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What is the ruling on money earned from printing pictures of animate beings? And am I held responsible if my husband resumes printing them himself? And do I have the right to seek a divorce due to his lack of conviction regarding its prohibition, his negligence in seeking Islamic knowledge, his self-admiration, and my fear that he will discourage me from seeking knowledge and engaging in da'wah?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

It is Islamically forbidden to draw and depict living beings. Every painter will be in the Hellfire, tormented for every image he has depicted. Whoever wishes to draw should depict trees and inanimate objects. There is no difference in the حرمة (prohibition) of earning from directly engaging in photography or delegating it to others. Similarly, it is forbidden to sell anything that is Islamically prohibited, and it is not permissible for an employee to sell that which is forbidden to sell, because whoever aids in what is forbidden is sinful. Regarding marriage, judging sacred texts with limited human reason is a grave error. If the husband insists on a mistaken methodology, then leaving him is preferable to remaining with him. The wife is advised to repeatedly offer counsel and discuss with him, inform her family of his true condition, proceed with deliberation and patience, seek guidance from Allah through istikhara, and try to guide him by directing him to reliable sources of knowledge.

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

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