It is not permissible to treat witchcraft with witchcraft

 

It is permissible to go to a practitioner of witchcraft in order to treat witchcraft (undo a spell)?.

Praise be to Allaah.

It is not permissible to treat witchcraft with witchcraft,
rather witchcraft is to be treated by means of the Holy Qur’aan and du’aa’s
that have been narrated from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him) and permissible remedies. As for witchcraft, it is kufr and
apostasy, and puts one beyond the pale of Islam. It is not permissible to
engage in it or to go to a practitioner of witchcraft seeking a cure.  The
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) was asked about
al-nashrah, which is undoing a spell or treating witchcraft. He said: “That
is the work of the shaytaan.” Narrated by Abu Dawood (3868) and classed as
saheeh by al-Albaani.  

Ibn al-Qayyim said in Fataawa Imam al-Mufteen (p. 207,
208): 

Al-Nashrah means undoing a spell that has been cast, and is
of two types: one of which is undoing the spell by means of another spell.
This is the one that is the work of the shaytaan, because witchcraft is his
work, so the one who does the nashrah and the one for whom it is done draw
near to him by means of things that he likes, and so he cancels out what he
did to the one on whom the spell was cast. The second type is nashrah by
means of ruqyah, ta’awwudhaat (prayers seeking refuge with Allaah) and
permissible du’aa’s and remedies. This is permissible and is in fact
mustahabb. End quote. 

Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him) said in
al-Qawl al-Mufeed (2/70): 

In this hadeeth the Messenger (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) stated the ruling on nashrah (undoing spells) and stated
that it is the work of the shaytaan, so it goes without saying that it is
haraam. Rather this is more emphatic than saying that it is haraam, because
connecting it to the work of the devils implies that it is abhorrent and
repulsive, so it is haraam. End quote.  

After reading this clear statement from the Messenger of
Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), there is no room
for the opinion of anyone else, no matter who he is. It is not permissible
to suggest that there is a dispute on an issue between the Messenger
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and any scholar or faqeeh.  

One of the scholars narrated from Sa’eed ibn al-Musayyab that
he thought it was permissible to undo a spell by means of another spell as a
case of necessity. But the words of Ibn al-Musayyab (may Allaah have mercy
on him) do not clearly indicate that it is permissible to undo a spell by
means of another spell, rather it may be understood that he meant undoing it
by permissible means. Nevertheless, Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allaah have
mercy on him) responded to this by saying in al-Qawl al-Mufeed
(2/73): But whatever the case, even if Ibn al-Musayyab thought that it was
permissible – and even if there were someone greater than Ibn al-Musayyab
whose view is not evidence in and of itself says that it is permissible –
that does not mean that it is permissible according to the ruling of Allaah
until it is checked against the Qur’aan and Sunnah. The Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) was asked about nashrah
(undoing spells) and he said: “It is the work of the shaytaan.” End quote. 

Some of them understood Imam Ahmad’s saying that nashrah was
permissible as meaning that he allowed undoing a spell by means of another
spell. But in fact he was speaking about the ruqyah that is prescribed in
Islam and is permissible. 

Shaykh Sulaymaan ibn ‘Abd-Allaah said in Tafseer al-‘Azeez
al-Hameed (419): Similarly, that which is narrated from Imam Ahmad about
nashrah being permissible is to be understood as referring to undoing spells
by means of ruqyahs that are prescribed in Islam. Those who think that he
regarded undoing spells by means of witchcraft as permissible are mistaken,
because there is nothing in his words to indicate that, rather when he was
asked about a man who undid spells he said: Some people allow a concession
with regard to that. Then they told him that he puts water in the pan and
disappears into it.  He waved his hand and said: I do not know what that is.
It was said to him: Do you think that such a person’s help may be sought? He
said: I do not know what that is. This clearly shows that nashrah is
forbidden when it is done in a bad way, so how about the fact that he is the
one who narrated the hadeeth, “It is the work of the shaytaan”? But because
the word nashrah (undoing spells) may refer to both that which is
permissible and that which is the work of the shaytaan, and they saw that he
regarded nashrah as permissible, they thought that he regarded as
permissible that which is the work of the shaytaan, but he is far above
doing such a thing. End quote. 

Many of the scholars clearly stated that it is haraam to undo
a spell by means of witchcraft, and that necessity does not make that
permissible. 

Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allaah have mercy on him)
said: Even though the Muslims disputed about the permissibility of using as
remedies haraam things such as dead meat and pork, they did not dispute
about the fact that it is not permissible to treat sickness by means of kufr
and shirk under any circumstances, because that is haraam in all cases. This
is not like uttering words of kufr and shirk under compulsion, which is only
permitted if he has strong faith in his heart. Speaking such words only has
an effect when he also believes that in his heart, but if he says them when
he still believes in his heart, it does not have any effect. If the shaytaan
knows that the one who is speaking to him does not mean what he is saying
then he will not help him. Moreover one may have no choice but to speak to
him, but there is no need to go through this route to help the one who is
afflicted for two reasons : 

1 – This way may have no effect at all, and may make it even
worse. 

