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Is the saying "What you detest is on the left" and the reply to it "Your left is your right" correct, knowing that the intention is not to liken Allah, the Almighty, but rather that taking does not harm, whether it is with the right or the left?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

The prohibition against taking and giving with the left hand, except for an excuse, is due to the Prophet's (peace be upon him) saying: "Let each of you eat with his right hand, and drink with his right hand, and take with his right hand, and give with his right hand, for indeed Satan eats with his left hand, and drinks with his left hand, and gives with his left hand, and takes with his left hand." And because of his (peace be upon him) saying: "Let none of you eat with his left hand, nor drink with it, for indeed Satan eats with his left hand and drinks with it."

If there is an excuse, such as illness or surgery, there is no harm in taking and giving with the left hand. In such cases, one might say: "Your left hand does not displease you" (يسار ما تشناك), meaning the left hand is not disliked, or "Your left hand is your right hand" (يسارك يمينك), meaning the left hand substitutes for the right when one is unable, and this does not imply likening creation to the Creator.

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

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