The Ruling on Games That Impose a Penalty on the Loser
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
May Allah reward you with good. This is another question that says: We are young friends who fear Allah and we sometimes gather to play cards. The one who loses among us has to bring dinner, and we eat it together. There is no condition other than this. Is this permissible? Please inform us. May Allah reward you with good.
Answer:
If the cards are printed with images: it is not permissible; because image-making is not permissible, and playing with images is not permissible.
As for if it is paper that has no images, but only has entertainment, and it does not prevent from prayer, and does not cause dispute, cursing, or insults, but is only relaxation; then it does no harm.
As for if it causes competition, dispute, or litigation, or occupies one from prayer, then any game that occupies one, whether cards, dice, or any game, or racing on foot or otherwise, everything that occupies one from prayer or causes mutual cursing, invoking curses, insults, and hatred is not permissible. But if none of that results from it, and it has no images, and does not occupy one from prayer; then there is nothing wrong with it.
Q: And the dinner, O Shaykh?
The Shaykh: The dinner does no harm. This is a person who calls his brothers to have dinner with them, or to have lunch with them. The important thing is that it does not occupy one from prayer and does not lead to something forbidden.
Q: In the cards today there are images, something called a girl, and something called a boy?
The Shaykh: It is not permissible to play with them. They must be destroyed and torn up.
Q: And the intention that one of the teams wins?
The Shaykh: They gather at the person's place. Even if no one wins, they gather. When they come to him, they play and have dinner at his place.
Q: No, they oblige the loser?
The Shaykh: No, this is not permissible, it is not right. This means taking a bet in other than the three [types of racing].
Q: Is it from gambling?
The Shaykh: It is not right, this is not right.
May Allah reward you with good. This is another question that says: We are young friends who fear Allah and we sometimes gather to play cards. The one who loses among us has to bring dinner, and we eat it together. There is no condition other than this. Is this permissible? Please inform us. May Allah reward you with good.
Answer:
If the cards are printed with images: it is not permissible; because image-making is not permissible, and playing with images is not permissible.
As for if it is paper that has no images, but only has entertainment, and it does not prevent from prayer, and does not cause dispute, cursing, or insults, but is only relaxation; then it does no harm.
As for if it causes competition, dispute, or litigation, or occupies one from prayer, then any game that occupies one, whether cards, dice, or any game, or racing on foot or otherwise, everything that occupies one from prayer or causes mutual cursing, invoking curses, insults, and hatred is not permissible. But if none of that results from it, and it has no images, and does not occupy one from prayer; then there is nothing wrong with it.
Q: And the dinner, O Shaykh?
The Shaykh: The dinner does no harm. This is a person who calls his brothers to have dinner with them, or to have lunch with them. The important thing is that it does not occupy one from prayer and does not lead to something forbidden.
Q: In the cards today there are images, something called a girl, and something called a boy?
The Shaykh: It is not permissible to play with them. They must be destroyed and torn up.
Q: And the intention that one of the teams wins?
The Shaykh: They gather at the person's place. Even if no one wins, they gather. When they come to him, they play and have dinner at his place.
Q: No, they oblige the loser?
The Shaykh: No, this is not permissible, it is not right. This means taking a bet in other than the three [types of racing].
Q: Is it from gambling?
The Shaykh: It is not right, this is not right.
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.