2 – In what is true (and permissible) there is enough so that
we have no need of that which is false. 

End quote from Majmoo’ al-Fataawa (19/61). 

Shaykh Muhammad ibn Ibraaheem (may Allaah have mercy on him)
said:

Some of the Hanbalis said that it is permissible to treat
witchcraft with witchcraft in cases of necessity, but the other view is that
it is not permissible, and this second view is the one that is correct. …
Witchcraft is haraam and constitutes kufr. Would anyone do an act of kufr in
order to help  people who are sick or bewitched?  

End quote from Fataawa wa Rasaa’il al-Shaykh Muahmmad ibn
Ibraaheem (1/165). 

Shaykh Muhammad al-Ameen al-Mukhtaar al-Shanqeeti said: The
correct view that should not be ignored with regard to this matter is that
there is nothing wrong with undoing witchcraft if that is done by means of
the Qur’aan, such as al-Mi’wadhatayn, Aayat al-Kursiy and other verses which
it is permissible to use as ruqyahs. But if it is done by means of
witchcraft or foreign phrases or things that cannot be understood, or by
some other thing that is not permissible, then this is not allowed. This is
clear and is the correct view, in sha Allaah. End quote from Adwa’
al-Bayaan (4/465). 

Shaykh ‘Abd al-‘Azeez ibn ‘Abd-Allaah ibn Baaz (may Allaah
have mercy on him) was asked about the ruling on treating witchcraft with
witchcraft in cases of necessity. He replied: It is not permissible to treat
witchcraft with witchcraft, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) was asked about nashrah (undoing spells) and he said:
“It is the work of the shaytaan.” Nashrah (undoing spells) means treating
witchcraft with witchcraft. And because undoing spells by means of
witchcraft involves calling upon the jinn and seeking their help, and this
is major shirk. Hence Allaah tells us that the two angels said to those who
wanted to learn from them (interpretation of the meaning): 

“but neither of these two (angels) taught anyone (such
things) till they had said, ‘We are for trial, so disbelieve not (by
learning this magic from us)’”

[al-Baqarah 2:102]. 

Before this, Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): 

“They followed what the Shayaateen (devils) gave out
(falsely of the magic) in the lifetime of Sulaymaan (Solomon). Sulaymaan did
not disbelieve, but the Shayaateen (devils) disbelieved, teaching men magic
and such things that came down at Babylon to the two angels, Haaroot and
Maaroot”

[al-Baqarah 2:102] 

Then Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): 

“but neither of these two (angels) taught anyone (such
things) till they had said, ‘We are for trial, so disbelieve not (by
learning this magic from us).’ And from these (angels) people learn that by
which they cause separation between man and his wife, but they could not
thus harm anyone except by Allaah’s Leave. And they learn that which harms
them and profits them not. And indeed they knew that the buyers of it
(magic) would have no share in the Hereafter. And how bad indeed was that
for which they sold their ownselves, if they but knew.

103. And if they had believed and guarded themselves from
evil and kept their duty to Allaah, far better would have been the reward
from their Lord, if they but knew!”

[al-Baqarah 2:102, 103] 

In these two verses there is a warning against learning
witchcraft or teaching it, expressed in several ways such as: stating that
it is the work of the shaytaan; learning it is kufr that annuls faith; it
may result in separation between a man and his wife, which is one of the
worst kinds of wrongdoing and corruption on earth; no harm or anything else
happens except by the will of Allaah, i.e., His universal will; this
learning will harm them and not benefit them; and the one who does that has
no share of goodness with Allaah, and this is a very stern warning which
should deter anyone from learning or teaching witchcraft; Allaah condemns
them for learning this witchcraft as He says “And how bad indeed was that
for which they sold their ownselves”; and Allaah tells them that this
deed annuls faith and piety. From all of the above it is clear to every
Muslim how strictly forbidden it is to learn or teach witchcraft, and how
much evil and harm there is in it, and in addition to that it is kufr after
having believed, and apostasy from Islam. We seek refuge with Allaah from
that. So we must beware of it. It is sufficient for the Muslim to treat
problems in the manner prescribed in sharee’ah and with permissible
remedies, instead of treating it with that which Allaah has forbidden in
sharee’ah. And Allaah is the Source of strength. End quote. Majallat
al-Da’wah, dated 10/11/1414 AH. 

Shaykh Muhammad ibn Saalih al-‘Uthaymeen (may Allaah have
mercy on him) was asked about the ruling on undoing spells.  

He replied: The correct view on undoing spells for one who
has been bewitched is that the issue falls into two categories: 

1 – When it is done by means of the Holy Qur’aan, du’aa’s
that are prescribed in sharee’ah and permissible remedies. There is nothing
wrong with this because they serve an interest and do not have any negative
consequences, and they may in fact be required because they are beneficial
and not harmful. 

2 – When the spell is undone by means of something haraam
such as undoing the spell by means of another spell. This is a subject
concerning which there was a difference of scholarly opinion, and some
scholars allowed it in the case of necessity. 

