Source: Fatāwā Amunpuri — by Shaykh Ghulam Mustafa Zaheer Amunpuri
A person swore an oath that he would play chess. What is the ruling?
Playing chess is prohibited; it is a form of gambling. Whoever swears an oath to play chess must break his oath and give the expiation for the broken oath.
The Messenger of Allah صلى الله عليه وسلم said:
من لعب بالنردشير، فكأنما صبغ يده في لحم خنزير ودمه
“Whoever plays chess is as though he dipped his hand into the flesh and blood of a swine.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 2260)
“There is consensus that playing chess is gambling, and gambling is not permissible.”
(Al-Tamhīd, 13/182; Al-Istidhkār, 8/462)
❖ Question
A person swore an oath that he would play chess. What is the ruling?
❖ Answer
Playing chess is prohibited; it is a form of gambling. Whoever swears an oath to play chess must break his oath and give the expiation for the broken oath.
❀ Narration of Sayyidunā Buraydah al-Aslamī رضي الله عنه
The Messenger of Allah صلى الله عليه وسلم said:
من لعب بالنردشير، فكأنما صبغ يده في لحم خنزير ودمه
“Whoever plays chess is as though he dipped his hand into the flesh and blood of a swine.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 2260)
❀ Statement of ʿAllāmah Ibn ʿAbd al-Barr رحمه الله (463 AH)
“There is consensus that playing chess is gambling, and gambling is not permissible.”
(Al-Tamhīd, 13/182; Al-Istidhkār, 8/462)
