Dar Al-Ifta explained that prohibited gambling refers to a transaction in which two parties put money at risk, so that one becomes the winner while the other becomes the loser, with the outcome depending on chance and coincidence.
One example is when a person pays money with the possibility of receiving a larger amount if a particular event occurs, while losing the money if it does not occur.
At its core, gambling involves one party gaining money as another party loses it, without the gain being based on legitimate work or a recognized form of compensation.
Why Is Gambling Prohibited in Islam?
Dar Al-Ifta explained that gambling is prohibited because it involves unjustly consuming people's wealth and contains excessive uncertainty and ambiguity.
It can also lead to hostility, resentment and broken relationships between people. In addition, gambling may result in wasting and misusing money without a recognized benefit or legitimate compensation.
Gambling and Reliance on Chance
Another concern associated with gambling is that it can encourage a person to depend on luck instead of effort, work and legitimate means of earning a living.
This conflicts with the Islamic emphasis on seeking lawful earnings through productive work and making efforts to secure one's livelihood.
How Can Gambling Affect Wealth and Work?
The impact of gambling is not limited to financial losses. Repeated gambling can reinforce the idea that money can be obtained quickly through chance rather than through work and productivity.
A person may also continue risking additional money in an attempt to recover previous losses, potentially leading to further financial waste.
What Is the Connection Between Gambling and Productive Work?
Islam encourages people to seek lawful earnings, work and productivity as means of supporting themselves and contributing to the development of society.
From this perspective, relying on gambling and chance to obtain money conflicts with the principle of earning through productive effort, particularly when one person's gain is directly tied to another person's loss.
What is prohibited gambling in Islam?
It is a transaction in which two parties risk money, one gains while the other loses, and the outcome depends primarily on chance or coincidence.
Why is gambling prohibited?
It is prohibited because it involves unjustly consuming wealth, excessive uncertainty, potential hostility and resentment, and the waste of money.
Does gambling depend on luck?
Yes. A defining feature of prohibited gambling is that the gain or loss depends on chance rather than productive work or legitimate compensation.
How can gambling affect a person's attitude toward work?
It can encourage reliance on chance as a way of obtaining money rather than emphasizing work, productivity and lawful earnings.
Is the prohibition of gambling only related to financial loss?
No. The reasons also include uncertainty, wasting wealth and the potential social consequences of hostility, resentment and broken relationships.
