Answered by our Shaykh, the 'Allaamah, the Trustworthy Adviser, Abu...
How to deal with the difference of opinion regarding taking pictures
Question :
How should a muslim deal with muslim in-laws who deem taking photos as permissible given the fataawa of certain scholars. And insist on taking pictures of his adolescent children, and are stubborn in accepting advice ?
Answer :
Taking pictures of things which have souls is from the greatest of sins due to it’s dangers which the messenger of Allah Sallallahu Alaihi wa Sallam has informed us of and its connection to shirk.
It has come in the hadeeth al-qudsee: that Allah the Al-Mighty said: “who is more oppressive than the one who tries to create like my creation” (Sahih al-Bukhari 7559)
Our Lord, The Al-Mighty ,He is The Fashioner and the Creator. From his beautiful names is (Al-Mussawir)
So the picture taker; it is as if though he is resembling himself to Allah.
It has come to us in a hadeeth which is recorded by Imam al-Bukhari in his saheeh from Ibn Abbas radhiallahu anhuma that The Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) said that the picture makers will be punished in the fire and they will be commanded to bring back to life that which they made picture of (from things which have souls); they shall remain in the fire until they breath life into it and they will not be able to do so!! (Sahih al-Bukhari 5963)
Also the messenger has cursed such people (Sahih al-Bukhari 5347) which removes them from The Mercy of Allah and has has labelled them the worst of people and in other narrations they are the said to be the most severely punished on The Day of Judgement.
After all this, its not allowed for the Muslim to take this affair lightly and make it an issue of khilaaf between the ulamah and who are those from the scholars of the sunnah who said that one can take pictures of his children without a major necessity like passport ?
This is a very dangerous affair which many people have followed their desires and have taken the statements of the scholars out of its correct context! Whatever the case may be; the statements of men is either rejected or accepted except the saying of The Messenger of Allaah (sallalahu alayhi wasallam) and Our Lord says :
(اتبعوا ما انزل اليكم من ربكم)
“Follow that which has been reveled to you from your Lord. (Suratul Araf 3)
We are all slaves of Allah .So, our dealings amongst ourselves, with our relatives and non- relatives, those far and (those) close muslims and non-muslims: all of this has to be returned to The Book and the Sunnah.Our Lord says,
(ان هذا القرآن يهدي للتي هي أقوم)
“Indeed this Qur’aan it guides to the best of ways.” (Suratul Israa 9)
Meaning the most upright and most just and most proper manner in every dealing and in every single affair. And the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) said, “I have left you upon a clarity; its night is like its day ; none goes astray from it except one who is destroyed” (Sunan Ibn Majah Book 1, Hadith 45)
(فماذا بعد الحق الا الضلال)
So what is after the Haqq(truth) except misguidance ? (Surah Yunus 32)
Answered by : Noble brother Abu Haroon Muhammad At Taweel
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