Mr. M. Arif is worried about how to dispose of papers on which Qur’anic verses are written, or those which carry God’s name. This has become a very difficult question these days, when practically every paper we may handle could fall into that category. With our age being an age of paper, and much of our business is done through paperwork, the size of the problem is immense indeed. Moreover, our homes are not suitable to burn paper, or other material, safely.
The whole question rests on whether when you dispose of a paper you are guilty of disrespect to God’s name. Very few people would do that, regardless of the way they dispose of their papers. Yet certain ways are better than others. Nowadays, with the possibility of recycling papers, the best way to get rid of newspapers and other paper on which God’s name may be written is to send it for recycling. That is a method which treats paper properly and prepares it for reuse.
The writing on the paper is removed by chemicals and the paper is then prepared to produce new writing paper, not of the same quality as the original, but good enough for different uses.
In a country where paper is not recycled, perhaps burning the paper or burying it are good ways of disposing of it. Similarly, if the rubbish collected from homes and offices is sorted, as happens in some countries where you throw ordinary rubbish in one basket, plastic in another, glass in a third and there is yet another rubbish bin for paper, that is a good way of disposal. The important thing is to do one’s level best to ensure that God’s name is not subjected to improper handling.
Computer games
A young reader who wishes to remain anonymous has given me the details of a discussion he has had with a friend concerning the permissibility of computer games. He is convinced that computer games are not appropriate for a Muslim young person because: 1) they waste a lot of time, 2) they may contain un-Islamic ideas as they are made by non-Muslims, 3) they may have a negative effect on health through fixing one’s eyes so intently on the monitor, and 4) they stop a person from thinking about some beneficial ways to use his or her leisure time.
I would like first to say that I am impressed by my young reader’s argument and by his choice of the word “inappropriate” to describe computer games and wasting much time playing them. Some people may go as far as saying that playing such games is forbidden, giving the same reasons, but we cannot do that, because only God has the authority of forbidding anything. To start with, everything is permissible unless we have a statement or a basis to make it forbidden. Hence, we refrain from saying to anything that it is forbidden until we are certain of the basis on which we establish such a view.
That computer games waste a lot of time is a fact. Many are the young people who spend hours on end playing them. This may lead to neglecting essential duties, such as attending to one’s studies or one’s work. Or they may lead a Muslim to neglect his prayers, or giving them a secondary position. Islam is keen that Muslims use their time beneficially.
The Prophet tells us that one of the first things we have to account for on the Day of Judgment is the use of our time. He also says: “Two blessings in which many people have a raw deal are health and spare time.” This Hadith means that people abuse these two blessings, causing themselves ill health by their actions and wasting their spare time without trying to do something which benefits them either in this life or in the life to come. Thus they are unjust to themselves by wasting these two blessings.
Having said that, I should add that Islam does not forbid that people should have some fun. The Prophet also says: “Give your hearts and minds some relaxation every now and then, for when hearts are tired out they become blind.” If one finds relaxation in computer games, then he may play them, provided he does not allow such games to dominate his time.
As for the fact that these games are generally made by non-Muslims, this does not affect the ruling. If a game is made by a Muslim and contains some un-Islamic ideas, it is unacceptable. So we have to look at each game independently and consider its contents. It may be acceptable or not, regardless of its source.