Leisure and Islam

What role does Islamic teaching play in the development of a uniquely Muslim state of mind and leisure behaviour? While religion serves to stabilize the social order by endowing traditions with sacredness, leisure serves as a vehicle of human expression. Islam never sanctified time or frowned on leisure activities, although it maintained strict segregation of the sexes. In Islamic countries there are many more religious days off than in Christian countries. Traditional leisure activities include poetry, song, music and dancing but there are new activities: sport, TV and movie-going. The urban centres of Islam are in dire need of open space and parks.