Question Summary:
Please can you advise me if it is permissible to stay at a hotel associated with a casino. There are many such hotels here in SA that have a casino as well as a hotel. Is it permissible to stay there? ….

Question Detail:

1. Please can you advise me if it is permissible to stay at a hotel associated with a casino. There are many such hotels here in SA that have a casino as well as a hotel. Is it permissible to stay there? Please quote a hadith on this.
2. If a relative of yours were to be staying at the hotel above, would it be permissible to visit them. Visiting here, means not staying over, purchasing, or making use of any of the facilities at the hotel.
3. Does it make any difference as to the location of the hotel, and that the fact that the hotel is situated far away from the casino itself.
Please provide me with any and all information regarding the questions above. Please explain why something is not permissible based on a hadith as well as the factors influencing the terms and conditions, if any.
Is it advisable to avoid anything anywhere associated with a casino as a matter of rule?

Answer :

In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
Assalaamu `alaykum waRahmatullahi Wabarakatuh

In principle, if one is experiencing difficulty booking a hotel and the only hotels available are ones attached to casinos, it will be permissible to stay in the hotel provided one has a dire need for booking a hotel and remains completely aloof from the iniquities. However, being so close to such nefarious and immoral vices is still extremely detestable and will have its negative consequential spiritual effects. If a person does not have a dire need or there are other hotels available, it will not be permissible to stay in such hotels. Allah Ta‘āla states in the Holy Qurān,
وَلاَ تَقْرَبُواْ الفواحش مَا ظَهَرَ مِنْهَا وَمَا بَطَنَ

“And do not come close to acts of lewdness, those that
are manifest nor those that are surreptitious.”
 
As is apparent, casinos are dens of lewdness and immorality where gambling, adultery and intoxication are rampant. Allah Ta‘ālā prohibits us from even approaching such sinful acts let alone perpetrating them. This indicates to the severity of the sins as well as the great possibility of being ensnared by them. It is not befitting for a Muslim to endanger his Imān by presenting himself for temptation towards evil. By being so close to the sins and not attempting to either stop them or evade them, a person will develop a sense of complacency and / or acceptance towards the sins. The gravity and severity of the sins will begin to dwindle in the heart of the person and before long; such a person will inevitably become ensnared in the very sin. Something similar happened to the ‘Ulamā of Banū Isrā’īl. The following Hadith reported in Sunan al-Tirmidhī states:
 
عن عبد الله بن مسعود قال قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم :  لما وقعت بنو إسرائيل فى المعاصى نهتهم علماؤهم فلم ينتهوا فجالسوهم فى مجالسهم وواكلوهم وشاربوهم فضرب الله قلوب بعضهم ببعض ولعنهم على لسان داود وعيسى ابن مريم ذلك بما عصوا وكانوا يعتدون
 
Abdullah ibn Mas‘ūd رضى الله عنه narrates that Rasūlullah صلى الله عليه و سلم stated: “When the Banū Isrā’īl began perpetrating sins, their ‘Ulamā prohibited them but they would not desist. Thereafter, they (‘Ulamā) began to sit in their company and eat and drink with them. Thus, Allah Ta‘ālā caused their hearts to be fused with one another and cursed them through the tongues of Dawūd and Īsā ibn Maryam عليهما السلام . This was due to their disobedience and their transgression.”
 
It is extremely important that Muslims maintain the purity of Imān which necessitates a natural repulsion of sin and disobedience. Therefore, as far as possible, one should not come close to such venues. However, if there is a dire need, one should only stay there to the limit of bare necessity and no longer.
 
In regards to visiting relatives that are staying in such hotels, it will be preferable to request them to meet you elsewhere in order to avoid the immoralities of the casino and its spiritual side effects. A concerted effort should be made to dissuade such relatives from booking in such hotels in the future.