And some scholars forbade it because the Prophet (peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him) was asked about nashrah (undoing
spells) and he said: “It is the work of the shaytaan.” Narrated by Abu
Dawood and its isnaad is jayyid. Based on that, undoing spells with spells
is haraam, and the person must turn to Allaah by making du’aa’ and humbly
beseeching Him to remove the harm. Allaah says (interpretation of the
meaning): 

“And when My slaves ask you (O Muhammad
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
concerning Me, then (answer them), I am indeed near (to them by My
Knowledge). I respond to the invocations of the supplicant when he calls on
Me (without any mediator or intercessor)”

[al-Baqarah 2:186] 

“Is not He (better than your gods) Who responds to the
distressed one, when he calls on Him, and Who removes the evil, and makes
you inheritors of the earth, generations after generations? Is there any
ilaah (god) with Allaah? Little is that you remember!”

[al-Naml 27:62] 

And Allaah is the Source of strength. End quote from
Fataawa al-Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (1/238, 239). 

The  Standing Committee was asked about the ruling on undoing
a spell with another spell and they replied: 

That is not permissible, and the basic principle concerning
that is that which was narrated by Imam Ahmad and Abu Dawood from Jaabir
(may Allaah be pleased with him) who said: The Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) was asked about nashrah (undoing
spells) and he said: “That is the work of the Shaytaan.” 

Natural remedies and remedies prescribed in sharee’ah are
sufficient: “Allaah has not sent down any disease but He has also sent down
a cure; those who know it know it, and those who do not know it do not know
it.” The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) enjoined treating disease, but he forbade treating disease with haraam
things. He (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Treat
disease, but do not treat disease with haraam things.” And it was narrated
that he (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Allaah does
not put your healing in something haraam.” End quote. 

Fataawa Muhimmah li ‘Umoom al-Ummah
(107, 106). 

Shaykh ‘Abd-Allaah ibn ‘Abd al-Rahmaan al-Jibreen (may Allaah
preserve him) said:  

It is not permissible to undo a spell with another spell, by
asking the practitioner of witchcraft to undo his work which is witchcraft,
because that implies approval of him and his work, when in fact he is to be
executed once it is known and proven that he is a practitioner of
witchcraft. The hadd punishment is striking with the sword. Similarly, it is
not permissible to go to another practitioner of witchcraft to ask him to
undo that spell, because that also implies approval of him, which is like
approving of his actions. End quote. 

Shaykh Saalih al-Faqzaan (may Allaah preserve him) was asked
about the ruling on undoing a spell with another spell. He replied: 

As for undoing a spell with another spell, many scholars have
stated that this is not permissible, because treatment should only be with
that which is halaal and permissible. Allaah does not put the healing of the
Muslims in that which He has forbidden to them. The Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Treat sickness but do not treat it
with anything that is haraam.” 

And it was narrated that Ibn Mas’ood (may Allaah be pleased
with him) said: Allaah has not put your cure in something that He has
forbidden to you. Among the most forbidden things is witchcraft, so it is
not permissible to treat sickness with it or to undo spells with it. Rather
spells are to be undone by means of permissible remedies, Qur’aanic verses
and du’aa’s narrated in the Sunnah. This is how spells may be undone. End
quote from al-Muntaqa min Fataawa Fadeelat al-Shaykh Saalih al-Fawzaan
(2/132, 133).

Reciting Qur’aan over water for ruqyah and heating it because the weather is cold

 

I am a young Muslim man who has been affected by some kind of sihr (witchcraft). With regard to ruqyah by reciting Qur’aan, can I recite the Qur’aanic verses myself over the water? Do I have to remove all my clothes when doing ghusl? And finally, is it permissible to heat the water because the weather is cold?.

Praise be to Allaah.

Firstly: 

We ask Allaah
to heal you, make you well and divert away from you that which you are
experiencing. 

Secondly: 

It is
permissible for you to recite Qur’aan over water and to drink some of it and
wash yourself with it. This has been discussed and what should be recited to
cure spells has been mentioned in the answer to question no.
12918. 

With regard to
what you mention about reading for yourself over water; in Saheeh
al-Bukhaari (5735) and Saheeh Muslim (2192) it is narrated from
‘Aa’ishah (may Allaah be pleased with her) that the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) blew over himself and recited
al-Mi’wadhatayn during his final sickness. When his pain got worse, I would
recite over him and wipe his hand over him, seeking its blessing. 

Mu’ammar said:
I asked al-Zuhri how he used to blow over himself. He said: He used to blow
into his hands then wipe them over his face.  

Al-Haafiz Ibn
Hajar (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: The words “in his final sickness”
do not mean it is limited to that, rather ‘Aa’ishah indicated that this
happened at the end of his life and that it was not abrogated. End quote. 

Thirdly: 

It is not
essential to remove all one’s clothes when doing ghusl, whether it is ghusl
for ruqyah or to cleanse oneself from janaabah and so on. What matters is
that the water should reach the skin. 

‘Uthmaan (may
Allaah be pleased with him) would do ghusl without taking off his clothes,
because of his deep modesty (may Allaah be pleased with him). Narrated by
Ahmad (543) with a hasan isnaad. 

