What is the ruling on purchasing drawings of animals from artists and placing them on book covers for sale? And does the purchaser of these images fall under the ruling concerning the painters who are threatened with punishment, taking into consideration the fatwas of Al-Azhar and Dar Al-Ifta regarding the permissibility of drawing portraits for what is permissible and its prohibition for what is impermissible?

The majority of scholars prohibit the drawing of portraits of animals if they are complete in their creation. The Malikis permit it, though with some disfavor, provided it is not something that is treated with disrespect. Among the arguments for permissibility are the hadith: "Angels do not enter a house in which there is a picture, except if it is a design on a garment," and the hadith: "Who is more unjust than one who goes about creating a creation like My creation?" Also, the Prophet (peace be upon him) used pictures in his home.

As for the view of prohibition, it is the opinion of the majority of jurists, and their argument is the general wording of the hadiths that curse image-makers.

If the image is incomplete in its creation, missing a limb without which life cannot be sustained – such as drawing only the head – then many of those who hold the complete images to be forbidden make an exception for these, based on the statement of Ibn Abbas: "The image is the head; if the head is cut off, it is not an image." This is also supported by the hadith of Jibril, in which he commanded the cutting off of the statue's head to make it resemble a tree. If an image is forbidden, it is not permissible to buy or use it unless it is treated with disrespect.