Buying Stuff With Shirk & Sinful Element In It, Does Ur Niyat Make A Difference?
Most games that use Hindu, Norse, or other religious elements don’t function as missionary tools. They use those themes for story, aesthetics, mythology, and world-building. The amount of actual theology presented is usually very shallow — and most players already know those concepts at a surface level anyway. Games are not structured da’wah platforms. Also think about it logically: If exposure automatically strengthened belief, then non-Muslims seeing Muslims pray Salah would automatically become Muslim. But that’s not how belief works. Belief does not grow from passive exposure. It grows from: Internal conviction, Personal reflection, Existential questioning, Intellectual and emotional alignment. There are many Muslims who see prayer daily and still don’t practice. So clearly, seeing something is not equal to being transformed by it. Similarly, your Hindu friend playing a Hindu-themed game does not automatically strengthen his faith because you are playing with him. His belief depends on his own internal state, not your participation. And Islam does not require you to constantly interrupt a game and announce: “By the way, I don’t believe this.” That would be unnatural and socially awkward. Faith is an internal commitment. It does not require performative disclaimers. You are responsible for: Your belief, Your endorsement, Your moral boundaries. You are not responsible for: Someone else’s internal interpretation, Their spiritual direction, Or the general popularity of fictional content. If your faith is firm and you are not endorsing theology, then your internal commitment is enough. And regarding your last concern — yes, internal commitment is enough. Islam judges intention and conscious alignment, not constant verbal disclaimers. Just make sure caution doesn’t turn into spiritual hyper-vigilance. There is a difference between being careful and becoming unnecessarily anxious.