CHESS

Arabic Shat̤ranj . According to the Hidāyah, “It is an abomination to play at che , dice, or any other game, for if anything be staked it is gambling ( maisir ), which is expre ly forbidden in the Qurʾān; or if, on the other hand, nothing be hazarded, it is usele and vain. Besides, the Prophet has declared all the entertainments of a Muslim to be vain except three: the breaking in of his horse, the drawing of his bow, and playing and amusing himself with his wives. Several of the learned, however, deem the game at che lawful as having a tendency to quicken the understanding. This is the opinion of ash-Shāfiʿī . If a man play at che for a stake, it destroys the integrity of his character, but if he do not play for a stake, the integrity of his character is not affected. ” (Hamilton’s Hidāyah , vol. iv. p. 122.)