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Where are actions that are neither good nor bad, such as "I want to eat or drink," recorded?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

Scholars unanimously agree that permissible acts (mubahat) which are performed without a good or bad intention are neither rewarded nor punished. However, scholars differ on whether permissible acts are recorded. One group believes they are recorded, based on the apparent meaning of the verse: "He does not utter any word except that with him is an observer ready [to record]" (Qur'an 50:18). Another group believes they are not recorded, and that the generality of the verse is specific, meaning: "He does not utter any word that necessitates recompense." The conclusion is that the angels record everything a person says, even permissible acts, but these permissible acts will be erased on the Day of Resurrection, and only acts that result in reward or punishment will remain.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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