Is it permissible for an unemployed sixty-year-old man, who supports five children and is burdened by debts, to play the lottery to sustain himself and his family?

Gambling (lottery) is among the major sins, based on the Almighty's saying: "O you who have believed, indeed intoxicants, gambling, [sacrificing on] stone altars [to other than Allah], and divining arrows are but defilement from the work of Satan, so avoid it that you may be successful" [Al-Ma'idah: 90]. Allah has linked it with idol worship, intoxicants, and divining arrows.

The questioner must fear Allah and abandon this act, for Allah does not place sustenance in that which He has forbidden. As stated in the Hadith: "Indeed, the Holy Spirit inspired in my heart that no soul shall die until it completes its term and receives its full sustenance. So, fear Allah and be graceful in seeking [sustenance], and do not let the delay in receiving sustenance lead anyone among you to seek it through disobedience to Allah, for what is with Allah can only be attained through obedience to Him."