Is watching cartoons/anime for entertainment Haram?

Question

If it is Haram, as long as I don't believe what they include or say, am I committing shirk or am I going to get punished like the sketchers of the series?

Answer 1

Is watching cartoons/anime for entertainment Haram?

In my opinion it is not Haram. The prophet forbade drawings (of people), however Anime characters are usually unrealistic in origin. There are other reasons as well if you are interested check the following questions.

If it is Haram, as long as I don't believe what they include or say, am I committing shirk or am I going to get punished like the sketchers of the series?

If you believe something to be Haram, then doing it is a sin which Allah might punish you or given you. That isn't something a person can know. The best thing is to stay away from things you believe is Haram and ask Allah for forgiveness.

Answer 2

First of all i would say what counts in any matter is the intention.

Then when it comes to drawings and pictures etc. i think our dear brother @American-Muslim gave you a few helpful links and an answer, but i'd like to explain my Point of View:

My opinion is that one must take some facts in account for example still when our Messenger died there were many pagan's in the Arabic peninsula and there are still many in some of the "Muslim Countries" nowadays. But the most relevant fact to me is that our Messenger (peace be upon him) forbade them because many people just converted to Islam and rejected their idols (after a long time worshiping them) so there was a more or less slight chance that they have a fall-back to their former Idolatry. So forbidding them -in this case- makes sense!

But today you'll find even in many Muslim countries some (more or less modern) Statues but nobody even thinks of worshiping them, even if in some cases this statues and placing them in some Public places etc. and admiring the Person it represents could be regarded at least as something near to worshiping!

Finally i come to cartoons:

First watching TV and anything which could be regarded as a waste of time has -if we take it very severely and exact- always a touch of makroh. But we shouldn't forget that we are not angels and we need to relieve stress from time to time, so watching TV etc. could be a way to do so. So i can't see any harm in this unless what you are watching is somehow against the rules of Islam or regarded as a sinful act in that case at least you will do a sin!

Now as you said you don't believe in what you watch and i personally can't see any link to shirk in Cartoons (in general), i can't imagine why that should even lead to shirk or that you'll be punished for watching. But you still have to be aware that whether the act of watching would be considered as sinful or not depends on what you are watching and on your intention and true belief and how you interact/react with/on that (see also this Hadith which has some relevance)!

So as a conclusion I'd give you the same advise mentioned by @American-Muslim if you believe that an act would be sinful you should stay away and turn away from it!

And here are some more or less related fatwas 1 2 in English and one in Arabic/Turkish for some more details and a more sever (salafi) Point of View.

And Allah knows best!

Answer 3

It is not haram, but watching inappropriate animes with girls in swimsuits and big breasts- even if it's unrealistic, is haram for all genders.

Answer 4

Assalamualaikum. I do not know about cartoons and such but i used to watch alot of anime a few months ago and i recommend based on this that u should not get yourself into anime. Trust me. Even anime which seem to be for a younger audience turns out to have sexual content i have some examples but i do not want to share them as i dont want people to start googling these.So, even if animations are halal(to which i do not know the rulings of scholars),i would recommend that u stay away from anime and i think that the rest of the questions have been answered by others above (maybe lol). In the end Allah knows best.

Answer 5

in my opinion, something is haram if it takes you away from ALLAH(STW). if you are missing your salah's by watching anime, then it is clearly haram or if you are watching certain categories of anime like: hentai,harem or ecchi is haram coz it will lead you to doing something which is clearly haram and sinful. there are other types of anime like shonen and shojo. shonen anime are based on adventure, fighting,comedy etc. shojo on the other hand focus on romantic and funny anime. shojo might take you to commiting a sin, so just be carefull, there is a small chance. both the anime have beautiful anime girls, and you are not drawing these so you should be fine. shonen example: one piece, dragon ball franchise, naruto, AOT. Shojo example: Kaichou wa Maid-sama, Tonari no Kaibutsu-kun, Kimi ni Todoke. There are also family friendly anime like: doraemon, shinchan, ninja hattori etc

Answer 6

I DON'T HAVE A DIRECT ANSWER FOR THIS, BUT I DO KNOW THAT IT IS HARAM to draw anything that is depicted as living (having a soul). It is honestly hard to find an answer to this question, as there are many different opinions

Answer 7

ikeepmynamehidden, I have a question. So, I watch Naruto right and it has chakra and powers which comes from Buddhism, but I ignore that and just pay attention to the plot and just think that chakra and all those powers are just for entertainment. They use the chakra and powers to do jutsus such as shadow clone jutsus,etc. When I watch naruto, it kinda helps me in Islam because it is about never giving up and the soundtracks are inspiring, so it is still haram to watch naruto

Answer 8

Assalam o Allaikum. First of all, let me tell you I do not know whether this is Haram or not. But I surely do know that this can not be considered as ‘Shirk’. Because shirk as is the act with means to worship someone else other than ‘Allah’ or to include any other being in worship along with ‘Allah’.

Answer 9

hlo i am probably late .but still. when u come to the talk of anime .anime's that categories to ecchi,harem,hentai are all haram coz they are related to sexual thing .before u watch an anime check the genres and try to get info on that genres . .the others like pokemon and doraemon are not haram

Answer 10

Statues are haram -> referring to Medi1Saif's answer. And regarding haram, intention is not of importance. You cannot do something haram like drinking alcohol and say "I have a good intention". Regarding watching cartoons: It is not unproblematic: Music and drawing are problematic, the story is important and it must not lead you to something haram or it must not contain something haram.

Answer 11

I've wondered this for a while, about Naruto, when they present themselves in god like ways. Also involved are alot of Buddhist ideologies, and sometimes unconsciously you might say the names of their goddesses or gods... I don't know the correct answer, but I think it's best to keep a certain limit. The intention is what really matters, if you're watching it because you find it interesting and fun, then you must regard it as it is, don't get too involved or obsessed with it. I like to watch stuff at night, after I'm done with everything. Again, I grew up in a Muslim country and that show was literally my childhood, everyone, from adults to kids watched it. Even really good Muslims I know, watch it. So it's best to say, not to get too involved in it. It's just a show made from someone's imagination, so be it that way. And if you feel uncertain, talk to a close one. Hope this helped.