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Fatwa CenterThe proper understanding of Hanthalah's Hadeeth on entertainment
Question
The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: "One hour for you and one hour for your religion." What is the interpretation of this Hadeeth? Some people dance and sing, and when I tell them that this is forbidden, they quote this Hadeeth.
Answer
All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad 
is His slave and Messenger.
Abu ‘Uthmaan An-Nahdi 
narrated on the authority of Hanthalah Al-Usaydi 
who was one of the scribes of the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, saying,
I met Abu Bakr. He said, "How are you, Hanthalah?" I said, "Hanthalah has turned out to be a hypocrite!" He (Abu Bakr) said: "Glory be Allaah! What are you saying?" Thereupon, I said, "When we are in the company of the Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, we ponder over Hell and Paradise as if we are seeing them before our very eyes. When we are away from the Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, we attend to our wives, our children, our business; most of these things (pertaining to the Hereafter) slip from our minds." Abu Bakr said, "By Allaah, I also experience the same."
So Abu Bakr and I went to the Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, and said to him, "O Messenger of Allaah! Hanthalah has turned to be a hypocrite!" Thereupon, the Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: "What has happened to you?" I said, "O Messenger of Allaah! When we are in your company, we are reminded of Hell and Paradise as if we are seeing them with our own eyes, but whenever we go away from you and attend to our wives, children and business, many of these things go out of our minds." Thereupon, the Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: "By Him in Whose Hand is my life, if your state of mind remains the same as it is in my presence and you are always busy in remembrance (of Allaah), the Angels will shake hands with you in your beds and on your paths. However, Hanthalah, time should be devoted (to the worldly affairs) and time (should be devoted to prayer and meditation)." The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said this thrice. [Muslim]
It means that a man is not considered a hypocrite when he is sometimes in a state of meditation, reflection, and carrying out the obligations of Allaah The Almighty while at other times he is in a state of laxity, fulfilling his needs, and mixing with his children, wife, and enjoying his wealth.
What has been mentioned in the question is not the meaning of the Hadeeth. Some people have distorted its meaning and made it a pretext to enagege in prohibitions and commit evil acts, and when a person condemns their actions, they say, "One hour for you and one hour for your God and religion." Some people further distort the meaning taking as an excuse the Hadeeth which reads: "Your soul has a right (upon you)." [Al-Bukhari]
These two Hadeeths and other similar ones signify that the Muslim should give himself a share of rest and enjoy some permissible activities, and that his life should not be entirely devoted to worship. They do not mean committing prohibitions and evil acts – may Allaah save us from that!
Distorting the meaning of the Hadeeth is in fact more serious than committing a prohibition. This type of distortion may reach to the extent of taking the person out of the pale of Islam because this is distorting the words from their proper meaning.
Allaah Knows best.
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