Posting pictures on Facebook and Twitter un-Islamic, say Lucknow clerics

Social networking websites clearly do not have the approval of religious clerics. A couple of prominent Islamic help-lines based out of Lucknow are asking their young callers to steer clear of social networks.

It has been reported that these popular help-lines run for Shia and Sunni Muslims have been flooded with phone calls, enquiring about the nature of social networking websites like Facebook and Twitter. The common consensus of the help-lines have been that having virtual profiles and posting pictures on them is generally un-Islamic.

Posting photos un-Islamic? (Image credit: Getty Images)

“You can’t see someone’s face on Facebook and decide that you want to be friends. Look for ‘pyar aur mohabbat’ [love> in real life. Virtual relationships are not ‘faydaymand’ [profitable>,” Sunni Mufti Abul Irfan Naimul Halim Firagni Mahli told the PTI.

The Mufti said that he encouraged youngsters calling in enquiring about social networking websites to make friends in real life and not online. He is especially assertive that women should not post pictures of themselves online. “Women should not post pictures on Facebook or anywhere else on the Internet. This is un-Islamic,” the Mufti said.

The Mufti was joined in his view by Maulana Saif Abbas Naqvi from the Shia sect. He explains that since women in Islam are not allowed to show their faces to anyone apart from women and men within the family, posting pictures of themselves on Facebook and Twitter is haraam or banned. Maluana Naqvi advocates the hijab and hiding of faces in public but believes this is not too harsh. “We are liberal. We are not Taliban-minded. When youngsters ask us if they can have a Facebook or Twitter profile, we allow that. But the Shariah [Islamic law> does not allow women to post pictures,” he defends.

However, opinions over pictures on the Internet are divided within the community. Hindustan Times reports that the prominent Shia cleric Ali Nasir Syeed Abaqati alias Agha Roohi says that the open face is not un-Islamic and that one should keep up with changing times. Technological advancements should be adopted for a better quality of life, he said, adding that a picture on the Internet of a Muslim woman without a hijab was not un-Islamic. Another Shia cleric Kalbe Jawad, though, said that if these pictures were being distributed amongst women themselves, it was alright. Pictures being used to attract boys were un-Islamic.

Clearly, social networking websites are a sour topic within Islam. As Mufti Mahli concluded, “There is a hadith (a saying of Prophet Mohammed) that when the world is nearing its end, Satan will spread lies within minutes. We’ve seen rumours being circulated on the Internet in no time. It is best to stay away from the virtual world.”

(With inputs from agencies)