An Image or a Dog

Abu Hurairah (radi Allahu anhu) narrated that the Prophet (sal Allahu alaihi wa sallam) said: “Jibrail came to me and said, ‘Indeed I had come to you last night, and nothing prevented me from entering upon you at the house you were in, except that there were images of men at the door of the house, and there was a curtain screen with images on it, and there was a dog in the house. So go and sever the head of the image that is at the door so that it will become like a tree stump, and go and cut the screen and make two throw-cushions to be sat upon, and go and expel the dog.’” So the Messenger of Allah (sal Allahu alaihi wa sallam) did so, and the dog was a puppy belonging to Al-Husain or Al-Hasan which was under his belongings, so he ordered him to expel it. (Sahih) [The Chapters on Manners: Jami At-Tirmidhi]

The display of pictures of humans or animals causes one to be deprived of the blessed and merciful supplications of the angels; while a person is in need of mercy and blessing at every moment. Likewise, a dog is an impure animal, and some are of a satanic nature, and the angels despise the devil.

It is a shame that Muslims keep dogs as pets and put animate pictures for display in their houses as decoration. It can only be done in ignorance, for who would not want angels of mercy to be present in their house? But our distance from revelation is such that we do not know these simple things.