Are Items Associated with Other Religions or Cultures Permissible to Buy or Sell?
Hanafi Fiqh
Answered by Shaykh Abdul-Rahim Reasat
Question
What is the ruling on buying, selling, keeping, or making items associated with non-Islamic religious practices or non-Islamic cultural practices?
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate.
The rulings differ depending on whether an item is connected to the religious practices of another faith or to a cultural tradition. Items directly tied to the worship practices of other religions are not permissible to buy, sell, make, or keep without genuine need. Items connected to cultural practices — with no inherently unlawful element — are generally permissible.
Items Related to Non-Islamic Religious Practices
Items directly connected to the religious practices of other faiths are not permissible to buy, sell, or make. This includes clear religious symbols and items used in acts of worship by other religions.
Allah Most High has commanded believers to worship Him alone and to follow the religion He has prescribed. This entails keeping within what He has commanded and avoiding what He has instructed us to stay away from.
Allah Most High says, “O believers! Enter into Islam wholeheartedly.” [Quran 2:208]
Religion is comprehensive. Engaging with or acquiring items that form part of another religion’s system of worship goes beyond what one has been commanded to adhere to. Selling such religious items is likewise impermissible, as is making items specifically for non-Islamic religious use.
As for keeping such items, unless there is a genuine need, there is no clear reason to retain them.
Items Related to Cultural Practices
Cultural practices are generally permissible. A cultural practice is allowed as long as it is not tied to a religious ritual, does not involve something inherently unlawful, and does not promote immorality or indecency.
If a cultural practice does not conflict with Islamic morality, does not involve anything clearly unlawful, and does not encourage sinful behavior, then buying, selling, or engaging with it is permissible.
If, however, a cultural custom involves something unlawful in itself — such as intoxicants or actions that promote immorality — then it is not permissible.
In summary, items tied to non-Islamic religious worship are not permitted. At the same time, cultural practices are allowed as long as they do not contradict Islamic teachings or involve what is unlawful.
And Allah knows best.
[Shaykh] Abdul-Rahim
Related Answers
- Can I Create Calendars with Christian Quotes for Clients? — A ruling that designing and distributing products containing religious texts from other faiths is not permissible, as it may facilitate the spread of beliefs that contradict Islamic guidance.
- Can I Wear a Shirt with a Cross? — A ruling confirming that Muslims are prohibited from imitating the specific religious symbols of other faiths, particularly those associated with shirk, though symbols that have lost their religious connotation may be treated differently.
- Can Muslims Wear Watches with Symbols from Other Faiths? — A nuanced ruling on wearing items featuring symbols historically linked to other religions, explaining when such symbols remain problematic and when they may be treated as neutral design elements.
- What Is the Ruling on Purchasing from Companies with Biblical Branding? — A Hanafi ruling confirming that religious branding or symbols on a product do not make the product itself impermissible to purchase, provided the product itself is lawful.
Shaykh Abdul-Rahim Reasat began studying Arabic Grammar and Morphology whilst studying for a degree in English and History. After graduating, He traveled to Damascus and studied Arabic, Hanafi Fiqh, Usul al-Fiqh, Theology, and Logic with Shaykh Adnan Darwish, Shaykh ‘Abd al-Rahman Arjan al-Binsawi, Shaykh Husayn Darwish, Shaykh Muhammad Darwish, the late Shaykh Rashad Shams, and others. He then moved to Amman to continue his studies in those fields, as well as in Tafsir, Quranic Sciences, Hadith Methodology and Commentary, Prophetic Biography, Prophetic Perfections and Traits, Rhetoric, Arabic Literature, and Tajwid. His teachers include Shaykh Ali Hani, Dr. Hamza al-Bakri, Dr. Salah Abu al-Hajj, Dr. Mansur Abu Zina, Shaykh Ahmad Hasanat, Shaykh Ahmad Jammal, and others.