In Kitaab
al-Ghusl of his Saheeh, Imam al-Bukhaari included a chapter
entitled: One who does ghusl naked when he is alone and in seclusion, but
whoever can cover himself, covering is better. Bahz ibn Hakeem narrated from
his father, from his grandfather, from the Prophet (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) that Allaah is more deserving that we be modest
before Him than other people. 

Al-Haafiz Ibn
Hajar (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: When he said it is better, this
means that it is permissible to wash oneself when naked, and this is the
view of the majority of scholars. End quote. 

There is
nothing wrong with heating the water and reciting over it. 

And Allaah
knows best.

Iblees was not one of the angels

 

My friend told me that iblis (shaitan) used to be an angel. My wife says that this is not true. Could you please give me some information.

Praise be to Allaah.
 

 

Iblees was definitely not one of the angels. This is
indicated by three things: the clear texts of the Qur’aan, the physical
attributes of Iblees and the attitude of Iblees.  

1 – With regard to the clear statements of the Qur’aan,
Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): 

“And (remember) when We said to the angels: ‘Prostrate
yourselves unto Adam.’ So they prostrated themselves except Iblees (Satan).
He was one of the jinn”

[al-Kahf 18:50] 

Al-Hasan al-Basri said: Iblees was never one of the angels,
not even for an instant. He is the father of the jinn, just as Adam (peace
be upon him) is the father of mankind. 

This was narrated by al-Tabari with a saheeh isnaad as stated
by Ibn Katheer in his Tafseer, 3/89. 

2 – With regard to his physical attributes, Allaah stated
that He created him from fire. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): 

“He created man (Adam) from sounding clay like the clay of
pottery.

And the jinn He created from a smokeless flame of fire”

[al-Rahmaan 55:14, 15] 

and it was narrated in Saheeh Muslim (2996) from the
hadeeth of ‘Aa’ishah (may Allaah be pleased with her) that the Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “The angels were created
from light, the jinn were created from smokeless fire, and Adam was created
from that which has been described to you.” 

So it is clear that there is a difference between the
physical nature of the angels and that of Iblees, and he is definitely not
one of them. 

3 – With regard to his attitude, Iblees disobeyed Allaah by
not prostrating to Adam, but we know from the Qur’aan that it is impossible
for the angels to disobey Allaah. Allaah says (interpretation of the
meaning): 

“…angels stern (and) severe, who disobey not, (from
executing) the Commands they receive from Allaah, but do that which they are
commanded”

[al-Tahreem 66:6] 

Some reports which are not saheeh have been narrated from
some of the salaf, suggesting that Iblees was the best of the angels, that
he was one of the keepers of Paradise, etc. Imaam Ibn Katheer commented on
that by saying: 

Many reports to that effect have been narrated from the
salaf, but most of them come from the Isra’eeliyyaat (reports narrated from
Jewish sources) which were narrated to be examined. Allaah knows best about
the true status of many of them. There are some which can be rejected out of
hand because they go against the truth that we have before us. In the
Qur’aan there is sufficient information that we have no need of earlier
reports, because hardly any of them are free from alterations, additions and
subtractions, and many things have been fabricated in them. The earlier
nations did not have scholars to examine these reports and eliminate those
which are not sound, as  this ummah has its imams and scholars who have
great knowledge and are pious and righteous, who wrote down the hadeeth and
examined it and showed what is sound and what is not, and what is
fabricated, identifying the fabricators, liars and those narrators who were
unknown, and other categories of narrators. All of that was to protect the
status of the Prophet, the Seal of the Prophets and the leader of mankind
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), lest any lie be attributed
to him and lest anything be attributed to him that he did not say or do. May
Allaah be pleased with them and make them please and make the Paradise of
al-Firdaws their abode. 

Tafseer al-Qur’aan il-‘Azeem,
3/90.

He went to a practitioner of witchcraft to undo a spell – can he repent?

 

Pain squeezes my heart and I am becoming insane. I do not know what is right and what is wrong anymore. I have done things I always avoided doing. I moreover did things which I fear are shirk. I fear that all my deeds are in vain. I feel that my salaah, fasting, hajj and every deed that might be good is fruitless. Whenever I read this ayah “If you join others in worship with Allah, (then) surely, (all) your deeds will be in vain” it breaks my heart by Allah. What I am saying now is not of riyaa’, it is really what I feel.

 
Going to pray has become heavy on me. I cannot open the Quran; I feel that the Quran is cursing me because I did not implement what I have memorized. Even when I start reading I feel unable to continue, so I just close it. I ask myself how I will be able to stand in front of Allah and say (Wa Eyyaka nasta’een) “You (Alone) we ask for help (for each and everything).” Where has this “seeking help” gone? I used before to depend only on Allah and ask His help. I used to make du’a and persist in it; I always felt I am close to Allah, even after this spell matter I used to make much du’a but I did not have patience. I feel that Allah has tested me and I failed this test due to lack of patience.

 
I feel that all my deeds are not accepted. I almost hear a sound saying to me: “why do anything when it will not be accepted? After what you have done all your deeds are not, nor will be accepted, all your deeds are in vain”.


