PART 6 – WITCHCRAFT AND SOOTHSAYING
27. Slaughtering Animals as a Sacrifice to Other Than Allah
Question:
There are some people who take their relatives or loved ones, when they fall ill, to the so-called popular practitioner. Whenever he gets a patient, the practitioner names a number of diseases the patient allegedly has. He affirms that the patient will never recover unless a specific animal is to be slaughtered without remembrance of Allah, then to be buried in a specific place.
If one carries out this prescription for healing’s sake without Shirk’s intention, is it considered a sin9 Is it an act of major Shirk to do that? What are the general effects of slaughtering an animal as a sacrifice to other than Allah on one’s faith?
Answer
Slaughtering an animal as a sacrifice to someone other than Allah for any purpose is an act of major Shirk, for slaughtering sacrifices is an act of worship as Allah commands, “So pray unto thy Lord, and sacrifice.” (Al-Kawthar Surah, Ayah 2.) He also says, “Say: Lo! my worship and my sacrifice and my living and my dying are for Allah, Lord of the Worlds.” (Al-An’am Surah, Ayah 162.)
Allah has commanded that sacrifices, in addition to prayers, be offered to none but Him. He also commanded that we eat from whatever His name has been mentioned over, and if His name is not mentioned, we are not to eat from it. He says: “Eat of that over which the name of Allah hath been mentioned, if ye are believers in His revelations” (Al-An’am Sura, Ayah 118. ) ; “And eat not of that whereon Allah’s name hath not been mentioned, for lo! it is an abomination.” (Al-An’am Surah,Ayah 121.)
Thus, offering sacrifices to other than Allah, even for healing purposes as claimed, is an act of major Shirk. Whoever demands such acts to be carried out is a sorcerer leading people into Shirk, and he has to be reported to the authorities to deal with accordingly and to rid people of his evil.
Allah has provided us with good means of treatment. One way is by going to hospitals, consulting medical doctors and taking beneficial allowed medications. The other way is with legal Ruqyas by recitations from His Book and praying to Him for healing. What Allah has prescribed is sufficient for those who believe in Him, for He says, “… And whosoever putteth his trust in Allah, He will suffice him. Lo! Allah bringeth His command to pass….” (At-Talaq Surah, Ayah 3.)
As for those sorcerers, they are liars, charlatans, seeking to corrupt Muslims’ faith and to usurp people’s wealth unlawfully. Therefore, they must not only be made to stop leading people astray, but they must also be deterred from carrying out their evil designs. To ignore their evil practices is – an abominable act contributing to the spread of corruption on earth.
Muslims must protect their faith by not seeking physical healing at the expense of their faith and beliefs. They must not consult such charlatans, who are untrustworthy. If they claim to know the unseen, they are soothsayers, about whom the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم says, “Whoever consults a soothsayer and believes him disbelieves in what has been revealed to Muhammad (pbuh)(Kitab Adda ‘wah, (Book of the Call), Al-Fawzan’s Fatwas, Vol.1, pp.28-30.)
28. Sihr, Kahanab, Tanjeem and ‘Arafah: Differences and Verdicts
Question:
Are there any differences among Sihr, Kahanah, Tanjeem and Arafah? Is there only one ruling that applies to all of them?
Answer:
Sihr (magic / witchcraft / sorcery) is spells, Ruqyas and knots done by a sorcerer with the deliberate intention of harming people. The harm can be in the form of killing, diseases or separation of spouses. Therefore, Sihr is considered an act of Kufr (disbelief in Allah), an abominable activity and a grave social illness that must be eradicated so that people can be safe from its evil.
Kahanah (fortune-telling / soothsaying) is alleged knowing of the unseen. It involves the employment of the Jinn. In Fat-h Al-Majeed, Abdurrahman Ibn-Hassan says that the Jinn tell their human agents the news of events of which people are unaware, so people believe that to be some kind of divine revelation to a ‘man of Allah’; the truth is this is nothing but devil’s work, and the human agent (soothsayer) who reports the news is not a man of Allah, but a devil’s companion.
It is forbidden to consult soothsayers, for the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said, “If one consults a soothsayer and believes him, his prayers will not be accepted for forty days. (Op. Cit.) & (Op. Cit.) He also said, “Whoever consults a soothsayer and believes him disbelieves in what has been revealed to Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم “.(Op. Cit.)
The Arraf or Kahin is the Arabic for the soothsayer, who claims to know matters by untestable means; for example, he claims to know mysteriously where stolen things are hidden. Ibn Taymiyyah puts all those who claim knowledge by such untestable means, such as the Kahin, the Munajjim (astrologer), etc., under the name Arraf. The Munajjim is the one who does Tanjeem, the alleged prediction of life events on earth by means of knowledge of the stars. Tanjeem is an exercise in ignorance and an act of major Shirk, as it presumes belief in stars as directors of events and behaviour. (Al-Fawzan ‘s Selected Fatwas, pp. 56-57.)
29. The Attempt to Bewitch the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and How He Reacted
Question:
Is it true that there was an attempt to bewitch the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم ? If so, what was his reaction to bewitchment and to the magician?
Answer:
It is true. Aishah reported that magic was performed on the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم .As a result, he started to imagine having done things he had not really done. One day he told her, “Two men came to me and one of them sat near my head and the other near my feet. One of them said to his companion, ‘What is this man’s disease?’ The other replied, ‘He is under the effect of magic.’ The first one asked, ‘Who has Worked the magic on him?’ The other replied, ‘Labid Ibn-Al-A’sam, using a comb and the hairs stuck to it and the skin of pollen of a male date palm in the well of Dharwan.’”
