, O Allah, with Your praise. I bear witness that there is no deity but You. I seek Your forgiveness and I repent to You.