Question: 

Does shariah regard the capturing of images of animate objects as impermissible or the displaying of them or both of the above?

Please clarify which of the following is permissible and which is not:

1) painting a face of a human using paint

2) watching animated cartoons

3) using emojis when messaging 

4) using security cameras which records movement in a secure estate

5 ) displaying websites and using applications that one is 99% sure will display human images(such as instagram)

6) printing an image of your face for id purposes 

7)printing a image of your self for a visa to go in jamat (tabligh)

8)live video calling

9)using phones that one knows that organizations (such as the FBI) tap into the camera and store your images

10) broadcasting a deeni program(like a majlis) live showing the sheikhs face while he's talking

Answer: 

1. It is not permissible. The Nabi Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam stated that the one who make images (animate pictures by drawing or engraving) will be punished on the Day of Resurrection. Moreover, the doer will be reprimanded in the Hereafter and commanded to bring it to life as mentioned in the following Hadith.

NABI Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam has stated:

"Those who draw pictures will be punished on the Day of Resurrection; and it will be said to them: 'Give life to what you have created."' i

2.Our Darul Ifta is of the opinion that TV programs and shooting videos that fall under the category of prohibited Tasweer, are all impermissible.

It is well known that Islam has forbidden image-making, drawing and sculpting any animate being that Allah Ta'aala has created; there are stern warnings issued to those who do that. It is permissible, however, to make pictures or capture footage of non-animate things, such as trees and mountains etc.

NABI Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam mentioned in a hadith

)إن أشدّ الناس عذابا عند الله يوم القيامة المصورون ".(

“The most severely punished of the people on the Day of Resurrection will be the image-makers.”

( )البخاري( )مسلم(

NABI Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said “some of the Fire (in the shape of long neck) will come out of the Fire of Jahannam on the day of judgment. It will have two eyes which can see, two ears which can hear, and a tongue which can speak. It will say: ‘I have been let loose upon three people: every obstinate oppressor, everyone who called upon a deity besides Allah, and the image makers.” (Tirmidhi)ii

Moreover, there are many other aspects to be considered in cartoons and games that are often overlooked. Cartoons have proved to be extremely detrimental to a child’s health by many researchers and psychologists. Some of the points deduced from these researches are as follows:

Children may become less sensitive to the pain and suffering of others.

Children who watch violence neither fear violence nor are they bothered by violence in general.

Children are more likely to become aggressive or resort to harmful actions towards others.

High levels of violence in cartoons can make children more aggressive.

Animated shows aimed at youngsters often have more brutality than programmed broadcast for general audiences.iii

Children have grown much more interested in cartoons in recent years and it has become the main pastime for them; whereas previously, children spent their time in outdoor activities playing with their peers and enjoying different games.

Children who consistently spend more than 4 hours a day watching TV are more likely to be overweight and are prone to violence.

Kids who see violent acts are more likely to show aggressive behavior and also may fear that the world is scary and that something bad will happen to them.

These children are impatient and disobedient.

Increases their appetite for more violence in entertainment and in real life. Cartoon violence is damaging to the children because they cannot tell the difference between real life and fiction.

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry

(AACAP) both believe that TV does influence the behavior of children as young as one year old.

“Children who view shows in which violence is very realistic, frequently repeated or unpunished are more likely to imitate what they see,” AACAP says.

This speaks to the impressionable minds of children, who are still learning control of their minds and bodies, and are likely to mimic what they see. AACAP also stresses the need for parents to keep a close eye on what their children watch. “Parents must be there,” AACAP said.iv

Children who watch too much cartoons on television are more likely to have mental and emotional problems, along with brain and eye injuries and unexpectedly the risk of a physical problem increases.

From the time children start school to the time that they graduate they are averaged to spend around 18,000 hours watching television.

A tremendous amount of childhood involvement with electronic media can limit social interaction and may obstruct the development of a brain’s social systems.

In December 1997, an episode of the Japanese cartoon “Pocket Monster” (later renamed “Pokémon” for international distribution) drew worldwide attention after multiple cases of children suffering seizures after watching the episode were reported (Warner, 2004).

