On Sorcery (As-Sihr)

Kitab at Tawheed
http://www.scribd.com/doc/27587985/Kitab-at-Tawheed

CHAPTER No: 24
Allah the Most Exalted said:

On Sorcery (As-Sihr)

"And indeed they knew that the buyers of it (magic) would have no share in the Hereafter." (2:102) Allah the Almighty said: "They believe in Al-Jibt and At-Taghut (all false deities)." (4:51) Umar ((May Allah be pleased with him)) is reported to have said that Al-Jibt is magic (sorcery) while At-Taghut is Ash-Shaitan. Jabir ((May Allah be pleased with him)) is reported to have said that At-Taghut are soothsayers upon whom the devil alights and every tribe has one. Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) is reported to have heard the Prophet (May the peace and blessing of Allah be upon him) saying: "Save yourself from the seven destroyers." The Companions (May Allah be pleased with him) asked: "O Messenger of Allah, what are those?" He (May the peace and blessing of Allah be upon him) said, "To associate anything with Allah, sorcery (magic), without any just cause killing a life Allah has forbidden, taking interest (usury), usurping the wealth of orphans, turning back from the battlefield, and making a false charge (accusation) against the chaste but unmindful women (i.e. they never even think of anything touching chastity)." (Bukhari and Muslim) Jundub (May Allah be pleased with him) narrated the following Marfu' Hadith, which AtTirmidhi reported:

"The punishment for the sorcerers/magicians is that he be stuck with the sword (executed)." In Sahih Al-Bukhari, Bajalah bin `Abadah (May Allah be pleased with him) narrated: "'Umar bin Al-Khattab (May Allah be pleased with him) wrote: Execute every sorcerer or sorceress". So Bajalah continued: "We executed three sorcerers." Hafsah (May Allah be pleased with him) is reported to have ordered an execution of a slave woman who practiced magic/sorcery on her and she was executed. Such an event has also been reported through Jundub (May Allah be pleased with him). According to Imam Ahmad (May Allah be pleased with him) execution of sorcerers (magicians) is testified by three Companions of the Prophet (May the peace and blessing of Allah be upon him) (Umar, Hafsah, Jundub).

Important issues of the Chapter 1) Explanation of the verse in Al-Baqarah (2:102).

2) Explanation of the verse in An-Nisa (4:51). 3) Meaning of Al-Jibt and At-Taghut and the difference between the two. 4) At- Taghut could be among jinns or humans. 5) Details of seven grave destroyers which are strictly forbidden. 6) Sorcerers or magicians are disbelievers (Kafir). 7) That the sorcerers/magicians should be executed and no repentance is accepted. 8) Sorcerers were found among the Muslims during the period of Umar (May Allah be pleased with him). So how about thereafter?

CHAPTER No: 25
Clarification of types of Sorcery (As-Sihr)
Imam Ahmad (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: Muhammad bin Ja'far narrated from

Auf, from Haiyan bin Al- `Ala', from Qatan bin Qabisah, from his father that he heard the Prophet (May the peace and blessing of Allah be upon him) say: "Verily, Al-'lyafah (letting birds fly to foretell events) and At-Tarq (drawing lines on earth to predict events) and At-Tiyarah (taking sight on some object as a bad omen) are Al-Jibt (sorceries/magic)." `Auf (May Allah be pleased with him) said, "Al-'lyafah is letting a bird's flight foretell events while At-Tarq is drawing line on earth." Hasan Basri (May Allah be pleased with him) said, "AlJibt is the scream of Satan (devil)." The above Hadith has been narrated through good chain of narrators and collected by Abu Dawud, An-Nasa'i and Ibn Hibban. Abu Dawud reported in his book with Sahih lsnad that Ibn Abbas (May Allah be pleased with him) narrated that Allah's Messenger (P.B.UH) said: "Whoever learns a part of astrology (drawing knowledge from stars) has learned a part of sorcery (magic). Those who learn more are getting that much more (sin to their credit)." In An-Nasa'i, Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) is reported to have said: "Whoever tied a knot and blew on it, has committed sorcery and whoever committed sorcery has committed Shirk. Whoever wears an amulet or talisman will be subjected to its control." Ibn Mas'ud (May Allah be pleased with him) is reported to have heard Allah's Messenger (May the peace and blessing of Allah be upon him) saying: "Shall I not tell you what Al-'Adh (literally: lying, sorcery etc.) is? It is conveying false rumors for the purpose of causing disputes between people." (Muslim) Both Sahih collectors reported from Ibn Umar (May Allah be pleased with him) that Allah's Messenger (May the peace and blessing of Allah be upon him) said: "Some eloquence can be (so beautiful that it constitutes) sorcery. Important issues of the Chapter 1) Al-'lydfah, At-Tarq, At-Tiyarah are three kinds of Al-Jibt (sorcery/magic). 2) Al-'lyafah, and At-Tarq are explained. 3) Astrology too is a kind of sorcery.

