BENEFIT 328: Imaginative Depictions of Paradise and Hell

Question: honourable Sheikh, may Allāh bless you, there is a poster depicting the Day of Judgment, its horrors, Paradise, and Hell, which some individuals display in masjids. What is your opinion on this matter and should those who hang such posters be rebuked? Sheikh Salih Al-Fawzan hafidahullah: Yes they should be rebuked, because this involves depicting the Day of Judgment, Paradise, and Hell—matters that are known only to Allāh, Glorified and Exalted. No one knows the reality of Paradise except Allāh; no one knows the reality of Hell except Allāh; and no one knows the reality of the Ṣirāṭ (bridge) except Allāh. We must refrain from delving into matters of the unseen and portraying them to people. This is not permissible. We believe in these matters and affirm their existence, but we should not create visual depictions of them. Such actions are an innovation; they were not known [in earlier times] and should not be hung in masjids. Do people fear Hell only when it is visually depicted? Is the word of Allāh, the words of the Prophet ﷺ, and the promise and warning [in the Qur'ān and Sunnah] not sufficient? Certainly, this is a mistake. Yes.