“Either high-speed flashes of light or rapid color changes are thought able to induce seizures in vulnerable individuals.” They found this to be the reason for so many seizures in Japan. “Rapid changing stimuli can play havoc with the special cells in the retina called rods and cones that help the eye transmit visual information to the brain.”

Cartoons are displaying false sense of reality upon children. At a young age, this false sense of reality can really affect them. The risk of injury rose by about 34% in the children studied.

Cartoon makers are intentionally brainwashing their children by secretly placing messages never to be deciphered by the conscious mind, but instead propagating the subconscious, into behaving a certain way. This practice is known as subliminal messaging.v

It is clear and evident from the points mentioned above that the dilemma does not lie simply in the content of the cartoon but in the harms concomitant to it as well. It is a basic principle in Islam to keep our distance from anything that may lead to harm.

These were only the harms confirmed and verified by the experts. These include many factors that Shari’ah declares impermissible. Consider the following:

Music

Subliminal messages making the intermingling with the opposite gender seem normal.

Justification to the exposure of the satar instilling immorality within one’s self.

Inculcating the traits and qualities of the Kuffār.

Wasting time.

Promotion of the many evils viewed in the cartoon:

 Offensive language

 alcohol and drugs

 Disrespect to the parents, teachers and elders.

 Vulgarity

 Violence

The harms of watching cartoons ought to be quite clear now.vi

3. Emojis are graphical images & animated pictures which clearly describes a living being. Therefore, it falls under the category of digital photography.vii

4. CCTV cameras are used to record, capture, and store the video images of living beings. This results in one being guilty of the sin of picture making which is strictly prohibited in Islam. Since the estate is secure, the question of a security need does not arise.

5. Nowadays majority of the masses use these websites and applications (such as Instagram, Facebook, etc.) merely for entertainment and to pass time. Therefore, it will be highly disliked to use these sites and applications as long as the content is permissible; otherwise, it will be impermissible.

NABI Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam says,

"من حسن الاسلام المرء تركه ما لا يعنيه"

“Part of the perfection of a person’s Islam is his leaving that which is futile.”

6. It is permissible.viii

7. It is permissible.ix

8. Our Darul Ifta does not permit video calling.

9. If this is proven, you will be excused because you are not taking any images. If you are sure of this problem, you can paste a sticker over your camera to block the camera on your phone.

10. It is impermissible.

AND ALLAH TA'AALA ALONE IN HIS INFINITE KNOWLEDGE KNOWS BEST

ANSWERED BY: Sohel Lala 

CHECKED AND APPROVED BY: Mufti Muhammed Saeed Motara Saheb D.B. 

Islamic Date:05 جمادي الالي 1441 

English Date: 1 January 2020

i عبد الله بن عمر، رضي الله عنهما أخبره: أن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم قال: " إن الذين يصنعون هذه الصور يعذبون يوم القيامة، يقال لهم: أحيوا ما خلقتم ") صحيح البخاري 167 \ 7 دار طوق النجاة(

قال : أنبئك بما سمعت من رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم ، سمعت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يقول : كل مصور في النار ، يجعل له ، بكل صورة صورها ، نفسا فتعذبه في جهنم .* وقال : إن كنت لا بد فاعلا ، فاصنع الشجر وما لا نفس له ، فأقر به نصر بن علي.) مسلم 161 \ 6 دار الجيل بير وت( –

ii " يََْرُجُ عُنُقٌ مِنَ النَّارِ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ لَهُ عَيْنَانِ تُبْصِرَانِ وَأُذُنََنِ تَسْمَعَانِ وَلِسَانٌ يَنْطِقُ يَقُ ولُ إِ نِ وُ كِلْتُ بِثَلاَثَةٍ بِكُ ل جَبَّارٍ عَنِيدٍ وَبِكُ ل مَنْ دَعَا مَعَ اللََِّّ إِلهَاً آخَرَ وَبِِلْمُصَ وِرِينَ ")الترمذي(

