Reading novels are day-dreaming? Baca novel berkhayal?

Few days ago, I have found a disturbing notion from a man of intellectual stating that reading novels are nothing more than dreaming. He used 'berkhayal'. In the Malaysian context, the word 'berkhayal' is often used to refer day-dream, hallucinating, or in a major crime of heavy drugs. This word is used to refer a negative portion of imagination.

I couldn't agree more (if);
If the novels are purely belletristic, unsophisticated, no moral values of all sort, then it benefits almost nothing to the reader, when all it offers is plain sensuous imagination to feed our lust and desire.

But in defense of novels and all other didactic writings, the notion has served injustice. The undivided negative bias towards books creates unnecessary rejection from the mass onto the intellectual diverse the didactic writings have.

Hence, here are 2 benefits of didactic writings to readers;

1. It builds up the creative imagination.
In this prospect, creative imagination gives room for our mind. This is the opposite of sensuous imagination that feeds emotions which deceive the safeguard of our nafs. Creative imagination, however, does feed our emotion but not to the extent of leading us to do unwanted physical or emotional reactions.

2. It gets you into critical point and gives you solution
We can always choose to read for leisure. But as readers, we always want something more. A critical point is a space for intellectual discussion. When you read something, there's something more to it but what is it? Often when I read, I find myself the question concerning my life. "Why did he do that?", "How could she do this!?", "What now?". And often too, these questions reflect the questions in my mind. When it reaches the mutual agreement between you and the author through these questions, we need answers. The book now has the responsibility to give answer through the stories. The answer is important. It either create solutions or creates more problems. Hence, that's why authors need to project good ideas in their writings.
"A book that kills should not be published."

These are my two points of view. Reading novels can always be beneficial and it doesn't necessarily leads us to 'berkhayal', day-dream, or hallucinating. All we need is a good book.

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Nafs - Nafs (نَفْس) is an Arabic word occurring in the Qur'an and means self, psyche ego or soul.
Belletristic - having a purely aesthetic function
Didactic - intended to teach, particularly in having moral instruction as an ulterior motive.