Series of Answers by the Eminent Scholar Ata Bin Khalil Abu Al-Rashta, Ameer of Hizb ut-Tahrir, to Questions from Visitors to his Facebook Page "Fiqhi"
To: Ahmad AlHashlamon
Question:
As-Salamu Alaykum. I am Ahmad Wisam Al-Hashlamon, one of the members of Hizb ut-Tahrir. I have some questions and I would like you to answer them: 1- What is the ruling on drawing in Islam? 2- What is the ruling on drawing parts of the human body? 3- Does drawing fall under the same ruling as sculpture? Thank you.
Answer:
Wa Alaykum As-Salam Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatuh,
We have previously answered the issue of drawing (tasweer) in a comprehensive manner. It seems you have not seen that answer, as it addresses the matters you asked about and other related issues... I will repeat the text of that answer to you:
(Before answering the questions on drawing (tasweer), we emphasize two points:
First: The answers below regarding the Shari‘i ruling on tasweer refer to hand-drawing, as this is the meaning intended in the ahadith. It does not refer to photography using a camera (camera); camera photography is permissible (mubah) and the ahadith do not apply to it.
Second: The answers below concern flat, two-dimensional images that do not have a shadow. These are detailed with all their branches related to the question...
Third: As for imaging that has a shadow, i.e., statues (which you referred to in your question as "sculpture"), these are prohibited (haram) as explained at the end of the answer...
First: Answers to questions regarding flat drawings (tasweer) that have no shadow, including its various branches:
- Regarding the first and second questions:
- Modifying and correcting images (i.e., removing wrinkles, changing eye color or some facial features, etc.).
- Drawing images of people and animals that are realistic...
These two questions relate to drawing things that possess souls (dhawat al-arwah), or making hand-drawn modifications to images of things with souls, such as removing wrinkles and some facial features. These fall under the prohibition mentioned in the evidences, whether the drawing is done with a manual pen or by using a "mouse" on a computer. As long as the drawing is the result of human effort mimicking a possessor of a soul, the prohibition applies to it. Al-Bukhari narrated from the hadith of Ibn Abbas that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
مَنْ صَوَّرَ صُورَةً فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ مُعَذِّبُهُ حَتَّى يَنْفُخَ فِيهَا الرُّوحَ وَلَيْسَ بِنَافِخٍ فِيهَا أَبَدًا
"Whoever makes an image, Allah will punish him until he breathes a soul into it, and he will never be able to do so." (Sahih Bukhari)
He also narrated via Ibn Umar that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يَصْنَعُونَ هَذِهِ الصُّوَرَ يُعَذَّبُونَ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ يُقَالُ لَهُمْ أَحْيُوا مَا خَلَقْتُمْ
"Indeed, those who make these images will be punished on the Day of Resurrection, and it will be said to them, 'Give life to what you have created.'" (Sahih Bukhari)
- Regarding the third and fourth questions:
- Using ready-made images and drawings in printing.
- Using images, drawings, or logos created by other designers instead of drawing them myself.
This refers to taking them from others without the questioner drawing them himself. This falls under the ruling of possessing images, which is of three types:
a- If you take them to place them on things used in places of worship, such as prayer rugs, mosque curtains, or advertisements for mosques and the like, this is prohibited (haram) and not allowed. Among the evidences for this is the hadith of Ibn Abbas that the Messenger ﷺ refused to enter the Kaaba until the images inside it were erased. The Messenger's ﷺ refusal to enter the Kaaba until the images were erased is a context (qarinah) for a decisive command to leave (tark) the placing of images in places of worship, thus serving as evidence for the prohibition of images in mosques:
Imam Ahmad narrated from Ibn Abbas:
أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ ﷺ لَمَّا رَأَى الصُّوَرَ فِي الْبَيْتِ يَعْنِي الْكَعْبَةَ لَمْ يَدْخُلْ وَأَمَرَ بِهَا فَمُحِيَتْ
"When the Prophet ﷺ saw the images in the House (i.e., the Kaaba), he did not enter it and ordered them to be erased." (Musnad Ahmad)
b- If the questioner takes images drawn by others to use them in places other than places of worship, the evidences indicate that this is permissible:
It is disliked (makruh) if the images are taken for use in places of respect or veneration, such as curtains for homes, visual aids for cultural institutions, on shirts or clothes to be worn, or in schools, offices, and advertisements not related to worship, or if they are hung at the front of a room or worn to improve appearance and the like. All of this is makruh.
It is permissible (mubah) if the images are taken for use in places other than places of worship and in non-venerated ways, such as being on a floor mat that is stepped upon, or on mattresses for sleeping and lying down, or cushions for leaning, or drawings on the ground that are tread upon, or the like. All of this is mubah.