What I have done in brief is that I went to a magician to counteract a spell that was put on me after marriage. For more than one month he has been giving me things that are not understandable while I feel hatred to be with him. I hatefully took them while I was like heedless. Is not this a type of shirk that makes all deeds in vain and nullifies his Islam? Did not the prophet (PBUH) say: “Incantations, amulets and being attached to tangible things are shirk.”? And said also: “Whoever goes to a fortune-teller and believes what he says, is kaafir of what has been revealed on Muhammad”?

 
Please help me; I am in pain by Allah. I have no luck in this life, nothing of my wishes has become true, and I fear I have a bad end so I lose everything in life and hereafter.

Praise be to Allaah.

Firstly: 

Your feeling that you have sinned, and the pain that you feel
in your heart because of that, indicate that your faith is sound and that
your heart is pure. This is a blessing that Allaah has bestowed upon you,
for those whose hearts are truly alive are those who are affected by sin and
who flee to Allaah in repentance and seeking forgiveness. As for those whose
hearts are deadened, they are not affected by commission of sins, as it is
said: The dead feel no pain.  

Allaah says concerning the people of faith (interpretation of
the meaning): 

“Verily, those who are Al-Muttaqoon (the pious), when an
evil thought comes to them from Shaytaan (Satan), they remember (Allaah),
and (indeed) they then see (aright)”

[al-A’raaf 7:201] 

What is meant is that they commit sins, then they remember
the punishment of Allaah and His great reward, and His promises and
warnings, so they repent and turn to Him, and they seek refuge with Allaah,
and come straight back to Him. “and (indeed) they then see (aright)”
i.e., they realize the error of their ways and set themselves straight. End
quote from Tafseer Ibn Katheer. 

All you have to do is repent and seek forgiveness, and
remember that you are turning to a Lord Who is Most Merciful, Who rejoices
over the repentance of His slave and accepts it from him, and turns his bad
deeds into good deeds, no matter what these bad deeds were. 

It is as if you do not realize that Allaah accept the
repentance of kaafirs, atheists, evildoers and sinners if they repent and
turn back to Him, so how can He not accept the repentance of believers if
they fall into sin, when they are the ones who love Him and turn to Him, who
bow and prostrate, who do wudoo’ and purify themselves, and know that no one
can forgive their sins except Him, and no one can help them to mend their
ways except Him; so they hasten to regret (their sin) and seek His
forgiveness, and say: Our Lord, we have wronged ourselves, and if You do not
forgive us and have mercy on us, we will be among the losers. The Most
Merciful says to His angels: My slave knew that no one forgives sins except
Me. I bear witness to you that I have forgiven him. Then his sorrow and
worry disperse, and contact with Allaah is re-established and he feels
comforted. By Allaah, how sweet is the joy of the penitents and how
beautiful is the return of the sinners. 

The Most Merciful Lord says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Know they not that
Allaah accepts repentance from His slaves and takes the Sadaqaat (alms,
charity), and that Allaah Alone is the One Who forgives and accepts
repentance, Most Merciful?”

[al-Tawbah 9:104] 

“And those who invoke
not any other ilaah (god) along with Allaah, nor kill such person as Allaah
has forbidden, except for just cause, nor commit illegal sexual intercourse
__ and whoever does this shall receive the punishment.

69. The torment will be
doubled to him on the Day of Resurrection, and he will abide therein in
disgrace;

70. Except those who
repent and believe (in Islamic Monotheism), and do righteous deeds; for
those, Allaah will change their sins into good deeds, and Allaah is
Oft‑Forgiving, Most Merciful”

[al-Furqaan 25:68-70] 

al-Bukhaari (7507) and Muslim (2758) narrated that Abu
Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: I heard the Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) say: “A man committed a sin and
said: ‘O Lord, forgive me.’ His Lord said: ‘Does My slave realize that he
has a Lord Who forgives sin, and calls people to account for sin? I have
forgiven My slave.’ Then as much time passed as Allaah willed, then he
sinned again and said: ‘My Lord, I have sinned again, please forgive it.’
[Allaah] said: ‘Does My slave realize that he has a Lord Who forgives sin,
and calls people to account for sin? I have forgiven My slave.’ Then as much
time passed as Allaah willed, then he sinned again and said: ‘My Lord, I
have sinned again, please forgive it.’ [Allaah] said: ‘Does My slave realize
that he has a Lord Who forgives sin, and calls people to account for sin? I
have forgiven My slave.’” 

And Muslim (2749) narrated that Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be
pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) said: “By the One in Whose hand is my soul, if you did
not commit sin, Allaah would dispense with you and create people who would
commit sins then ask Allaah for forgiveness, then he would forgive them.” 

So hasten to repent, regret your sin and seek forgiveness,
and do a lot of righteous deeds, and receive glad tidings of goodness and
success. 

Secondly: 

One of the tricks of the shaytaan is to make sin appear
attractive to a person, so as to make him fall into it, then make him
despair of repenting; he gives him false advice: How can you return to
Allaah when you have done what you did? Do you not feel ashamed before Him?
Do you think He will accept it from you? A person’s sin may be major, such
as zina, then he leads him through that into something that constitutes
kufr, such as not praying. So think about how the shaytaan toys with this
man. 

