Chess

[Rayaan]

Here is authentic one from "Sahih" Muslim:

Book 028, Number 5612:
Buraida reported on the authority of his father that Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) said: He who played chess is like one who dyed his hand with the flesh and blood of swine.

Yeah, I've heard that hadith before. But that can be interpreted to mean that chess is something which is bad or disliked (makrooh), but we cannot consider that to mean strictly forbidden (haram) unless the hadith clearly says so. There are also other things that are classified as "khilaf al-awla" and those are things which are deemed "better not to do," but they are not necessarily sinful in every case.

Another common argument against chess is that it is not allowed simply because it is a waste of time since it distracts us from the remembrance of God and prevents us from doing good deeds and earning His pleasure ... and stuff like that.

From a website:
"Islam absolutely discourages the believers from 'wasting' their precious and allocated time in doing useless and worthless deeds; deeds which will bring absolutely no profit to themselves or others, either in this world or the Hereafter! All such useless and worthless deeds which bring absolutely no gain or benefit to one in this world or the Hereafter, nor furthers one's cause towards salvation and success are prohibited for the believers who sincerely believe in Allah and the Last Day." - http://www.islamhelpline.com/node/4006

But, by that reasoning, all kinds of games, sports, or recreational activities would be forbidden let alone chess, if we consider them as a "waste" of time.