Among the evidences for this:
- The hadith of Abu Talha in Muslim with the wording: I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say:
لا تدخل الملائكة بيتاً فيه كلب ولا صورة
"The angels do not enter a house in which there is a dog or an image."
In a narration by Muslim, he said:
إلا رقماً في ثوب
"Except for a design on a garment."
This indicates an exception for an image designed (raqman) on a garment, and its implication is that the angels do enter a house that has a design on a garment, i.e., a drawn image.
This means that a flat image (raqman on a garment) is permissible because the angels enter the house that contains flat images. However, other ahadith have been narrated that clarify the nature of this permissibility:
- The hadith of Aisha (ra) narrated by Al-Bukhari:
دَخَلَ عَلَيَّ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ وَفِي الْبَيْتِ قِرَامٌ فِيهِ صُوَرٌ فَتَلَوَّنَ وَجْهُهُ ثُمَّ تَنَاوَلَ السِّتْرَ فَهَتَكَهُ
"The Prophet ﷺ entered upon me while there was a qiram (curtain) in the house with images on it. His face changed color, then he took the curtain and tore it down." (Sahih Bukhari)
The qiram is a type of cloth, and it was placed as a screen over the door of the house. The change in the face of the Messenger ﷺ and his removing the curtain is equivalent to a request to leave the act of placing the curtain on the door if it has images. If this is combined with the permissibility of angels entering a house that has images (raqman on a garment), it indicates that the request to leave is not decisive, i.e., it is makruh. Because the location of these images was a curtain hung on the door, which is a place of respect, placing images in a respected place is makruh.
- The hadith of Abu Hurayrah narrated by Ahmad, where Jibril (as) said to the Messenger ﷺ:
وَمُرْ بِالسِّتْرِ يُقْطَعْ فَيُجْعَلَ مِنْهُ وِسَادَتَانِ تُوطَآَنِ
"And order that the curtain be cut up and made into two cushions to be stepped upon." (Musnad Ahmad)
Jibril ordered the Messenger ﷺ to remove the curtain from the respected place and make two cushions from it to be stepped on. This means that using images drawn by others in non-respected places is permissible (mubah).
- Regarding the fifth and sixth questions:
- Drawing symbols for people or animals (e.g., road signs like "pedestrian crossing," "fire exit," or "no dogs allowed").
- Drawing parts of a human or animal body (e.g., an image of a handshake, a pointing index finger, or a horse's head... as a logo).
The answer to these two questions is:
If the symbols drawn represent an image of a possessor of a soul, then it is haram, because the ahadith described the prohibition for those with souls. This description applies to full images, half-body images, or a head connected to clear body parts such as hands and the like.
However, if the symbols do not represent an image of a possessor of a soul, such as drawing a hand alone, or a finger pointing to something, or two hands shaking, or the like, then the prohibition does not apply to them.
As for drawing a head alone without it being connected to clear parts of the body, there is a jurisprudential difference (khilaf) on this. What I prefer is the lack of prohibition for a head alone that is not connected to any part of the body. This is because the ahadith that permit cutting off the head of a statue so it remains like a tree—such as the hadith of Abu Hurayrah in which Jibril (as) tells the Messenger ﷺ that a statue is no longer haram if its head is cut off...
فمر برأس التمثال الذي في باب البيت فليقطع ليصير كهيئة الشجرة
"So, order the head of the statue at the door of the house to be cut off so that it becomes like the shape of a tree."
...
فَمُرْ بِرَأْسِ التِّمْثَالِ يُقْطَعْ فَيُصَيَّرَ كَهَيْئَةِ الشَّجَرَةِ
"So, order the head of the statue to be cut off so that it becomes like the shape of a tree..." (Musnad Ahmad)
This hadith means that the head alone and the rest of the statue alone are each not haram. It cannot be said that the lack of prohibition applies only to the body of the statue whose head was cut, while the cut-off head is haram; for Jibril's order to the Messenger ﷺ to cut off the head of the statue means that this cutting is permissible, and consequently, what results from it is permissible.
For your information, the Hanbalis and Malikis permit the head alone. As for the Shafi'is, they have a difference of opinion; most of their jurists prohibit the head alone, while others permit it.
- As for the last two questions, the seventh and eighth:
- Drawing images of people and animals that are not realistic (caricatures).
- Drawing fictional characters that do not exist in reality at all.
The answer to these is that as long as these images represent a being with a soul, even if not realistic, it is haram because the texts apply to it. In a hadith narrated by Muslim, the Messenger ﷺ ordered Aisha (ra) to remove the curtain that was on the door because it had images of winged horses; naturally, there are no winged horses in reality.
