Hunting

What does Islam say about hunting?

My personal feeling is that you cannot kill a living being just for the sake of entertainment. Many people have argued with me that if we are slaughtering thousands of animals on daily basis what is the harm in killing few with hunting. But I think there is a difference between taking a life for “need” and “entertainment”. Slaughtering an animal is for need whereas hunting is purely entertainment (most of the time).

I would like to have your views in the light of Islam.

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

Hunting is permissible when one is not in the state of Ihraam (i.e. when he is not doing Hajj or Umrah).  Allah Ta’ala says:

وَإِذَا حَلَلْتُمْ فَاصْطَادُوا

However, that does not mean that hunting is permissible unconditionally. Instead, hunting is only permissible when one intends to benefit from killing the game (hunted animal), for example by eating its meat (if the animal is halaal), making use of its skin, hair or bones; or he intends to kill the animal due to it causing harm. In all these cases, hunting will be permissible as the hunter will be gaining some benefit from killing the game.

On the other hand, hunting is not permissible merely for amusement and entertainment when one does not have a valid shar’ee reason to hunt. Therefore, if a person does not have the intention of eating the game, or to make some use of the game’s skin, bones, hair, etc, then it will not be permissible for him to hunt.

في كتاب الصيد من تنوير الأبصار: هو مباح إلا للتلهي إلخ ؛ وفي الدر المختار: كما هو ظاهر ؛ وقال ابن عابدين رحمه الله: ( قوله كما هو ظاهر ) لأن مطلق اللهو منهي عنه إلا في ثلاث كما مر في الحظر ( رد المحتار: ج 10 ص 53 ط دار المعرفة )

قال ابن حجر رحمه الله: وفيه إباحة الاصطياد للانتفاع بالصيد للأكل والبيع وكذا اللهو بشرط قصد التذكية والانتفاع ، وكرهه مالك، وخالفه الجمهور…(و بعد أسطر)… فإن لازمه وأكثر منه كره، لأنه قد يشغله عن بعض الواجبات وكثير من المندوبات وأخرج الترمذي من حديث ابن عباس رفعه: “من سكن البادية جفا، ومن اتبع الصيد غفل” ( فتح الباري: ج 12 ص 752 ط دار الكتب العلمية )

وقال بدر الدين العيني رحمه الله: فإن فعله بغير نية التذكية فهو حرام لأنه فساد في الأرض وإتلاف نفس عبثا وقد نهى سيدنا رسول الله عن قتل الحيوان إلا لمأكلة ونهى أيضا عن الإكثار من الصيد وروى الترمذي من حديث ابن عباس رضي الله تعالى عنهما مرفوعا من سكن البادية فقد جفا ومن اتبع الصيد فقد غفل ومن لزم السلطان افتتن ( عمدة القاري: ج 21 ص 138 ط دار الكتب العلمية )

 انظر: فتاوى محموديه: ج 17 ص 200-203 مكتبة شيخ الاسلام ديوبند

Also, to habitually spend a lot of time in hunting is not permissible as it causes ghafla (heedlessness) because of which the person is distracted from and deprived of both compulsory and praiseworthy acts. Ibn Abbas (Radiyallahu Anhu) narrates that Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi wa Sallam) said, “Whoever pursues the game becomes heedless.”  (Tirmidhi, Abu Dawud, Nasa’i).

Mulla Ali Qaari (May Allah be pleased with him) explains the hadith thus: “i.e. whoever habitually pursues the game and engrosses himself in it and mounts himself in order to pursue it — such as a pigeon etc. — for amusement and entertainment, becomes heedless:  i.e. of Allah’s obedience, His worship, the congregation, and Jum’ah; and he distances himself from gentleness and mercy because of his resemblance with a predatory animal and a beast.” (Mirqaatul Mafaatih vol. 7 pg. 279)

وقال الملا علي القارئ رحمه الله: ( ومن اتبع الصيد ) : أي لازم اتباع الصيد والاشتغال به ، وركب على تتبع الصيد كالحمام ونحوه لهوا وطربا ( غفل ) : أي عن الطاعة والعبادة ولزوم الجماعة والجمعة ، وبعد عن الرقة والرحمة لشبهه بالسبع والبهيمة ( مرقاة المفاتيح: ج 7 ص 279 ط رشيدية )
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In short, to hunt with a valid shar’ee purpose, such as to eat the game, is permissible. To incessantly and habitually spend a lot of time in hunting is not permissible. To hunt just for the sake of hunting– i.e. for pure amusement and entertainment — without the intention of benefitting from killing the game is not permissible.

You are right in saying that there is a difference in taking life due to need (such as for eating the animal) and in taking life for entertainment, as the former is permissible whereas the latter is not permissible.

And Allah knows best.

Mufti Faizal Riza