Allamah Mansoor Hashemi Khorasani believes that playing chess is forbidden even if it does not involve gambling, and that is for two reasons:

Firstly, it is keeping statues, which is not permissible; as it has been narrated from Ali : «أَنَّهُ مَرَّ عَلَى قَوْمٍ يَلْعَبُونَ بِالشَّطْرَنْجِ، فَقَالَ: مَا هَذِهِ التَّمَاثِيلُ الَّتِي أَنْتُمْ لَهَا عَاكِفُونَ؟»[1]; “He passed by a group who were playing chess, then he said: What are these statues that you are their companions?”, and this is a famous speech from Ali ; as Muhanna’ has said: «سَأَلْتُ أَحْمَدَ بْنَ حَنْبَلٍ عَنِ اللَّعْبِ بِالشَّطْرَنْجِ، هَلْ تَعْرِفُ فِيهِ شَيْئًا؟ فَقَالَ: لَا أَعْلَمُ إِلَّا قَوْلَ عَلِيٍّ»[2]; “I asked Ahmad ibn Hanbal about chess, ‘Do you know anything about it (among the Hadiths)?’ He said: ‘I know nothing but the speech of Ali,’” and al-Bayhaqi has said: «وَلِهَذَا شَوَاهِدُ عَنْ عَلِيٍّ»[3]; “There are attestations from Ali for it.” It has been narrated from Musa ibn Ja‘far that he asked his father about statues, so he said: «لَا يَصْلُحُ أَنْ يُلْعَبَ بِهَا»[4]; “It is not appropriate to play with them,” and it appears that by statues he meant chess, and one of our companions informed us, he said:

«سَأَلْتُ الْمَنْصُورَ عَنْ قَوْلِ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى: ﴿فَاجْتَنِبُوا الرِّجْسَ مِنَ الْأَوْثَانِ وَاجْتَنِبُوا قَوْلَ الزُّورِ﴾[5]، فَقَالَ: الرِّجْسُ مِنَ الْأَوْثَانِ الشَّطْرَنْجُ وَقَوْلُ الزُّورِ الْغِنَاءُ، قُلْتُ: أَرَأَيْتَ إِنْ لَعَبْتُ بِالشَّطْرَنْجِ دُونَ قِمَارٍ؟ قَالَ: دَعْهَا فَإِنَّهَا تَجْذِبُ الشَّيَاطِينَ كَمَا تَجْذِبُ الْقَاذُورَةُ الذِّبَّانَ، قُلْتُ: مَا لَهُمْ وَلِلشَّطْرَنْجِ؟! قَالَ: يُعْجِبُهُمْ لَوْنُهَا وَأَوْثَانُهَا»; “I asked Mansoor about the words of Allah Almighty that says: ‘Then avoid the filth of idols, and avoid false words.’ So he said: ‘The filth of idols is chess, and false words are songs.’ I said: ‘What if I play chess without gambling?’ He said: ‘Abandon it; because it attracts devils to itself, as filth attracts flies to itself.’ I said: ‘What business do they have with chess?’ He said: ‘They like its color and idols.’”

What indicates this is what has been narrated from the Messenger of Allah that he said: «إِذَا مَرَرْتُمْ بِهَؤُلَاءِ الَّذِينَ يَلْعَبُونَ الْأَزْلَامَ الشَّطْرَنْجَ وَالنَّرْدَ، فَلَا تُسَلِّمُوا عَلَيْهِمْ، فَإِنْ سَلَّمُوا عَلَيْكُمْ فَلَا تَرُدُّوا عَلَيْهِمْ، فَإِنَّهُمْ إِذَا اجْتَمَعُوا وَأَكَبُّوا عَلَيْهَا جَاءَ إِبْلِيسُ أَخْزَاهُ اللَّهُ بِجُنُودِهِ فَأَحْدَقَ بِهِمْ كُلَّمَا ذَهَبَ رَجُلٌ يَصْرِفُ بَصَرَهُ عَنِ الشِّطْرَنْجِ لَكَزَ فِي ثَغْرِهِ، وَجَاءَتِ الْمَلَائِكَةُ مِنْ وَرَاءِ ذَلِكَ فَأَحْدَقُوا بِهِمْ وَلَمْ يَدْنُوا مِنْهُمْ، فَمَا زَالُوا يَلْعَنُونَهُمْ حَتَّى يَتَفَرَّقُونَ عَنْهَا حِينَ يَتَفَرَّقُونَ كَالْكِلَابِ اجْتَمَعَتْ عَلَى جِيفَةٍ، فَأَكَلَتْ مِنْهَا حَتَّى مَلَأَتْ بُطُونَهَا، ثُمَّ تَفَرَّقَتْ»[6]; “Whenever you pass by these people who play Azlam, that is, chess and backgammon, do not say hello to them, and if they say hello to you, do not answer them; because whenever they come together and play them, Satan, may Allah disgrace him, comes with his soldiers and surrounds them. Whenever one of them wants to turn away from chess, they punch him in the mouth, and then the Angels come and surround them and do not approach them and always curse them until they disperse, like dogs gathered around a corpse, then eat it to fill their stomachs and then disperse.”