According to Ibn-Al-Qayyim, there are those who reject that story; they maintain that such a thing cannot happen to the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم , for it is considered as a defect. However, their view is not valid, for the symptoms were not any different from those of the ordinary diseases, even from the poisoning he had had before.
Qadi Iyadh argues that the incident does not in any way undermine the credibility of prophethood. The fact that the Prophet’s credibility is entirely unquestioned and that he is undoubtedly infallible with regard to matters of divine revelation is sufficient to discard any significance that some may attach to the incident. However, in day-to-day common activities, not related to divine revelation, it would not be unusual for the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم to have imagined something he had not done, then realized what actually had happened. As a human being, he was likely to experience such matters.
When the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم learned he was under the effect of magic, he invoked Allah, Who guided him to where the spell was placed. Once found, it was destroyed, the effect of magic stopped, and the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم felt as if nothing had happened to him. However, he did not punish the magician. In fact, when asked to have the magician killed, he said, “Allah has cured me and I hate to circulate evil among people.” (Op. Cit.) & (Al-Fawzan ‘s Selected Fatwas, pp.57-58.)
30. Witchcraft: Reality & How Much of It Is Allowed
Question:
Please, explain the reality of witchcraft. Are there any kinds of witchcraft that are allowed? Is the practice of witchcraft an act of Kufr?
Answer:
In Arabic Sihr (witchcraft / magic / sorcery) refers to what is subtle and whose causes are hidden. According to Al-Kafi, it is spells, Ruqyas and knots, which have an effect on souls and bodies. It may lead to diseases, death and destruction of relationships between spouses. It is all Haram (forbidden) without exceptions; Allah says, “…. And surely they do know that he who trafficked (magic) therein will have no (happy) portion in the Hereafter; and surely evil is the price for which they sell their souls, if they but knew.” (Al-Baqara Sura, Ayah 102.)
As the above verses state, the sorcerer will have no portion in the Hereafter. ‘No portion’ can be interpreted as ‘no happy luck’. Al-Hassan interprets it as no religion, which emphasizes the prohibition of witchcraft and the Kufr (disbelief) of whoever practises it. The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم classifies it among the major seven deadly sins.
The sorcerer has to be executed. According to Imam Ahmad, three of the Prophet’s companions (Umar, Hafsa and Jundub) approved of such a penalty. Teaching, learning and taking witchcraft as a profession is disbelief in Allah. The sorcerer has to be executed so as to rid people of his evil; his Kufr and his activities are harmful to society at large. (Al-Fawzan ‘s Selected Fatwas, VoL2, p.59.)
31. Visiting Sorcerers to Have Witchcraft Performed & Torturing Animals till Death
Question:
In the past, before I became a committed Muslim observing the compulsory prayers on time and reading the Qur’ an, I visited a witch. She demanded that I strangle a hen to make an amulet for bringing about strong ties between me and my husband, for there were a lot of disputes between us. I strangled the hen with my own hands.
Is what I did a sin? What do I have to do in order to get rid of the fear and guilt I feel?
Answer:
Consulting witches is strictly prohibited because witchcraft is a kind of Kufr (disbelief), and it is harmful to people. Therefore, visiting witches is a major crime.
As for your strangling of the hen, it is a crime, for it represents the torture and unlawful killing of an animal. It is also shirk, for it involves seeking the pleasure of others than Allah. Now that you have sincerely repented, Allah will forgive your past sins, for He forgives the sins of those who repent, but you must not return to them at all.
Muslims must not let sorcerers practise their witchcraft amongst them. They must declare their condemnation of such practices and report sorcerers to the authorities so that people will be saved from their evil. (Al-Fawzan’s Selected Fatwas, Vol.1, pp.72-73.)
32. Ibn-Katheer’s View on Witchcraft
Question:
In Tafseer Ibn-Katheer, Vol.], page 147, it is mentioned that Ahl-Al Sunnah Wal-Jama’ah admits that a sorcerer can fly in the air and change a donkey into a human and vice versa. However, they maintain that it is Allah Who makes things happen when the sorcerer utters certain words and Ruqyas. Unlike what astrologers say, it is not the stars and orbits that have power in such matters.
Does this mean that a sorcerer can concentrate his sorcery on a human and convert him into an animal or vice-versa? Has any such conversion happened?
Answer: This is what Ibn-Katheer says; it has already been said by Ibn-Jareer. Regarding flying in the air and walking on the water, they have been mentioned by some Salaf, which is considered an evidence of the possibility of their happening; this is explained in terms of that devils can serve the sorcerer and may possess him, and that the Jinn have the ability to appear in various forms. Therefore, they may possess a human and make him appear as a donkey, a bird or a beast, etc. Yet, this could not take place without Allah’s permission and destiny; He says, “… but they injure thereby no one save by Allah’s leave….” (Al-Baqara Sura, Ayah 102.) This is denied by AlFalasifa and Al-Mu’tazilah, who maintain that the sorcerer himself is capable of impersonation and witchcraft. We reject this view, and accept that of Ahl-Al Sunnah Wal-Jama’ah; Allah is Capable of doing everything, and the truth is with Him. (A Fatwa by Al-Jibreen, Signed by him.)
By Khaled al-Jeraisy
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