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Playing For National Lottery In UK
Dear Sir
I am writing to seek scholarly view of Javed Ahmed Ghamidi Sahib on the issue of buying lottery tickets in the UK.
I know Ghamidi Sahib has argued that the banking institution has evolved over time and hence it is no longer the same as praticed in Arabia in older times.
Similarly. the institution of National Lottery in the UK is not exactly the same compared to what was known as gambling and practiced as gambling during the time of our holy Prophet (PBUH) in and around Arabia.
The National Lottery is a state-franchised national lottery established in 1994 in the United Kingdom. It is regulated by the Gambling Commission.
Prizes are paid as a lump sum (with the exception of the Set For Life which is paid over a set period) and are tax-free. Of all money spent on National Lottery games, around 53% goes to the prize fund and 25% to “good causes” as set out by the UK Parliament and delivered via National Lottery Community Fund – which a fund constituted to support public spending.[12% goes to the UK government as lottery duty, 4% to retailers as commission, and a total of 5% to the operator, with 4% to cover operating costs and 1% as profit.
The National Lottery Community Fund is responsible for distributing 40% of the good cause money raised and typically distributes over £500 million a year to communities across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland as well as working closely with Government to distribute vital grants and funding from key Government programmes and initiatives.
Around eight in ten of its grants are for under £10,000.
Over 80 per cent of The National Lottery Community Fund’s funds go to voluntary and community organisations. It also makes grants to statutory bodies, local authorities and social enterprises.
The National Lottery Community Fund funds projects in line with objectives set by the Government but does not fund services which other parts of government have a statutory responsibility to deliver.
A UK Government Survey of those who play the Lottery found following motives:
The most commonly reported reasons for playing National Lottery games were because prizes were big (67% of players), that playing supports good causes (24% of players), and that it’s easy to play (24% of players).
In summary, you can see that the above situation is not similar to the historical practice of gambling in Arabia.
Moreover, my personal motives are also based on charity and good causes as listed below as I wish mainly to have extra money to:
a) pay off my existing credit card and other loans were the lenders are charging me interest.
b) pay off my own home mortgage and mortgages of my son, daughter and my wife
c) to support my family in Pakistan – I have four sisters and one brother and they all need to financial support to own their own houses in Pakistan.
However I am fully aware of Quranic instruction about gambling. I pray five times a day Salah and do not wish to get Haram income.
I would therefore appreciate if you can seek detailed view of Javed Ghamidi Sahib and let me his view on the situation that I have described above.
Many thanks in anticipation.
Please advise
Ahmad
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3 Replies
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Playing For National Lottery In UK
updated 3 weeks, 2 days ago
2 Members
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3
Replies
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The situation remains the same. In pre-Islamic Arabia, camels’ meat was gambled over, and the winners would then distribute the meat to the poor. Because this practice appeared to involve a charitable outcome, the questioner asked whether it could be permitted. However, God declared it unlawful.
Beyond the superficial similarities, the underlying reason for the prohibition of gambling is that it involves acquiring wealth without providing any real value in return. A person receives money—or a portion of others’ wealth—purely by chance, without having earned it through effort or exchange.
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Dear Brother Irfan
As-salāmu ʿalaykum – ٱلسَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ
Please ignore or delete my earlier message. I had misunderstood things – please accept my sincere apologies.
I do not buy lottery tickets and was only seeking clarification as the temptation to indulge in this activity can sometimes be very overwhelming.
I am really glad that you have pointed about the real need to acquire wealth in a Halal way.
I just used Gen AI and also found excellent explanation of how and in what sense the pre-Islamic practice of gambling is the same as practiced in our times.
Both of them meet every condition of gambling:
– Payment to enter
– Chance determines gain/loss
– One party’s gain equals another’s loss
– No real trade, labor, or value created
This is exactly the legal definition of maysir is which is strongly prohibited in Islam.
I seek forgiveness from Allah and seek His refuge from the whispering of Satan.
I also pray that may Allah reward you and bless you for your wonderful service to the religion of Islam – Ameen.
Best wishes
Ahmad
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There is no problem in learning knowledge. All of us proceed from one understanding to another the better one.
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