All praise and thanks belong to Allāh, the Lord of all creation. May the peace and blessings of Allāh be upon His servant and Messenger, our Prophet Muḥammad, and upon his family, Companions and whosoever follows them in righteousness until the Last Day.

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Indeed, the greatest of blessings which Allāh has bestowed upon the Muslims is that He has guided them to al-Islām, taking them out of darkness into light.

There is no blessing equal to it nor is there a blessing which is close to it [in virtue]. From the greatest of blessings bestowed upon the Muslim, after the blessing of al-Islām, are the blessings of sanity and good health. And from being thankful to Allāh for these blessings is that you utilise them in obedience to Him and everything that pleases Him in the Dunyá and in the Hereafter. Likewise, you abstain from all that which is in disobedience to Allāh and displeases Him in the Dunyá and the Hereafter.

The use of smartphones and their likes have become prevalent in our times. It is a blessing for those who use them for goodness and a punishment for those who use them for evil. The intelligent one who is sincere to himself is he who restricts the use (of the smartphone) to that which benefits him in the worldly life and in the Hereafter. So he uses it to take and receive permissible calls and as a means to (acquire) beneficial knowledge, which is easily accessible through them (i.e. smartphones).

As for utilising it for other than good, from that which harms the Muslim in the worldly life and the Hereafter, then it should be left off and cautioned against so that the eyes and the heart may be saved from blindness because constantly looking at these smartphones will weaken your sight and it can be a cause for blindness — a loss of this great blessing (i.e. eyesight). Even greater than this is the blindness of the heart which exposes the Muslim to the sickness of desires, which corrupts one’s character, and the sickness of doubts which corrupts one’s mind. Allāh has mentioned the severity of the blindness of the heart in His statement:

فَإِنَّهَا لَا تَعْمَى الْأَبْصَارُ وَلَٰكِن تَعْمَى الْقُلُوبُ الَّتِي فِي الصُّدُورِ
Verily, it is not the eyes that grow blind, but it is the hearts which are in the breasts that grow blind.
[Al-Ḥajj, 22:46]

Source: احذروا عمى بصائركم وأبصاركم بنظركم في الجوالات وشبهها أيها المسلمون
Translated by: Munīb al-Ṣumālī