Chess 5item What is the ruling on playing chess and billiard, for example, with non-Muslims in foreign countries? And what is the ruling on money spent in this avenue, although not in betting? Q: What is the ruling on chess in the following situations? 1. The manufacture, sale, and purchase of chess instruments [chessboard/chessmen]. 2. Playing chess with/without a bet. 3. Establishing centers at public places where it could be played, taught, or promoted. What is the ruling on playing for amusement, such as with a deck of cards, especially when there is no betting involved? Playing chess has become commonplace in most schools. Do you sanction it and organizing courses to teach it? Can the mukallaf deem the approval of the physical education department to hold chess competitions as an indication that chess is not among the instruments of gambling? And is it permissible for the mukallaf to depend on such a thing?