the very activity (1) as maysir (gambling), rather than the eating of wealth through it. More than one of the early authorities (2) even said, “Chess is the maysir of the non-Arabs.”

Abu Muhammad Ibn Qutaybah composed a treatise on maysir (3) in which he listed its various kinds and classified them.

It is self-evident that taking money by means of maysir adds to the mere fact of its being gambling; for that reason, consuming money (4) through it is a wrongful appropriation, because the money is acquired in exchange for an act that is, in and of itself, forbidden. Thus the money is unlawful and the act is unlawful—whereas taking money by the first category constitutes rightful consumption, lawful wealth, and an act of obedience.

As for the third category, which is itself permissible, although it is forbidden to take money through it, this is not because the activity (5) is intrinsically harmful and therefore unlawful. Rather, allowing monetary gain through it would be a gateway for people to engross themselves in it and make it a source of income—especially since it is a light form of diversion and play to which souls are naturally inclined, so their desire for it would increase from both angles. Accordingly, the activity itself has been permitted because it gives assistance, refreshment, and relief to the soul, but earning money through it has been prohibited (6) lest it become a habitual craft and a commercial pursuit. This is among