As for the believer, the shaytaan has no way to reach him in
this manner, because he knows what we have stated above, about repentance
being essential and about his Lord rejoicing over it, and how He honours
those who repent and turns their bad deeds into good deeds. 

Thirdly: 

It is not permissible to go to practitioners of witchcraft,
soothsayers or fortune-tellers, even if that is in order to undo a spell,
which is called nushrah. Rather spells are to be treated with Qur’aanic
verses and Prophetic du’aa’s, and by turning to the Creator of mankind, may
He be glorified and exalted. See the answer to question no.
11290 and
48967. 

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
said: “Whoever goes to a fortune-teller and asks him about something, his
prayer will not be accepted for forty days.” Narrated by Muslim (2230). 

And he said: “Whoever has intercourse with a menstruating
woman or with a woman in her back passage, or goes to a fortune-teller and
believes what he says, has disbelieved in that which Allaah revealed to
Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him).”

Narrated by Ahmad (9779), Abu Dawood (3904), al-Tirmidhi
(135) and Ibn Majaah (936); classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh Ibn
Majaah. 

This is to be understood as referring to minor kufr,
according to many scholars, unless he believes that the practitioner of
witchcraft or fortune-teller has knowledge of the unseen. 

Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:
“…and asks him about something, his prayer will not be accepted for forty
days” – the apparent meaning of the hadeeth is that just asking him
something means that his prayer will not be accepted for forty days, but
this is not absolute. Asking a fortune-teller and the like falls into
several categories: 

1 – Asking him a question. This is haraam because the Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Whoever goes to a
fortune-teller …” The fact that punishment is confirmed when asking him
indicates that it is haraam, because there is no punishment except for doing
a haraam action. 

2 – Asking him and believing him, and paying attention to
what he says. This is kufr because believing that he has knowledge of the
unseen is disbelieving the Qur'aan, as Allaah says (interpretation of the
meaning): 

“Say: None in the heavens and the earth knows the Ghayb
(Unseen) except Allaah”

[al-Naml 27:65].  

3 – Asking him in order to test him and find out whether he
is telling the truth or lying, not in order to follow what he says. There is
nothing wrong with this and it is not included in the hadeeth. The Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) asked Ibn Sayyaad: “What am
I hiding from you?” He said: Al-dukh (referring to Soorat al-Dukhaan).  

He said: “Be off with you! You
will never go beyond your rank.” The Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) was asking about something that he was
concealing from him in order to test him, and he told him of it. 

4 – Asking him in order to show up his inability and lies, so
he tests him with things. This may be obligatory or essential.  

Undoubtedly, disproving the sorcerer’s statements is
something essential, and it may be obligatory. So asking questions of the
fortune-teller is not haraam in all cases, rather it depends on what is
indicated by the shar’i evidence.  End quote from al-Qawl al-Mufeed
(2/49). 

Based on this, if you did not believe that this practitioner
of witchcraft had knowledge of the unseen, then you are safe from major
kufr, praise be to Allaah. 

Some scholars are of the view that it is permissible to undo
witchcraft with witchcraft, but this is a weak view, that opens the door to
evil and encourages practitioners of witchcraft to carry on with their
falsehood and encourages others to learn witchcraft on the grounds that they
will benefit people. 

Wearing an amulet in the belief that it can bring benefit or
cause harm is major shirk. Believing that it has some effect is minor shirk.
See question no. 34817. 

We ask Allaah to accept your repentance and to erase your
sins, and to give you well being in your religious and worldly affairs. 

And Allaah knows best.

She thinks that the jinn are stealing from her house

 

I am a Muslim woman living in Europe. I have been living in my home for a year. Few months ago I noticed that some things are disappearing from my home. Initially I did not care about it. But something returned after it disappeared, I have been looking for this thing for three months in the same place where I found it eventually. I became really frightened and started to remember all things that disappeared before. My heart is full of fear and doubt. Are there devils or something in this house? I pray regularly and read Quran daily, Alhamdulillah. I may neglect the daily adhkaar sometimes but now I am Alhamdulillah regular in saying them. I still fear for myself and family. Shall I leave this home or not? I cannot tolerate living here anymore, I am really tired, please help me.

Praise be to Allaah.

Firstly: 

You have done well to pray regularly and recite Qur’aan
daily, because these are among the best of deeds and means of protection
against destructive and harmful things. We ask Allaah to protect you and
give you well being in your religious and worldly affairs. 

Secondly: 

If you are certain that some things have disappeared from
your house, and that no one who lives with you has taken something for some
reason, and that has happened repeatedly, then it is not unlikely that that
was done by the jinn, because there are good and bad among them, and there
are some who steal for themselves or for others. But the remedy for that is
simple, praise be to Allaah. If you mention the name of Allaah when you put
something down, and you say the name of Allaah when you enter the house, and
when you shut the door, then the jinn will have no way of entering your
house or taking any of your things. 

