Do Angels Enter the Rooms or Houses with Portraits Hanging on the Walls?
Answered by Mawlana Ilyas Patel
Question
I live with my parents, who have portraits of the family on the walls of their house. Angels will not enter the home if picture portraits are hung on the walls. Because this is not my home and it’s my parent’s home, I can’t forcefully take down all the portraits. However, my room does not have any portraits or pictures, so does that mean angels can still enter my room?
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate
I pray you are in good faith and health.
You should try to speak to them and request to be taken off the walls. This has to be done with tact and wisdom and finding the right moment with your parents; for example, our house is full of blessings with your presence. However, the angels of mercy will bring about more incredible and assured blessings, Insha Allah.
There is a difference of opinion amongst scholars, the majority of them saying it would be impermissible and sinful, and one should avoid hanging pictures and photos on the wall; this is the way of caution and Allah consciousness (taqwa) and a greater assurance of not preventing the angels of mercy entering our homes.
Abu Talhah reported: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “The angels (of mercy) do not enter a house in which there is a dog, nor an image in a likeness.” Abu Talhah said, “The Prophet means by likeness an image of living souls.” [Bukhari; Muslim]
The difference of opinions about photos of humans and animals is whether they fall under the picture-making prohibited by the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace). The majority, also a more decisive and cautious opinion, is that it falls under the prohibition, and the other opinion is that photos are different from picture making. [Usmani, Takmila al-Fath al-Mulhim]
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I pray this helps with your question.
[Mawlana] Ilyas Patel
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Mawlana Ilyas Patel is a traditionally-trained scholar who has studied within UK, India, Pakistan, Syria, Jordan and Turkey.
He started his early education in UK. He went onto complete hifz of Qur’an in India, then enrolled into an Islamic seminary in UK where he studied the secular and Alimiyyah sciences. He then travelled to Karachi, Pakistan.
He has been an Imam in Rep of Ireland for a number of years. He has taught hifz of the Qur’an, Tajwid, Fiqh and many other Islamic sciences to both children and adults onsite and online extensively in UK and Ireland. He was teaching 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 UK with his wife. His personal interest is love of books and gardening.
