Why Praying With Stuffed Animals in a Room is Not Haram
C.J Ahmed-11.06.2023
There is a difference of opinion among scholars on whether it is forbidden topray while there are images of animat objects. Some scholars dislike it and others downright forbid it. As far a Islam is concerned, there is no evidence from the sahih hadiths or any verses in the Quran forbidding praying when there are animate images. The hadith often used to prove that praying with images haram is as follows,
Anas (rali) said: ‘Aisha had a patterned curtain with which she covered the side of her house. The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “Take this patterned curtain of yours away from us because its images kept distracting me in my prayer.”(Bukhari)
The above hadith does not mention anything about praying with images being haram. The pophet (sal) personally disliked praying with iages becauseit caused distraction for him. The other hadith used is where Umar (rali) sai,
“We do not enter your churches because of the statues and images in them” (Bukhari)
This hadith has nothing to do with prayers but entering a place with images.
Evidence to Prove Why Praying with Animate Images or Objects is Halal in Islam
The evidence that praying in a church or in a room with animate images is halal is based on the following hadiths,
Ibrahim b. Yazid al-Tayml reported
“The earth is a mosque for you, so wherever you are at the time of prayer, pray there.”(Bukhari)
Abu Sa’id al-Khudri reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “The entire earth has been made a place of prayer, except for graveyards and washrooms.” (Tirmidhi-317-Graded Sahih by Sheikh ul Islam Ibn Taymiyyah)
Ibn Qudaamah had a very interesting opinion on this. He said,
“ There is nothing wrong with praying in a church that is clean. That was allowed by al-Hasan, ‘Umar ibn ‘Abd al-‘Azeez, al-Sha‘bi, al-Awzaa‘i, and Sa‘eed ibn ‘Abd al-‘Azeez. It was also narrated from ‘Umar and Abu Moosa. Ibn ‘Abbaas and Maalik regarded churches as makrooh because of the images. But we know that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) prayed at the Ka‘bah when there were images in it. It is also included in the words of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him): “Wherever you are when the time for prayer comes, pray, for it [the earth] is a place of prayer.”(al-Mughni, 1/407)
A'isha (Rali) narrated :
"We had a curtain with us which had portraits of birds upon it. Whenever a visitor came, he found them in front of him. Thereupon Allah's Messenger (may peace be upop him) said to me: Change them, for whenever I enter the room) I see them and it brings to my mind (the pleasures) of worldly life. She said: We had with us a sheet which had silk badges upon it and we used to wear it. This hadith has been transmitted on the authority of Ibn Muthanna but with this addition: 'Allah's Messenger (Rali) did not command us to tear that."
(Sahih Muslim)
If having images of animate beings was such a strict matter , the prophet (sal) would have not acted so leniently. In the above hadith the prophet (Sal) ordered Aisha (Rali) to remove the images not because it was forbidden but because it was reminding him of worldy pleasures.
Conclusion
Praying with images of animate or inanimate objects is completely halal without any doubt.
There is a difference of opinion among scholars on whether it is forbidden topray while there are images of animat objects. Some scholars dislike it and others downright forbid it. As far a Islam is concerned, there is no evidence from the sahih hadiths or any verses in the Quran forbidding praying when there are animate images. The hadith often used to prove that praying with images haram is as follows,
Anas (rali) said: ‘Aisha had a patterned curtain with which she covered the side of her house. The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “Take this patterned curtain of yours away from us because its images kept distracting me in my prayer.”(Bukhari)
The above hadith does not mention anything about praying with images being haram. The pophet (sal) personally disliked praying with iages becauseit caused distraction for him. The other hadith used is where Umar (rali) sai,
“We do not enter your churches because of the statues and images in them” (Bukhari)
This hadith has nothing to do with prayers but entering a place with images.
Evidence to Prove Why Praying with Animate Images or Objects is Halal in Islam
The evidence that praying in a church or in a room with animate images is halal is based on the following hadiths,
Ibrahim b. Yazid al-Tayml reported
“The earth is a mosque for you, so wherever you are at the time of prayer, pray there.”(Bukhari)
Abu Sa’id al-Khudri reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “The entire earth has been made a place of prayer, except for graveyards and washrooms.” (Tirmidhi-317-Graded Sahih by Sheikh ul Islam Ibn Taymiyyah)
Ibn Qudaamah had a very interesting opinion on this. He said,
“ There is nothing wrong with praying in a church that is clean. That was allowed by al-Hasan, ‘Umar ibn ‘Abd al-‘Azeez, al-Sha‘bi, al-Awzaa‘i, and Sa‘eed ibn ‘Abd al-‘Azeez. It was also narrated from ‘Umar and Abu Moosa. Ibn ‘Abbaas and Maalik regarded churches as makrooh because of the images. But we know that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) prayed at the Ka‘bah when there were images in it. It is also included in the words of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him): “Wherever you are when the time for prayer comes, pray, for it [the earth] is a place of prayer.”(al-Mughni, 1/407)
A'isha (Rali) narrated :
"We had a curtain with us which had portraits of birds upon it. Whenever a visitor came, he found them in front of him. Thereupon Allah's Messenger (may peace be upop him) said to me: Change them, for whenever I enter the room) I see them and it brings to my mind (the pleasures) of worldly life. She said: We had with us a sheet which had silk badges upon it and we used to wear it. This hadith has been transmitted on the authority of Ibn Muthanna but with this addition: 'Allah's Messenger (Rali) did not command us to tear that."
(Sahih Muslim)
If having images of animate beings was such a strict matter , the prophet (sal) would have not acted so leniently. In the above hadith the prophet (Sal) ordered Aisha (Rali) to remove the images not because it was forbidden but because it was reminding him of worldy pleasures.
Conclusion
Praying with images of animate or inanimate objects is completely halal without any doubt.