Muslim (2018) narrated from Jaabir ibn ‘Abd-Allaah (may
Allaah be pleased with him) that he heard the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) say: “When a man enters his house, and
mentions Allaah, may He be glorified and exalted, when he enters and when he
eats, the shaytaan says: ‘You have no place to stay and no dinner.’ But if
he enters and does not mention Allaah when he enters, the shaytaan says,
‘You have found a place to stay.’ And if he does not mention Allaah when he
eats, he says: ‘You have found a place to stay and dinner.’” 

And Muslim (2012) narrated from Jaabir (may Allaah be pleased
with him that the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) said: “Cover vessels, tie up waterskins, close doors and
extinguish lamps, for the shaytaan does not undo waterskins or open doors or
uncover vessels. If one of you cannot find anything but a stick to place
over his vessels, or to mention the name of Allaah, let him do so…” 

Al-Bukhaari (3280) narrated it with the wording: “Shut your
door and mention the name of Allaah; extinguish your lamps and mention the
name of Allaah; tie up your waterskins and mention the name of Allaah; cover
your vessels and mention the name of Allaah, even if you just place
something on top of it.” 

Based on this, if you shut the door and mention the name of
Allaah, and you put your things in a box, for example, and say the name of
Allaah, then they will be protected, in sha Allaah, because the shaytaan
cannot upon a door or uncover a vessel. 

Al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allaah have mercy on him) said,
concerning the lessons learned from the hadeeth of Abu Hurayrah and his
conversation with the jinni who was stealing from the zakaah dates: The jinn
eat human food, and they speak human words, and they steal and cheat. It
also points to the virtue of Aayat al-Kursiy and the virtue of the last
verses of Soorat al-Baqarah, and tells us that the jinn can get food over
which the name of Allaah has not been mentioned. End quote. 

If you take these means, but you still do not feel
comfortable staying in the house, then it is better to look for another
house. Abu Dawood (3942) narrated that Anas ibn Maalik (may Allaah be
pleased with him) said: A man said: O Messenger of Allaah, we lived in a
house and we were great in number and wealthy, then we moved to another
house where our numbers and our wealth grew less. The Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Leave it for it is
bad.” Classed as hasan by al-Albaani in Saheeh Abi Dawood. 

See also question no.
27192. 

And Allaah knows best.

No one knows the unseen in the absolute sense except Allaah

 

I want to know that Quran says that only Allah knows the Unseen. But i found out in a hadith that Prophet PBUH told us that Jinn the fortuneteller a part of truth and then fortune teller mix it with a hundred lies and tells to us , In another hadiths Prophet PBUH tells us that Astrology is only based on lies " Sun and Moon are only Signs of Allah"


So How does Jinn tells the fortune while only Allah knows the Fortune?.

Praise be to Allaah.

Knowledge of the unseen is
something that Allaah has kept for Himself, as is indicated by the texts of
the Qur’aan and Sunnah. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): 

“Say: “None in the
heavens and the earth knows the Ghaib (Unseen) except Allaah, nor can they
perceive when they shall be resurrected”

[al-Naml 27:65] 

“And with Him are the
keys of the Ghayb (all that is hidden), none knows them but He. And He knows
whatever there is in the land and in the sea; not a leaf falls, but He knows
it. There is not a grain in the darkness of the earth nor anything fresh or
dry, but is written in a Clear Record”

[al-An’aam 6:59] 

The Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) explained these keys as referring to five
things which are mentioned in Soorat Luqmaan, where Allaah says
(interpretation of the meaning): 

“Verily, Allaah, with
Him (Alone) is the knowledge of the Hour, He sends down the rain, and knows
that which is in the wombs. No person knows what he will earn tomorrow, and
no person knows in what land he will die. Verily, Allaah is All‑Knower,
All‑Aware (of things)”

[Luqmaan 31:34]. 

Al-Bukhaari narrated in his
Saheeh (hadeeth no. 4477) that ‘Aa’ishah (may Allaah be pleased with
her) said: “Whoever tells you that he knows what will happen tomorrow is
lying.” Then she recited, “No person knows what he will earn tomorrow.”

But with regard to this
matter it is important to know what is the unseen the knowledge of which
Allaah has kept to Himself, because al-ghayb (the unseen) means that which
is not seen, and that which is not seen may be either that which is not seen
by all of creation – both those who are in the heavens and those who are on
earth – this kind of unseen is known to no one but Allaah, and this is that
which is called al-ghayb al-mutlaq (the unseen in the absolute sense); or
this unseen matter may be unseen for some people, and known to some others.
This is called unseen for the one who is ignorant of it, but it is not
unseen or unknown to all people, and knowledge of it is not unique to
Allaah. Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him) said in
Sharh al-‘Aqeedah al-Waasitiyyah (p. 158): What is meant by the unseen
is that which is not seen. The unseen is something relative. But that which
is unseen in the absolute sense (al-ghyab al-mutlaq) is known only to
Allaah. End quote. 

