Ruling on Watching Images in Video
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
The first message in this episode is one that reached the program from Kuwait. The sender is one of the sisters from there. The sender (L. Sh. Umm Muhammad), our sister, has six questions. In her first question, she asks and says: What is the ruling on seeing images of animals in video without music, and in other words: I would like to know the ruling on images in video? May Allah reward you with good.
Answer:
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, and may Allah send prayers and peace upon His Messenger, upon his family and his Companions, and upon those who follow his guidance. As for what follows:
I do not know of any harm in seeing images that are not accompanied by musical instruments. I do not know of any objection to this, except if the images are of the kind that arouse desires, such as images of loose women, or images of effeminate men; in that case, the believer should lower his gaze from them and not look at them.
As for images of other animals, such as camels, cows, sheep, lions, gazelles, and their like, there is nothing wrong with that. However, if the image is of a kind that arouses the instinct—causes fitnah (trial, discord or temptation)—such as images of alluring women, and images of effeminate men; then one should lower the gaze from that. A woman should lower her gaze from men, and a man should lower his gaze from women and effeminate men, so that fitnah (trial, discord or temptation) does not occur.
We ask Allah for safety. Yes.
The presenter: May Allah reward you with good! Does the question move on, Your Eminence, to the ruling on image-making at that time?
The Shaykh: Image-making has a different matter. Image-making is not permissible if it is of beings with souls, whether they are from the children of Adam or other than the children of Adam; because of the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):Sahih Muslim 2109a And because he (peace and blessings be upon him): Sahih al-Bukhari 2086 narrated by al-Bukhari in the Sahih.
Image-making of beings with souls, whether from the children of Adam or others, is a matter that is not permissible. But in the case of dire necessity where a person has no choice and no desire, only necessity, such as photographing criminals who are sought to be detained so that they do not harm the Muslims, or photographing one who is given citizenship—meaning: nationality... passport—if the need calls for that; then there is no blame on him if it is not obtained for him except by image; because it is for a known purpose, which is to distinguish him and identify him from others. So the purpose, if the image has a dire necessity like what we mentioned, there is nothing wrong with it... for the need, and it falls under the saying of Allah the Exalted: [al-Nahl:106], meaning: of the kind of the coerced. Yes.
The first message in this episode is one that reached the program from Kuwait. The sender is one of the sisters from there. The sender (L. Sh. Umm Muhammad), our sister, has six questions. In her first question, she asks and says: What is the ruling on seeing images of animals in video without music, and in other words: I would like to know the ruling on images in video? May Allah reward you with good.
Answer:
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, and may Allah send prayers and peace upon His Messenger, upon his family and his Companions, and upon those who follow his guidance. As for what follows:
I do not know of any harm in seeing images that are not accompanied by musical instruments. I do not know of any objection to this, except if the images are of the kind that arouse desires, such as images of loose women, or images of effeminate men; in that case, the believer should lower his gaze from them and not look at them.
As for images of other animals, such as camels, cows, sheep, lions, gazelles, and their like, there is nothing wrong with that. However, if the image is of a kind that arouses the instinct—causes fitnah (trial, discord or temptation)—such as images of alluring women, and images of effeminate men; then one should lower the gaze from that. A woman should lower her gaze from men, and a man should lower his gaze from women and effeminate men, so that fitnah (trial, discord or temptation) does not occur.
We ask Allah for safety. Yes.
The presenter: May Allah reward you with good! Does the question move on, Your Eminence, to the ruling on image-making at that time?
The Shaykh: Image-making has a different matter. Image-making is not permissible if it is of beings with souls, whether they are from the children of Adam or other than the children of Adam; because of the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):
the most grievously tormented people on the Day of Resurrection would be the painters of pictures
أشد الناس عذابًا يوم القيامة المصورونreceiving or giving Riba, (usury), and cursed the picture-makers.
لعن آكل الربا، وموكله، ولعن المصورImage-making of beings with souls, whether from the children of Adam or others, is a matter that is not permissible. But in the case of dire necessity where a person has no choice and no desire, only necessity, such as photographing criminals who are sought to be detained so that they do not harm the Muslims, or photographing one who is given citizenship—meaning: nationality... passport—if the need calls for that; then there is no blame on him if it is not obtained for him except by image; because it is for a known purpose, which is to distinguish him and identify him from others. So the purpose, if the image has a dire necessity like what we mentioned, there is nothing wrong with it... for the need, and it falls under the saying of Allah the Exalted:
Whoever disbelieves in Allah after his belief... except for one who is forced
مَنْ كَفَرَ بِاللَّهِ مِنْ بَعْدِ إِيمَانِهِ إِلَّا مَنْ أُكْرِهَ
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.