http://www.dawn.com/news/660670/negative-impact-of-cartoonsiii

http://www.azernews.az/analysis/58562.htmliv

http://www2.bgsu.edu/departments/tcom/faculty/ha/tcom103fall2004/gp9/v

http://www2.bgsu.edu/departments/tcom/faculty/ha/tcom103fall2004/gp9/

http://www.thenews.com.pk/Todays-News-6-128111-Effects-of-cartoons-on-ch...’s-psychology-&-behaviour-patterns

http://www.raisesmartkid.com/all-ages/1-articles/13-the-good-and-bad-eff...

http://mian1230.blogspot.com/

vi فى المعراج: الملاهي نوعان: محرم وهو الآلات المطربة من غير غناء كالمزمار سواء كان من عود أو قصب كالشبابة أو غيره كالعود والطنبور...والنوع الثانِ مباح وهو الدف فى النكاح وفي معناه ما كان من حادث وسرور ويكره في غيره...وهو مكروه للرجال على كل حال...ونقل البزا زي فى المناقب

الإجماع على حرمة الغناء إذا كان على آلة كالعود وأما إذا كان بغيرها فقد علمت الاختلاف]البحر الرائق، ج 7 ،ص ٨٨ ، سعيد[

* مُلَاعَبَتُهُ بِفَرَسِهِ وَرَمْيُهُ عَنْ - - « وَفِي رِوَايَةٍ » لهَوُْ الْمُؤْمِنِ بَِطِلٌ إلَّا فِي ثَلَاثٍ: دََِْيبُهُ فَرَسَه « فَاللَّعِبُ وَهُوَ اللَّهْوُ حَرَامٌ بِِلنَّ ص قَالَ عَلَيْهِ الصَّلَاةُ وَالسَّلَامُ كِفَايَةٌ وَكَذَا قَوْلُ الْإِمَامِ اُبْتُلِيت دَلِيلٌ عَلَى أَنَّهُ حَرَامٌ ]رد المحتار، ج » قَوْسِهِ وَمُلَاعَبَتُهُ مَعَ أَهْلِهِ 6 ، ص ٣٤٨ ، سعيد[

* إن اللهو علي أنواع: لهو مجرد، ولهو فيه نفع وفائدة ولكن ورد الشرع بِلنهي عنه ، ولهو فيه فائدة ولم يرد في الشرع نهي صريح عنه ، ولكنه ثبت بِلتجربة أنه يكون ضرره أعظم من نفعه ملتحق بِلمنهي عنه ، ولهو فيه فائدة ولم يرد الشرع بتحريمه ولم يغلب علي نفعه ضرره ولكن يشتغل فيه بقصد التلهي ، ولهو فيه فائدة مقصودة ولم يرد الشرع بتحريمه وليس فيه مفسدة دينية واشتغل به علي غرض صحيح لتحصيل الفائدة المطلوبة لا بقصد التلهي . فهذه خمسة أنواع لا جائز فيها إلا الأخير الخامس]احكام القرآن، ج ٣ ، ص ٢٠1 ، ادارة القرآن[

vii و قيد بِلرأس لأنه لا اعتبار بِزالة الحاجبين أو العينين لأنها تعبد بدونها ) رد المحتار، ج 1، ص 6٤٨ ، ايج ايم سعيد( .

*The development of emoji was predated by text-based emoticons, as well as graphical representations, inside and outside of Japan. The first emoji was created in 1999 in Japan by Sigatoka Kurita. He was part of the team working on NTT DoCoMo's I-mode mobile Internet platform Emoji – Wikipedia.

*Emoji vs emoticon – Grammatist https://grammarist.com/new-words/emoji-vs-emoticon/

viii فتاوي محمودية ٤69 \ 19 مكتبة فاروقيه.

ix كتاب الفتاوى 167 \ ٢ زمزم.

جواهر فقه ٢57 \ 7 مكتبه دار العلوم كراتشي.