Tahrim al-Nard wa al-Shatranj wa al-Malahi li al-Ajurri

Tahrim al-Nard wa al-Shatranj wa al-Malahi (The Prohibition of Backgammon, Chess, and Diversions) is a legal and hadith treatise by the traditionalist scholar Abu Bakr al-Ajurri (d. 360 AH / 970 CE) addressing the rulings on games of chance, board games, musical instruments, and leisure activities al-Mawsua al-Fiqhiyya al-…+1.

Background and Purpose

The treatise was composed in response to a questioner inquiring about the legal status of various leisure activities and musical instruments—including backgammon (nard), chess (shatranj), flutes, whistles, cymbals, drums, lutes ('ud), and panduras (tanbur)—as well as gambling and listening to singing by men, free women, or singing slave girls Tahrim al-Nard wa al-Shat…. Al-Ajurri noted that he had previously dedicated a separate work to establishing the prohibition of listening to singing, the sale of singing slave women, and trading in them, and therefore focused this work on the remainder of the inquired amusements Tahrim al-Nard wa al-Shat…. The text was transmitted directly from al-Ajurri when it was read back to him in Mecca in the month of Dhu al-Qi'dah, 353 AH Tahrim al-Nard wa al-Shat….

Structure and Contents

Al-Ajurri arranges the work around thematic chapters substantiated by Quranic verses, prophetic traditions, and reports from the Companions and early scholars:

• Permissible Pastimes: The opening chapter defines the limited scope of permissible leisure for a Muslim based on the prophetic tradition that excludes three activities from vain diversion: a man practicing archery, training his horse, and playfully interacting with his spouse Tahrim al-Nard wa al-Shat…+1. Al-Ajurri explains the religious merit and utility of each, citing the Quranic command to prepare military force as justification for archery and horse training Tahrim al-Nard wa al-Shat…+1.
• Prohibition of Backgammon (Nard): The second chapter details the severe warnings regarding backgammon, stating that playing it without stakes is an act of disobedience necessitating repentance, while playing it for stakes constitutes forbidden gambling (maysir) without disagreement among scholars Tahrim al-Nard wa al-Shat…. He supports this with hadiths likening the player of backgammon to one who dyes or dips his hand in the flesh and blood of swine Tahrim al-Nard wa al-Shat….
• Prohibition of Chess and Musical Instruments: The work addresses the prohibition of playing chess, citing reports from early figures such as Ali ibn Abi Talib and Abdullah ibn Umar, and censures games played with marked dice or lots alongside prohibited musical entertainment al-Durr al-Manthur fi al-…+1.

Manuscripts and Publication

The work is documented in classical bibliographies, including Ismail Pasha al-Baghdadi's Idah al-maknun and Hadiyyat al-'arifin, as well as Khayr al-Din al-Zirikli's al-A'lam Idah al-Maknun fi al-Dhay…+1. A manuscript copy is preserved in the Zahiriyyah Library in Damascus within collective volume no. 42 (folios 38b–53b) al-Madhhab al-Hanbali Dir….

The text was edited by Umar Gharama al-'Amrawi and published in Riyadh in 1400 AH (1980 CE) al-Madhhab al-Hanbali Dir…. Another critical edition was prepared by Muhammad Sa'id Umar Idris and published in Riyadh in 1402 AH (1404 AH / 1984 CE by Dar Ihya' al-Sunnah) al-Madhhab al-Hanbali Dir…+1.