4) Tying knots and blowing over them is also sorcery. 5) An-Namimah (tale bearing, backbiting) is also a form of sorcery. 6) Talking sometimes superfluously and eloquently can too be sorcery.

CHAPTER No: 26
On Soothsayers and the like
Muslim recorded in his Sahih, from some of the wives (Hafsah) of the Prophet (May the peace and blessing of Allah be upon him) that he said: "Whoever goes to a fortuneteller and asks him something and believes in his words, will have his prayer (Salat) rejected for forty days." Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Prophet (May the peace and blessing of Allah be upon him) said: "Whoever visited a soothsayer and believed in his words, has denied the Revelation to Muhammad (May the peace and blessing of Allah be upon him) (i.e. Qur'an)." (Abu Dawud) The other four Hadith collectors and AI-Hakim equally reported this Hadith (of Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him)) and classified it as Sahih (sound): "Whoever visits a fortuneteller or a soothsayer and believes in his words, has disbelieved in what was revealed to Muhammad (May the peace and blessing of Allah be upon him) ." Abu Ya'la reported a similar Hadith from Ibn Mas'ud (May Allah be pleased with him) with good Isnad but as Mawquf (untraceable). Imran bin Husain (May Allah be pleased with him) narrates in a Marfu` Hadith that Allah's Messenger (May the peace and blessing of Allah be upon him) said: "He is not from us who seeks omens or has omens interpreted for him (i.e. At-Tiyarah); or who practices fortunetelling or has his fortune told; or who practices sorcery and magic or goes to have it done for him; and whoever goes to a Kahin (fortuneteller) and believes in what he says

has disbelieved in what was revealed to Muhammad (May the peace and blessing of Allah be upon him)." [Reported by Al-Bazzar with good chain of narrators]. The same Hadith was reported by At-Tabarani in Al-Awsat with a fair chain of narrators from Ibn Abbas without the words "Whoever goes to..." at the end. Imam Al-Baghawi said, "Al-'Arrafis a person who claims to know the matters with fore signs by which he can point to stolen items, the place of lost things and the like." Some said, it is the Kahin; and Kahin is the one who foretells of unseen matters in the future. It is also said that it is the one who informs of the inner secrets. Abul-Abbas bin Taimiyah (May Allah be pleased with him) said, "Al-'Arraf is a name for the Fortuneteller and the astrologer (Al-Munajjim), and the diviner (Ar-Rammal), and the like of them who speak of having knowledge of matters in similar ways." Ibn Abbas (May Allah be pleased with him) said about those people who write Abjad (alphabet -to use in soothsaying, fortunetelling etc.) and gaze at the stars i.e., believe in their influences on the earth -"I do not see that whoever does such has any share with Allah." Important issues of the Chapter 1) Belief in a Kahin and faith in the Qur'an cannot coexist. 2) Declaration that to do so (i.e. believe in a Kahin) is disbelief. 3) Mention of the one whose fortune is told. 4) Mention of the one for whom an omen is sought. 5) Mention of the one for whom sorcery is done. 6) Mention of the one who learns Abjad (use of alphabet in soothsaying or astrology). 7) The difference between the Kahin and the 'Arraf

CHAPTER No: 27 Curing through Magical Spells (An-Nushrah)

Allah's Messenger (May the peace and blessing of Allah be upon him) was asked about AnNushrah (the act of seeking cure from magical spells/incantation), he (May the peace and blessing of Allah be upon him) said, "It is one of the deeds of Satan." [Ahmad and Abu Dawud have reported it with good chain of narrators (Isnad)]. Imam Abu Dawud reported that when asked by Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal (May Allah be pleased with him) about this, he said: "Ibn Mas'ud disliked all this." Al-Bukhari reports from Qatadah (May Allah be pleased with him) : I said to Ibn Al-Musaiyab, "A man is under a magical spell or is unable to cohabitate with his wife, should we treat him by An-Nushrah or apply some other means to cure the spell/sorcery?" Ibn Al-Musaiyab (May Allah be pleased with him) replied, "It is alright because they intend restoration or mending. That which benefits is not forbidden."1 Imam Al-Hasan (Al-Basri (May Allah be pleased with him)) is of the view that only a sorcerer (magician) can break the spell of another sorcerer. Ibn Al-Qaiyim (May Allah be pleased with him) wrote that An-Nushrah is removing the effects of sorcery/spell from the affected one, and it is of two types: 1) The use of magic (sorcery) to remove the effects of another magic and it is an act of Satan to which the comment of Imam Al-Hasan (Al-Basri (May Allah be pleased with him) ) applies i.e., that the one who performs sorcery and the patient, both get closer to Satan by that which he loves. Satan then removes the effects of magic from the afflicted. 2) The effects of magic can be removed by making recitation of Qur'anic verses; by offering legitimate prayers (Ruqyah) as well as by using pharmaceutical preparations. This type of Nushrah is permissible. Important issues of the Chapter 1) Prohibition of An-Nushrah. 2) The difference between the prohibited and what is permitted for the removal of such problems. 1 Ibn Al-Musaiyab predicated it on a kind of An-Nushrah which has no sorcery.

