Is hunting for sport haram?

Hunting has a long and honored place in Muslim life, from the Bedouin with his trained falcon to the family that fills its freezer with venison each autumn. Killing for the thrill of it has no such place. Hunting for sport is haram: killing an animal for trophies, for fun, or for the pleasure of a good shot, with no need for its meat and no harm to prevent, is what the Prophet ﷺ forbade. Hunting for food, for a livelihood, or to protect people, crops, and livestock is halal, when it is done swiftly, with Allah’s name, and with mercy.

Is hunting for sport haram?

The Prophet ﷺ stated the rule in a few words:

«لاَ تَتَّخِذُوا شَيْئًا فِيهِ الرُّوحُ غَرَضًا»

“Do not take anything that has a soul as a target.”

Sahih Muslim 1957a

The Companions applied it strictly. Saʿīd ibn Jubayr reported that he was walking with Ibn ʿUmar (may Allah be pleased with him) when they came upon some young men who had tied up a hen and were shooting at it. When they saw Ibn ʿUmar they scattered, and he said: “Who did this? The Prophet ﷺ cursed whoever does this” (Sahih al-Bukhari 5515). The Prophet ﷺ also forbade killing an animal that has been tied up and held still to be shot at (Sahih Muslim 1959).

A trophy hunt, a contest to shoot the most birds, or a weekend of killing animals that will be left where they fall differs from the young men’s game only in scale. In each case a living creature becomes a target for the shooter’s pleasure.

What does the Quran say about hunting?

The Quran permits hunting as a means of provision:

يَسۡـَٔلُونَكَ مَاذَآ أُحِلَّ لَهُمۡۖ قُلۡ أُحِلَّ لَكُمُ ٱلطَّيِّبَٰتُ وَمَا عَلَّمۡتُم مِّنَ ٱلۡجَوَارِحِ مُكَلِّبِينَ تُعَلِّمُونَهُنَّ مِمَّا عَلَّمَكُمُ ٱللَّهُۖ فَكُلُواْ مِمَّآ أَمۡسَكۡنَ عَلَيۡكُمۡ وَٱذۡكُرُواْ ٱسۡمَ ٱللَّهِ عَلَيۡهِ

“They ask you what is lawful for them. Say: All good things are lawful for you, and what your trained hunting animals catch, which you train as Allah has taught you. So eat what they catch for you, and mention the name of Allah over it.”

Quran 5:4

Each part of the verse points to food: the game is “for you,” the believers “eat” it, and Allah’s name is spoken over it as over any meal. The sea is likewise open to fishing “as provision for you and for travelers,” while hunting land game is forbidden to pilgrims in the state of iḥrām (5:95–96). Hunting in the Quran is a permission given for provision, with limits set by Allah.

Why does Islam forbid killing animals without need?

The Quran tells us who the animals are:

وَمَا مِن دَآبَّةٖ فِي ٱلۡأَرۡضِ وَلَا طَـٰٓئِرٖ يَطِيرُ بِجَنَاحَيۡهِ إِلَّآ أُمَمٌ أَمۡثَالُكُم

“There is no creature that walks the earth and no bird that flies on its two wings but they are communities like you.”

Quran 6:38

The verse ends by saying that they too will be gathered to their Lord. While traveling with the Prophet ﷺ, the Companions once took two chicks from their nest, and the mother bird circled overhead, beating her wings. The Prophet ﷺ came and asked, “Who has distressed this bird by taking her young? Give them back to her” (Sunan Abi Dawud 2675, graded sahih by al-Albani). He told of a woman who entered the fire because she shut up a cat and let it starve (Sahih al-Bukhari 3482), and of a man who was forgiven for giving water to a thirsty dog.

Sunan al-Nasaʾi preserves a report that whoever kills a sparrow or anything larger without right will be asked about it by Allah, and that its right is “to slaughter it and eat it, and not to cut off its head and throw it away” (Sunan al-Nasaʾi 4349). Al-Albani graded its chain weak, while other critics accepted it, and its meaning is confirmed by the sound hadith above: an animal may be killed for a benefit, above all to be eaten, and never for nothing.

What did the classical jurists say about hunting?

The jurists of every school permitted hunting for food, for a livelihood, and to protect against harm. The Prophet ﷺ allowed the killing of harmful creatures such as rats, scorpions, and rabid dogs, even inside the sanctuary of Mecca (Sahih al-Bukhari 3314), and farmers may protect their crops and flocks. Many jurists, among them Hanafi and Maliki authorities, disapproved of hunting merely for amusement (lahw), some calling it disliked and others forbidden. On the reasoning of the hadith, the stronger view (al-rājiḥ) is that killing an animal purely for sport is haram.

The objectives of the sharia (maqāṣid al-sharīʿa, مقاصد الشريعة) point the same way today. Humanity is Allah’s steward (khalīfa) on the earth, and hunting rare and endangered animals for trophies destroys communities of creation that Allah entrusted to us (What does Islam say about the environment?).

How should a Muslim hunt?

• Hunt for the table. Take what you will eat or share, and leave the rest of creation in peace.
• Say Allah’s name. Mention Allah over the shot or the release of the hunting animal, as the Quran commands (5:4).
• Kill swiftly. The Prophet ﷺ commanded excellence (iḥsān) in every killing, a sharp blade and no needless suffering (Is halal slaughter cruel?). Choose a weapon and a shot that end life quickly, and follow up a wounded animal.
• Respect the seasons and the law. Hunting laws that protect breeding seasons, young animals, and endangered species serve the same mercy the Prophet ﷺ showed the mother bird.
• Enjoy the skill without the killing. Target shooting, clay pigeons, and archery are halal and praised: the Prophet ﷺ encouraged his Companions in archery contests (Sahih al-Bukhari 2899).

For the wider teaching on animals, see What does Islam say about animals? and Can Muslims be vegetarian?

A closing word

When the Prophet ﷺ told of the man who gave water to a thirsty dog, his Companions asked whether there is reward even in caring for animals. He answered:

«فِي كُلِّ كَبِدٍ رَطْبَةٍ أَجْرٌ»

“In every living creature there is a reward.”

Sahih al-Bukhari 2363

May Allah make us people of mercy toward every creature He has made, taking only what we need and thanking Him for it.