Is It Permissible to Own/Purchase Items with Logos That Resemble an Animal’s Face?

Answered by Mawlana Ilyas Patel

Question

I’m currently searching for a PC for myself and have come across a few options. One of which has a face of a wolf on it. The facial features are just cutouts, such as the eyes and nose, but it still makes out to look like the face of a wolf for the logo.

Is this haram for me to own, or would it be permissible? I’m unsure what the rulings are regarding these matters, so I’d appreciate some guidance.

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate.

I pray you are in good faith and health. Thank you for your question.

It will be permissible to own and purchase an item, like a PC, that has a logo with facial features. The reason is the item in itself is permissible, and the logo is secondary to it. However, you should avoid it if you find an alternative, or you can just cover the facial feature with a small sticker, etc.

If the depiction is small, such that they merely outline the human or animal body without detailed features, such that its features aren’t clearly discernible, or it is missing a vital limb or has its head effaced, then the dislikedness would no longer remain. [Halabi, Majma‘ al-Anhur Fi Sharh Multaqa al-Abhur; Ibn ‘Abidin, Radd al-Muhtar]

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Is It Permissible to Wear Items With Animal Logos on Them?

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I pray this helps with your question.
Wassalam,
[Mawlana] Ilyas Patel
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Mawlana Ilyas Patel is a traditionally-trained scholar who has studied in the UK, India, Pakistan, Syria, Jordan, and Turkey. He started his early education in the UK. He went on to complete the hifz of the Quran in India, then enrolled in an Islamic seminary in the UK, where he studied the secular and ‘Aalimiyya sciences. He then traveled to Karachi, Pakistan. He has been an Imam in Rep of Ireland for several years. He has taught hifz of the Quran, Tajwid, Fiqh, and many other Islamic sciences to children and adults onsite and online extensively in the UK and Ireland. He taught at a local Islamic seminary for 12 years in the UK, where he was a librarian and a teacher of Islamic sciences. He currently resides in the UK with his wife. His interest is a love of books and gardening.