CHAPTER No: 28
What is said regarding Belief in Omens (At- Tataiyur)
Allah the Most Exalted said: "Verily, their evil omens are with Allah but most of them know not." (7:131) Allah the Most Exalted said: "They (Messengers) said: Your evil omens be with you! (Do you call it "evil omen") because you are admonished? Nay, but you are a people Musrifun (transgressing all bounds by committing all kinds of great sins, and by disobeying Allah)." (36:19) Narrated Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) that Allah's Messenger (May the peace and blessing of Allah be upon him) said: "(There is) no 'Adwa (contagion of disease without Allah's Permission), nor is At-Tiyarah (any bad omen from birds), nor is there any Hamah (the omen of the night bird i.e., owl), nor is there (any bad omen in the month of) Safar." In Muslim's Sahih the following words are added: "... and no Naw' (constellation) and no Ghul (ghost etc.)1 " Anas (May Allah be pleased with him) is reported to have heard the Prophet (May the peace and blessing of Allah be upon him) saying: "No Adwa (contagion) and no Tiyarah (bad omen) but Al-Fa'l pleases me." So they asked, "What is Al-Fa'l?" He (May the peace and blessing of Allah be upon him) answered, "It is the good word." (Bukhari and Muslim) With valid Isnad, Abu Dawud reported that Uqbah bin Aamir (May Allah be pleased with him) said: At-Tiyarah (taking bad omens) was once mentioned before Allah's Messenger (May the peace 1 Naw': Constellation in the path of moon or a division of time connected with the phases of the moon. Ghul: Fictitious monster often invoked to scare children like ghost etc. and blessing of Allah be upon him) and he (May the peace and blessing of Allah be upon him) said, "The best form of it is Al-Fa'l (optimism or the expectation that a event will occur by Allah's

Permission). It does not prevent a Muslim from his object. Whenever any of you sees something he dislikes he should pray: 'O Lord, none but You bring good things! None but you prevent evil things! There is no power and no strength except in You.' " It is narrated from Ibn Mas'ud (May Allah be pleased with him) in a Marfu` Hadith: "At-Tiyarah is Shirk, At-Tiyarah is Shirk. There is none among us who does not feel something in his heart about At-Tiyarah. But Allah, due to deep trust in Him, removes it." [This Hadith was reported by At-Tirmidhi and Abu Dawud.] and it is stated that its last part is the statement of Ibn Mas'ud. Ahmad reported from Ibn 'Amr the following Hadith: "Whoever is turned back by At-Tiyarah (bad omens) has committed Shirk" They asked, "What makes the atonement for such a sin?" The Prophet (May the peace and blessing of Allah be upon him) answered, "To say: 'O Lord, there is no good except the good which You bestow. There is no evil except the evil which You decree. And there is no true God except You.' " Fadl bin Abbas (May Allah be pleased with him) is reported to have said: "At-Tiyarah is that which causes you to carry something out or that turns you back (from your mission)." (Musnad Ahmad) Important issues of the Chapter 1) Reminding the meanings of the verses: "Verily, these evil omens are with Allah but most of them know not" (7:31) And "Your evil omens be with you" (36: 19). 2) Repudiation of contagion of disease. 3) Negation of any bad omen (no At-Tiyarah) 4) Repudiation of Hamah (Omen in the night-bird i.e. owl). 5) Negation of any bad omen in the month of Safar. 6) A/-Fa'/ is not prohibited but in fact it is desirable. 7) Explanation of A/-Fa'/ in detail. 8) There is no harm if such suspicion falls on the hearts while disliking it. Indeed, Allah will

provide safety, due to deep trust in Him. 9) What should be said if such feelings occur. 10) Declaration that At-Tiyarah is Shirk. 11) Explanation of blameworthy and condemned At-Tiyarah.