My Husband Is Selling Lottery. Am I Also Sinful?

Answered by Shaykh Umer Mian

Question: Assalam alaikum,

My husband is selfemployed, and I work with him as well. He’s selling lotto and lottery. I told him many time not to do it. But he doesn’t listen to me. Do I get the same amount of sin for this?

Answer: Wa alaikum as-salam wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu

Lottery is a clear type of gambling, about which the Qur’an and Sunnah have the following to say:

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا إِنَّمَا الْخَمْرُ وَالْمَيْسِرُ وَالْأَنْصَابُ وَالْأَزْلَامُ رِجْسٌ مِنْ عَمَلِ الشَّيْطَانِ فَاجْتَنِبُوهُ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ

إِنَّمَا يُرِيدُ الشَّيْطَانُ أَنْ يُوقِعَ بَيْنَكُمُ الْعَدَاوَةَ وَالْبَغْضَاءَ فِي الْخَمْرِ وَالْمَيْسِرِ وَيَصُدَّكُمْ عَنْ ذِكْرِ اللَّهِ وَعَنِ الصَّلَاةِ فَهَلْ أَنْتُمْ مُنْتَهُونَ

O ye who believe! Intoxicants and gambling, (dedication of) stones, and (divination by) arrows, are an abomination,- of Satan’s handwork: eschew such (abomination), that ye may prosper.
Satan’s plan is (but) to excite enmity and hatred between you, with intoxicants and gambling, and hinder you from the remembrance of Allah, and from prayer: will ye not then abstain? (Qur’an 5:90-91)

عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ مَنْ قَالَ لِصَاحِبِهِ تَعَالَ أُقَامِرْكَ فَلْيَتَصَدَّقْ
(رواه البخاري)
On the authority of Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be well pleased with him): The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “Whoever says to his friend: ‘Let’s go gamble’ should give charity.” (Sahih Al-Bukhari)

Look at how even speaking about gambling has been deemed enough of a sin to warrant giving charity as an expiation. So what about the one who actually gambles (or assists in it)!

عَنْ ابْنِ عُمَرَ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمَا عَنْ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ السَّمْعُ وَالطَّاعَةُ حَقٌّ مَا لَمْ يُؤْمَرْ بِالْمَعْصِيَةِ فَإِذَا أُمِرَ بِمَعْصِيَةٍ فَلَا سَمْعَ وَلَا طَاعَةَ
(متفق عليه)
On the authority of Ibn Umar (may Allah be well pleased with them both): The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “Obedience [i.e. to lawful authority] is an obligation, as long as what’s being ordered is not a sin. If it is a sin, then there is no obedience in it” (Sahih al-Bukhari and Muslim).

عَنْ عَلِيٍّ عَنْ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ لَا طَاعَةَ لِمَخْلُوقٍ فِي مَعْصِيَةِ اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ
(رواه أحمد)
On the authority of Ali (may Allah be well pleased with him): The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “There is no obedience to a created being if it involves disobedience of Allah Most Exalted” (Musnad Ahmad).

Therefore, you have no obligation to obey your husband in assisting in this sinful practice. The advice of the scholars in these situations is that the wife avail herself of this income for the time being, because not doing so could lead to even greater sin and harm. However, the husband must be encouraged to find lawful work. The wife should take every worldly and other-worldly means to achieve this. For example, she can arrange for pious, knowledgeable Muslims to speak to the husband and explain the greatness of the sin he’s engaged in. In terms of other-worldly means, she could perform salat al-haajah (in addition to being steadfast upon all other types of righteousness, worship, and supplication), as follows:

عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ أَبِي أَوْفَى قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ مَنْ كَانَتْ لَهُ إِلَى اللَّهِ حَاجَةٌ أَوْ إِلَى أَحَدٍ مِنْ بَنِي آدَمَ فَلْيَتَوَضَّأْ فَلْيُحْسِنْ الْوُضُوءَ ثُمَّ لِيُصَلِّ رَكْعَتَيْنِ ثُمَّ لِيُثْنِ عَلَى اللَّهِ وَلْيُصَلِّ عَلَى النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ ثُمَّ لِيَقُلْ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ الْحَلِيمُ الْكَرِيمُ سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَرْشِ الْعَظِيمِ الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ أَسْأَلُكَ مُوجِبَاتِ رَحْمَتِكَ وَعَزَائِمَ مَغْفِرَتِكَ وَالْغَنِيمَةَ مِنْ كُلِّ بِرٍّ وَالسَّلَامَةَ مِنْ كُلِّ إِثْمٍ لَا تَدَعْ لِي ذَنْبًا إِلَّا غَفَرْتَهُ وَلَا هَمًّا إِلَّا فَرَّجْتَهُ وَلَا حَاجَةً هِيَ لَكَ رِضًا إِلَّا قَضَيْتَهَا يَا أَرْحَمَ الرَّاحِمِينَ
قَالَ أَبُو عِيسَى هَذَا حَدِيثٌ غَرِيبٌ وَفِي إِسْنَادِهِ مَقَالٌ فَائِدُ بْنُ عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ يُضَعَّفُ فِي الْحَدِيثِ وَفَائِدٌ هُوَ أَبُو الْوَرْقَاءِ
(ورواه الترمذي وابن ماجه)

On the authority of ‘Abdullah ibn Abi ‘Awfa (may Allah be well pleased with him): The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:
Whoever has a need that can be fulfilled by Allah or by a human being should make a good ablution, then pray two rak’as. After finishing, he should glorify Allah, send blessings on the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, and then say:
There is no deity save God, the Clement, the Bountiful. Glory be to God, Lord of the Magnificent Throne! Praise be to God, Lord of the worlds! I beg of Thee the causes of (obtaining) Thy mercy, and the purposes of (securing) Thy pardon; spoils from every righteousness, and safety from every sin. Leave no sin of mine unforgiven; no anxiety unrelieved; and no need of mine, wherewith Thou art pleased, unfulfilled. O Thou the Most Merciful of those who show mercy!”
(Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah).

Wassalam,
Umer