Secondly, chess has now become a symbol of satanists and freemasons, as in the past it was a game for Sasanian kings and the like, and it is clearly not permissible to resemble them. Therefore, it has been narrated from Ali that he said: «الشَّطْرَنْجُ مَيْسِرُ الْأَعَاجِمِ»[7]; “Chess is the gambling of non-Arabs,” and Abu Ja‘far was asked about it, so he said: «دَعُونَا مِنْ هَذِهِ الْمَجُوسِيَّةِ»[8]; “Let us be free of this Magian work,” and his son, Ja‘far was asked about it, so he said: «دَعُوا الْمَجُوسِيَّةَ لِأَهْلِهَا، لَعَنَهَا اللَّهُ»[9]; “Leave Magian works for its people, may Allah curse it,” and it has been narrated from Ali ibn Musa al-Rida that he said, “Yazid ibn Mu‘awiyah was playing chess while the head of Husain was in front of him.” Then he said: «فَمَنْ كَانَ مِنْ شِيعَتِنَا فَلْيَتَوَرَّعْ عَنِ اللَّعْبِ بِالشَّطْرَنْجِ»[10]; “So whoever is our follower must avoid playing chess,” and the statement about the prohibition of chess is proved by mutawatir narrations from the Ahl al-Bayt [11]. Also, it has been narrated that ibn Abbas took charge of the property of an orphan. He then found a chess board in the state of the orphan’s father, and he burned it, while if playing with it was permissible, he was not allowed to burn it. It has also been narrated from ibn Umar that he said: «هِيَ شَرٌّ مِنَ النَّرْدِ»; “It is worse than backgammon,” in the sense that a fortiori it is impermissible; because backgammon has been impermissible in their opinion. It has been narrated from Abu Musa that he said: «لَا يَلْعَبُ بِالشَّطْرَنْجِ إِلَّا خَاطِئٌ»; “No one plays chess except for a wrongdoer,” and it has been narrated that Abu Sa‘id al-Khudri hated playing chess, and it has been narrated from al-Zuhri that he said: «هِيَ مِنَ الْبَاطِلِ، وَلَا يُحِبُّ اللَّهُ الْبَاطِلَ»; “It pertains to falsehood, and Allah does not like falsehood,” and something similar to it has been narrated from Sa‘id ibn Musayyib, and it has been narrated from Muhammad ibn Ka‘b al-Qurazi that he said: «أَدْنَى مَا يَكُونُ فِيهَا أَنَّ اللَّاعِبَ بِهَا يُحْشَرُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ مَعَ أَصْحَابِ الْبَاطِلِ»; “The least thing about it is that whoever plays it will be gathered with companions of falsehood on the Day of Judgment,” and it has been narrated from Ibrahim al-Nakha‘i that he said: «إِنَّهَا مَلْعُونَةٌ، فَلَا تَلْعَبْ بِهَا»; ”It is cursed, so do not play it,” and it has been narrated from Muhammad ibn Sirin that he said: «لَوْ رُدَّتْ شَهَادَةُ مَنْ يَلْعَبُ بِالشَّطْرَنْجِ كَانَ لِذَلِكَ أَهْلًا»; “If the testimony of one who plays chess is rejected, he deserves it.” About the words of Allah Almighty that has said: ﴿وَأَنْ تَسْتَقْسِمُوا بِالْأَزْلَامِ﴾[12]; “And (you are forbidden) to make the division by means of divining arrows,” Wakee‘ and Sufyan have said: «هِيَ الشَّطْرَنْجُ»; “(The example of) it is chess.” Ishaq ibn Rahwayh was told: «أَتَرَى فِي اللَّعْبِ بِالشَّطْرَنْجِ بَأْسٌ؟»; “Do you see any problem in playing chess?” He said: «الْبَأْسُ كُلُّهُ فِيهِ»; “All problems are in it.” Then he was told: «إِنَّ أَهْلَ الثُّغُورِ يَلْعَبُونَ بِهَا لِأَجْلِ الْحَرْبِ»; “The border guards play it because of war.” He said: «هُوَ فُجُورٌ»; “It is a wrongdoing.” It has been narrated from Malik that he said: «لَا خَيْرَ فِي الشَّطْرَنْجِ»; “There is no good in chess,” and said: «أَمَّا الْمُدْمِنُ عَلَى لَعْبِ الشَّطْرَنْجِ فَلَا أَرَى أَنْ تُقْبَلَ شَهَادَتُهُ»; “As for one who is addicted to playing chess, I do not consider it right to accept his testimony,” and said: «أَوَّلُ مَنْ جَاءَ بِالشَّطْرَنْجِ وَالنَّرْدِ عَمْرُو بْنُ الْعَاصِ، تَعَلَّمَ ذَلِكَ فِي الْحِيرَةِ»; “The first one who brought chess and backgammon was Amr ibn al-As. He learned them in the city of Hirah.” It has been narrated that Abu Hanifa and Ahmad have prohibited it. Rather, it has been narrated from Abdullah ibn Nafi‘ that he said: «مَا أَدْرَكْتُ أَحَدًا مِنْ عُلَمَائِنَا إِلَّا وَهُوَ يَكْرَهُهَا»; “I have not found any of our scholars except that he has hated it,” and Mansoor hates it so much that he has refused to sit on a rug colored like a chessboard, and said: «إِنَّهُ مَجْلِسُ الشَّيَاطِينِ»; “It is the seat of devils.”