Muslim narrated from Aisha (ra):
قَدِمَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ مِنْ سَفَرٍ وَقَدْ سَتَّرْتُ عَلَى بَابِي دُرْنُوكًا فِيهِ الْخَيْلُ ذَوَاتُ الْأَجْنِحَةِ فَأَمَرَنِي فَنَزَعْتُه
"The Messenger of Allah ﷺ returned from a journey, and I had covered my door with a durnuk (curtain) that had images of winged horses on it. He ordered me to take it down, so I removed it." (Sahih Muslim). A durnuk is a type of cloth.
Second: Answers for images that have a shadow: i.e., statues "sculpture":
Statues of possessors of souls are haram except for children's toys. The evidences for this include:
- Ahmad narrated from Abu Hurayrah that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
أتاني جبريل عليه السلام فقال: إني كنت أتيتك الليلة فلم يمنعني أن أدخل عليك البيت الذي أنت فيه إلا أنه كان في البيت تمثال رجل... فمر برأس التمثال يقطع فيصير كهيئة الشجرة... ففعل رسول الله ﷺ
"Jibril (as) came to me and said: I came to you last night and nothing prevented me from entering the house you were in except that there was a statue of a man in the house... so order the head of the statue to be cut off so it becomes like the shape of a tree... So the Messenger of Allah ﷺ did so." (Musnad Ahmad)
- From Ibn Abbas, a man came to him and said: "I make these images; give me a ruling (fatwa) regarding them." He said: "Come closer to me." The man approached until Ibn Abbas placed his hand on the man's head and said: "I will inform you of what I heard from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say:
كل مصور في النار، يُجعل له بكل صورة صورها نفس تعذبه في جهنم، فإن كنت لا بد فاعلاً فاجعل الشجر وما لا نفس له
'Every image-maker (musawwir) is in the Fire. For every image he made, a soul will be created for it to punish him in Hell. If you must do it, then make (images of) trees and that which has no soul.'" (Sahih Muslim). Tasweer is making an image of a thing, and making statues is part of tasweer, which includes sculpture. The drawing itself or the statue is the surah (image), plural suwar; in the language, they are also called tasawir, which includes statues.
- It was narrated that the Prophet ﷺ sent Ali on an expedition and said to him:
لا تذر تمثالاً إلا هدمته...
"Do not leave any statue without destroying it..." (Sahih Muslim)
Thus, every image of a possessor of a soul, whether it has a shadow (statue) or no shadow, is haram.
Excluded from the prohibited drawings are those for children, such as caricatures for children, fictional drawings for children, or for their amusement and entertainment, or for their education. All of this is permissible based on the following evidences:
Abu Dawud narrated from Aisha (ra):
قَدِمَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ مِنْ غَزْوَةِ تَبُوكَ أَوْ خَيْبَرَ وَفِي سَهْوَتِهَا سِتْرٌ فَهَبَّتْ رِيحٌ فَكَشَفَتْ نَاحِيَةَ السِّتْرِ عن بَنَاتٍ لِعَائِشَةَ لُعَبٍ فَقَالَ مَا هَذَا يَا عَائِشَةُ قَالَتْ بَنَاتِي...
"The Messenger of Allah ﷺ arrived from the Battle of Tabuk or Khaybar, and there was a curtain over her alcove. A wind blew, uncovering a corner of the curtain and revealing dolls belonging to Aisha. He asked, 'What is this, O Aisha?' She replied, 'My daughters (dolls)...'" (Sunan Abu Dawud)
And the hadith of Aisha (ra) narrated by Al-Bukhari:
كُنْتُ أَلْعَبُ بِالْبَنَاتِ عِنْدَ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ ...
"I used to play with dolls in the presence of the Prophet ﷺ..." (Sahih Bukhari). I.e., toys in the shape of girls.
And the hadith of Al-Rubayyi' bint Mu'awwidh al-Ansariyyah (ra) narrated by Al-Bukhari:
وَنَجْعَلُ - وفي رواية مسلم ونصنع - لَهُمْ اللُّعْبَةَ مِنْ الْعِهْنِ فَإِذَا بَكَى أَحَدُهُمْ عَلَى الطَّعَامِ أَعْطَيْنَاهُ ذَاكَ حَتَّى يَكُونَ عِنْدَ الْإِفْطَارِ
"...and we would make—and in a narration by Muslim 'we would manufacture'—for them toys from wool (al-ihn). If one of them cried for food, we would give it to them until it was time to break the fast." (Sahih Bukhari). I.e., distracting them with the toy until the time of Iftar.
All these ahadith permit children's toys even if they are in the shape of a statue of a possessor of a soul. Therefore, they are permissible by greater reason (min bab awla) when they are in the form of flat images, regardless of what they represent.) End.
I hope you find in this the answer to your question as well as other related aspects.
Your brother, Ata Bin Khalil Abu Al-Rashta
20 Jumada al-Akhirah 1438 AH Corresponding to 20/03/2017 CE
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