❖ Islamic Ruling on Pictures and the Prohibition of Displaying the Deceased’s Image ❖
❀ Question:
What is the ruling on keeping pictures in a mobile device if they are not shared with others?
What is the ruling on displaying a picture of a deceased person at home?
❀ Answer by:
Shaykh Saeed Mujtaba Saeedi ḥafiẓahullāh
Shaykh Abdul Wakeel Nasir ḥafiẓahullāh
① General Ruling on Pictures
◈ It is impermissible in Islamic law to make or keep pictures of living beings, whether those pictures are stored on a mobile phone, hung on a wall, or exist in any other form.
◈ The prohibition of images remains valid in all cases, and abstaining from them is necessary, as several authentic narrations have mentioned the prohibition of such images.
② Ruling on Keeping Pictures in Mobile Devices
◈ Keeping and promoting unnecessary images on a mobile device is not permissible.
◈ However, in certain specific and essential cases, such as for:
- National identification documents
- Passports
- Educational records
- Purposes of daʿwah and religious propagation
a limited allowance has been granted, yet it remains obligatory to avoid unnecessary use.
③ Ruling on Displaying the Picture of a Deceased Person at Home
◈ Displaying the picture of a deceased person at home or keeping it as a memorial is impermissible in Islam.
◈ Such an act contradicts the principles of Islam, and one must refrain from it entirely.
✦ Summary:
✔ Images of living beings are prohibited under all circumstances, except in cases of unavoidable and legitimate Islamic necessity.
✔ Unnecessary images should not be kept in mobile devices.
✔ Displaying or preserving the picture of a deceased person at home is strictly prohibited.
