The issue of pictures and videos has long been a subject of debate among prominent religious scholars in northern Nigeria and the Muslim community worldwide. This controversy stems from varying interpretations of the hadith that prohibits creating images, a topic that has remained contentious due to its implications in modern times. Islamic scholars have formed three major schools of thought on the issue, each presenting different arguments for or against the permissibility of taking pictures and appearing in videos.
The first school of thought argues that the prohibition mentioned in the hadith does not apply to modern photographs or videos. They contend that the images referred to in the hadith are handmade drawings or sculptures meant to replicate living beings, which were often associated with idolatry.
Modern photographs, according to this group, are simply reflections or reproductions of reality captured through technology, not acts of creation. Hence, they consider taking pictures and appearing in videos permissible for Muslims, provided the content aligns with Islamic principles.
The second school of thought holds a view, asserting that modern photographs fall under the same prohibition as the images mentioned in the hadith. They argue that even though photography is technological, the result, a static image, bears the same essence as the prohibited images. However, this group differentiates between stationary pictures and videos. Videos, being in motion, are perceived as fundamentally different and thus permissible. Those in this group prohibit pictures but permit videos, and they are notably active in creating or appearing in videos.
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The third school of thought are of the opinion that modern photographs and videos are the same because of the technology behind video as just pictures in motion. For this group, any prohibition of pictures must be extended to videos as well. This perspective reflects a cautionary approach, prioritising the avoidance of potential violations of Islamic teachings in the face of technological advancements.
I am a Muslim deeply interested in Hadith, although I am neither an Islamic scholar nor a formal student of knowledge. My professional background is rooted in computing, a field I have been actively engaged in for over two decades. I hold a first degree and a master’s degree in computer science, as well as a Ph.D. in artificial intelligence from the University of Malaya. Throughout my career, I have focused exclusively on computing, with a particular emphasis on artificial intelligence, and my work often involves exploring the intersection of technology and practical applications.
As I write this article, I am currently working on a project that involves analyzing videos, images, text, and audio, each representing different formats of data stored in computers as binary sequences of 0’s and 1’s. This foundational understanding of how digital data operates allows me to approach debates about modern technological tools, such as images and videos, from a scientific and technical perspective.
My expertise provides a distinct lens through which I aim to contribute to discussions from the technological point of view hoping to help the Islamic scholars issue verdict on the issue by combining technology aspect and their Islamic knowledge.
In addition to my research, I have taught computer graphics for many years, gaining hands-on experience in how digital visuals are created, processed, and utilised. This experience has deepened my appreciation for the complexities of digital media and its underlying mechanisms. As someone with practical knowledge of how images and videos are formed and manipulated, I can offer insights that may clarify misconceptions about their nature, especially in the context of Islamic discourse.
In this article, I will speak from my background as a scientist, offering a perspective grounded in technology for those seeking an expert opinion. My intention is to provide a clearer understanding of the technological realities surrounding images and videos. This approach aims to assist scholars, particularly those interested in how science and religion can interact to address contemporary issues, in forming a well-rounded opinion.
Pictures, images, or frames are basically the same thing and can be used interchangeably. In fact, pictures and videos are the same at their core. No device or machine in the world can directly record motion as it happens, such technology simply doesn’t exist yet. Here’s why pictures and videos are considered the same: a picture is just one stationary image, while a video is made up of many pictures shown one after another very quickly. For example, a video might consist of 30, 120, or even 240 pictures displayed in a single second. Media players today can play videos at 240 pictures per second to create a smooth motion effect. The more the number of pictures display per second the more the quality of the video.
Formally, a video is a sequence of pictures playback so fast, usually 30 pictures per second or more that it gives the viewer the impression of movement or motion. Since videos are just collections of pictures, this can be proven practically. In technology, nothing happens by magic; everything is based on the practical application of knowledge. You can break a video down into its individual pictures.
To see this for yourself. Here’s how you can do it: If you have a video on your computer, upload it to a frame-by-frame video player, pause at any point, play the video one picture at a time. Then, right-click on the video and select “Save Frame As” or “Copy Video Frame,” and paste it somewhere. What you’ll see is a single picture of the point you selected from the video. If the video plays 30 pictures per second, you can repeat this process 30 times to extract 30 individual pictures that make up just one second of the video. This simple process clearly shows that a video is nothing more than a series of pictures displayed rapidly.
This explanation can provide a clear understanding for Islamic scholars who wish to issue a verdict on the permissibility of videos from an Islamic perspective.
Chiroma, is an Assistant Professor of artificial intelligence, University of Hafr Al Batin, Saudi Arabia, [email protected]
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