What fortune-tellers say of
things that will happen in the future has nothing to do with the unseen or
with knowledge of the unseen, and it is not knowledge of what will happen in
the future. Rather they are liars who make false claims. But the Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) has told us that they steal
knowledge of that which Allaah has revealed to His angels. It was narrated
that ‘Aa’ishah (may Allaah be pleased with her) said: Some people asked the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) about
fortune-tellers, and he said: “They are nothing.” They said: O Messenger of
Allaah, they say something and it comes true. The Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “That is a word of truth which the
jinni snatches and cackles into the ear of his familiar like the cackling of
a hen, and they mix more than one hundred lies with it.” Narrated by
al-Bukhaari (7561). 

The Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) explained how the jinn steal this word. He
said: “…when our Lord, may His name be blessed and exalted, decrees some
matter, the bearers of the Throne glorify Him, then the people of heaven who
are closest to them glorify Him, until the tasbeeh reaches the people of the
lowest heaven. Then those who are nearest to the bearers of the Throne say:
What did your Lord say? And they tell them what He said. And the people of
heaven ask one another for the news, until the news reaches the lowest
heaven. Then the eavesdropping jinn snatch what they can and convey it to
their familiars. What they narrated as they heard it is true, but they add
lies to it.” Narrated by Muslim (2229). 

From this it is clear that
the jinn do not have knowledge of the unseen, rather they steal words that
they hear from the angels, but the angels themselves do not have any
knowledge of that unless Allaah tells them of it. After they are told of it,
it is no longer regarded as unseen in the absolute sense, but before that
they are like anyone else in creation and do not know anything of the
unseen. This depends on Allaah’s telling them of it. Allaah says
(interpretation of the meaning): 

““(He Alone is) the
All‑Knower of the Ghayb (Unseen), and He reveals to none His Ghayb (Unseen)”

[al-Jinn 72:26]. 

Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may
Allaah have mercy on him) said: The noblest of the angelic Messengers,
Jibreel, asked the noblest of the human Messengers, Muhammad (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him), “Tell me about the Hour.” He said: “The
one who is asked about it is does not know any more about it than the one
who is asking” meaning, just as you have no knowledge of it, I have no
knowledge of it either. End quote. 

Sharh al-‘Aqeedah
al-Waasitiyyah, p. 158 

And Allaah knows best.

Is Iblees the father of all the jinn?

 

Is Iblees the father of all Jinn, evil and righteous ones, or a father for only the evil Jinn?.

Praise be to Allaah.

The devils (shayaateen) are the kuffaar of the jinn. Allaah,
may He be exalted, says of the accursed Iblees (interpretation of the
meaning): 

“except Iblees (Satan). He was one of the jinn; he
disobeyed the Command of his Lord”

[al-Kahf 18:50]. 

Many scholars are of the view that Iblees is the father of
all of the jinn, both the believing and disbelieving ones among them. He is
their origin and they are his offspring. This view was narrated from Ibn
‘Abbaas, Mujaahid, Qataadah, al-Hasan al-Basri and others.  

See: Tafseer al-Tabari (1/507) and al-Durr
al-Manthoor (5/402). 

There is a hadeeth concerning that which is attributed to the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). It was narrated by
al-Tabaraani in al-Mu’jam al-Awsat (6/197) from Mu’aawiyah ibn
al-Hakam al-Sulami. But it is very weak (da’eef jiddan), as it was narrated
only by Talhah ibn Zayd al-Qurashi of whom ‘Ali ibn al-Madeeni said: He used
to fabricate hadeeth. See: Tahdheeb al-Tahdheeb (5/16). 

Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah called Iblees the father of the
jinn in more than one place (see Majmoo’ al-Fataawa, 4/346, 235), as
did his student Ibn al-Qayyim, then al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar in Fath al-Baari
(6/369). 

Shaykh ‘Abd al-‘Azeez ibn Baaz (may Allaah have mercy on him)
said in Majmoo’ al-Fataawa (9/370-371): The shaytaan is the father of
the jinn according to a number of scholars. He is the one who disobeyed his
Lord and was too proud to prostrate to Adam, so Allaah expelled him and cast
him away. End quote. 

It says in Fataawa Noor ‘ala al-Darb by Shaykh Ibn
‘Uthaymeen (al-Jinn wa’l-Shayaateen, question no. 2) : 

Undoubtedly Iblees is the father of the jinn, because Allaah
says (interpretation of the meaning) : 

“And the jinn He created from a smokeless flame of fire”

[al-Rahmaan 55:15] 

And He describes Iblees when he addressed the Lord of Glory
(may He be glorified and exalted) (interpretation of the meaning) : 

“ ‘I am better than him (Adam), You created me from fire,
and him You created from clay’”

[al-A’raaf 7:12] 

And Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): 

“Will you then take him (Iblees) and his offspring as
protectors and helpers rather than Me while they are enemies to you?”

[al-Kahf 18:50] 

This evidence clearly indicates that Iblees has offspring and
that the jinn are his offspring, but how did that come about? This is
something of which we have no knowledge and it is something concerning which
it does not matter if we are ignorant, and knowing it does not bring any
benefit. And Allaah knows best. End quote. 

For more information please see the answer to question no.
13378. 

And Allaah knows best.