Q: I follow the opinion of Shaykh Ibn Uthaymeen regarding piracy where he says: "In my view, if a person copies them for his own personal use, there is no harm in that. However, if he copies them for trade purposes, this is not permissible since it involves causing harm to others."
I use a website to download youtube videos for personal use so I can share them with family. Is this permissible as I know there can be issues with copyright in some countries. I’m from the UK. In cases like this, when does the ‘law of the land’ take precedence over Shari’ah? If ever? I don’t really fear any legal consequences although I know there are copyright laws here.
A: Pictures of all animate objects have been declared haraam and forbidden in shariah. The hadith has sounded severe warnings for those who get involved in these types of grave sins. Rasulullah (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) said, "Those involved in picture-making will be subjected to the worst forms of punishment on the day of Qiyaamah."
Hence, if the video contains pictures of animate objects, then through viewing them, one will enter under the purview of this Hadith. Hence, watching the haraam is impermissible and sharing it with others will only compound the sin.
And Allah Ta'ala (الله تعالى) knows best.
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