Wasting time memorizing vain peotry

📖Sahih Muslim 2258
Sa’d reported: The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “It is better for the belly of any one of you to be filled with pus than to fill (one’s mind) with poetry.”

Description:

This Hadith strongly warns against the excessive consumption or glorification of poetry that corrupts the heart and distracts from the remembrance of Allah. The Prophet ﷺ used shocking language (“filled with pus”) to make a powerful point, poetry that is vain, deceptive, or filled with falsehoods is spiritually toxic, It does not mean all poetry is forbidden. The Prophet ﷺ praised and even allowed beneficial poetry, like the words of Hassan ibn Thabit, who defended Islam through verse. However, this Hadith refers to wasteful or misleading poetry, especially that which promotes lies, arrogance, lust, idle talk, or kufr.

What Kind of Poetry is Condemned?

1. Philosophical nonsense -that promotes doubts, confusion, or contradicts revelation
2. Romantic and lustful poetry -that fuels desires and corrupts modesty
3. Nationalistic or tribal pride – that breeds arrogance and division
4. Mocking or satirical poetry – that insults others or mocks truth
5. Shirk or blasphemy – where poets elevate themselves or others beyond limits
6. Wasted time poetry – that entertains but adds no benefit in Deen or life

If you read anything just for timepass and it doesn’t lead you to confusion or bad thoughts, that’s okay, as long as it’s honest and you’re using your time wisely, especially if it’s for extra education or benefit that brings you closer to God and guides you toward becoming a better person, not away from Him.

Why is it Condemned?

Because it:

1. Wastes time that could be used for dhikr or learning
2. Fills the heart with illusions instead of guidance
3. Distracts from the Qur’an, which is the ultimate truth
4. Glorifies false values like fame, beauty, pride, or worldly success

Quranic Context:

📖Quran 26:224-226
As for the poets, only the misguided follow them. Do you not see how they wander aimlessly in every valley, and they say what they do not do?
Poets often speak carelessly or hypocritically, indulging in fantasy and exaggeration, unlike the Qur’an, which speaks truth.

📖Quran 31:6
And of the people is he who buys the amusement of speech to mislead others from the way of Allah without knowledge and takes it in ridicule. For such there will be a humiliating punishment.
Amusement speech, including certain types of poetry or entertainment, can become a tool of misguidance.

📖Quran 45:35
That is because you took the verses of Allah in ridicule, and the worldly life deluded you.
When people treat Allah’s signs lightly and indulge only in entertainment or vain speech, they lose the purpose of life.

Islam is not against art or creativity. But it must serve truth, not vanity. Poetry becomes dangerous when it replaces remembrance, spreads filth, or glorifies falsehood, If your tongue can recite deep verses, then let them be Qur’an, If your heart can feel words, then let them bring you closer to Allah, Not all poetry is evil, but when it blinds you from reality, pus in the belly is lighter than poison in the soul.