Conditions for Content Creation on Social Media: A Religious and Ethical Vision for Young People

Now that the phone has become a window onto the world, every young man and woman can, at the press of a button, influence the minds and hearts of thousands. This power cannot be managed by boldness alone. It requires a sincere intention, knowledge and insight, sharʿī (religious-legal) guidelines, noble character, and a mission-driven vision that understands the role of media in building the human being and society. In this article we set before you, drawing on the Holy Quran, the hadiths of the Ahl al-Bayt (the Household of the Prophet) (peace be upon them) and the words of scholars, the most important things you should have before you begin creating content.

First: Sincerity of Intention and Truthfulness of Purpose

All action rests on intention. It has been narrated: «إنّما الأعمالُ بالنيّاتِ، وإنّما لكلّ امرئٍ ما نوى»
“Deeds are only by intentions, and every person shall have only what he intended.”
It has also been narrated: «لا قولَ إلّا بعملٍ، ولا عملَ إلّا بنيةٍ، ولا نيةَ إلّا بإصابةِ السُنّة» (ibid.) [CHECK: “in the same place”, but no prior source is cited in the body; the reference list gives Wasāʾil al-Shīʿa]. So ask yourself before every post: Why am I posting? And for whom? Is it for the sake of Allah and the benefit of people, or merely for fame and to fill empty time?