Question Summary:
Playing with toys without head

Question Detail:

I would like to know about toys. Can my daugher play with toys: 1.which have only heads, for example strawberry with eyes? 2. Which have heads, no body with foot.3. Without head, only body? 4. If I glue or paint over the face of toy can we use it? I ask such questions because my husband will be angry if I threw these toys. I would like to find Shariah ways to use them.

Answer :

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

As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa-rahmatullāhi wa-barakātuh.

It is prohibited to have pictures of animate objects.

Consider the following Hadith:

"لاَ تَدْخُلُ المَلاَئِكَةُ بَيْتًا فِيهِ كَلْبٌ، وَلاَ صُورَةُ تَمَاثِيلَ"

Translation: Rasulullah sallallahu alihi wasallam said “The angels do not enter a house in which there is a dog or an image”. Bukhari (4/114)

Accordingly, toys one and two referred to in the query will be prohibited.

Toy three, without head and only body is not regarded as an animate object, hence permissible.

Toy four, where the head, face, eyes are covered will also be permissible.

And Allah Ta’āla Knows Best

Tareque Ahmed

Student Darul Iftaa
New York, USA

Checked and Approved by,
Mufti Ebrahim Desai. 

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صحيح البخاري  أخرجه مسلم في اللباس والزينة باب تحريم تصوير صورة الحيوان. رقم 2106 (4/ 114)

3225-حَدَّثَنَا ابْنُ مُقَاتِلٍ، أَخْبَرَنَا عَبْدُ اللَّهِ، أَخْبَرَنَا مَعْمَرٌ، عَنِ الزُّهْرِيِّ، عَنْ عُبَيْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، أَنَّهُ سَمِعَ ابْنَ عَبَّاسٍ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمَا، يَقُولُ: سَمِعْتُ أَبَا طَلْحَةَ، يَقُولُ: سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ يَقُولُ: "لاَ تَدْخُلُ المَلاَئِكَةُ بَيْتًا فِيهِ كَلْبٌ، وَلاَ صُورَةُ تَمَاثِيلَ".

الدر المختار وحاشية ابن عابدين (رد المحتار) (1/ 650)

عَنْ أَبِي يُوسُفَ: يَجُوزُ بَيْعُ اللُّعْبَةِ وَأَنْ يَلْعَبَ بِهَا الصِّبْيَانُ