there was a lot of money. My sister's husband was broken-hearted and
the people told him about a Shaykh who was said to be able to relieve
distress and find lost items by Allaah'sLeave. He (that Shaykh) asked
about me, with a cigarette in his hand, and he said to me: I saw you
last night, your name is So and so, and you are the thief. This is my
work and my source of income, and I will get 25 percent of the stolen
goods. Tell me and admitthat you are the only thief that everyone is
looking for. There was a lengthy discussion between me and him, and I
swore by Allaah that I was innocent of what he said, and Allaah is
witness to what I said. Please advise me, may Allaah reward you,
please relieve me of the wrong and claims that are surrounding me. I
am afraid of turmoil among my relatives because injustice leads to a
lot of bas consequences.
Praise be to Allaah.
Firstly:
The one who claims to know where stolen things are and who the thieves
are by means of secret things that the people do not know is one of
two things: a fortune-teller to whom the devils come, or a liar who
makes the people think that he knows these things in order to consume
their wealth unlawfully.
Whatever the case, it is not permissible to go to these people and to
ask them or believe them, no matter how righteous they may appear to
be, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
said: "Whoever goes to a fortune-teller and asks him about something,
his prayers will not accepted for forty days." Narrated by Muslim
(2230).
And he (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) 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 toMuhammad (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him)." Narrated by Ahmad (9779), Abu
Dawood (3904), al-Tirmidhi (135) and IbnMaajah (936); classed as
saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh Ibn Maajah.
Al-Baghawi (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:The fortune-teller is
the one who claims to have knowledge of things by means of some
information from which he figures out where stolen things are or where
lost items are etc. Quoted in al-Zawaajir 'an Iqtiraaf al-Kabaa'ir
(2/178)
Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: The
fortune-teller: it was said that he is the soothsayer, who is the one
who foretells the future.
And it was said that it is a general term referring to soothsayers,
astrologers, geomancers and their ilk who claim to have knowledge of
the unseen by means of some knowledge and information that they use.
This is a more general meaning which is indicated by the derivation of
the word, as (the Arabic word) 'arraaf (meaning fortune-teller) is
derivedfrom the word ma'rifah (knowledge) so it applies to everyone
whodeals in these matters and claims to have knowledge of them. End
quote from al-Qawl al-Mufeed 'ala Kitaab al-Tawheed (2/48).
One of those who have repented from fortune-telling and soothsaying
said that he used to seekthe help of the jinn in order to find out
from them details of what was going on in the house of the one whose
property was stolen, andhis situation with his relatives and
neighbours, and his friends and enemies, and sometimes he wouldblame
someone who was under suspicion.
Even if we assume that the fortune-teller is able to point to the real
thief and bring the property back by means of his contact with the
jinn, it is not permissible to go to him and ask him anything, because
of theahaadeeth quoted above.
Secondly:
Some scholars are of the view that the one who claims to have
knowledge of stolen items or that the jinn tellhim about that is a
kaafir. Ibn Nujaym (may Allaah have mercy on him) said, discussing the
things that constitute kufr: Going to a soothsayer and believing him
when he says 'I know where stolen items are' or 'I speak on the basis
of what the jinn tell me'. End quote from al-Bahr al-Raa'iq (5/130).
As for his saying 'I speak on thebasis of what the jinn tell me' being
kufr, that is because the jinn, like humans, have no knowledge of the
unseen, as Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
"Then when We decreeddeath for him [Sulaymaan (Solomon)], nothing
informed them (jinn) of his death excepta little worm of the earth
which kept (slowly) gnawing away at his stick. So when he fell down,
the jinn saw clearly that if they had known the Unseen, they would not
have stayed in the humiliating torment"
[Saba' 34:14]
This was stated in the commentary on al-Bahr al-Raa'iq.
So asking a fortune-teller or soothsayer about anything is haraam, and
that includes asking him about lost or stolen items, or asking him
about a disease and the remedy for it.
The scholars of the Standing Committee for Issuing Fatwas were asked:
Sometimes we lose some money or goldin our house, and we believe that
it has been stolen, so we go to someone who is known as a mukhbir
('the one with the news'), and tell him about that, and he promises us
something good, and sometimes wefind the lost item, and sometimes we
don't. What is the ruling on ourgoing to these people?
They replied: It is not permissible for you to goto him because he is
a soothsayer, and it was narrated in a saheeh report that the Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) forbade going to
soothsayers and their ilk,and asking them and believing them. End
quote from Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa'imah (1/410).
Thirdly:
The one who has gone to this fortune-teller andasked him something has
to repent to Allaah, may He be exalted, by regretting what he has
done, resolving not to do it again, and not accusing anyone of
stealing on the basis words of the fortune-teller and his helpers
among the jinn, becausethe jinn tell lies, and they may accuse someone
who is innocent so as to cause trouble among the Muslims. Repentance
in this case is required from the one who went to the fortune-teller
and asked him, and of the one who told him to do that, because both
have fallen into sin. Please seequestion no. 32863 for information on
repenting from asking and believing fortune-tellers.
The Muslim should turn to Allaah and ask Him to solve problems and
difficulties, for all things are in His Hand, may He be glorified, as
He says (interpretation of the meaning):
"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
ilâh (god) withAllaah? Little is that you remember!"
[al-Naml 27:62]
And Allaah knows best.
This applies to your sister and her husband, and also applies to you.
You should turn to Allaahand ask Him to relieve you of this accusation
and wrong.
We advise your sister and her husband, and anyone who has anything to
do with this matter, not to accuse anyone on the basis of the words of
a charlatan or fortune-teller, because accusing someone who is
innocent is a serious matter. The basic principle is that he is
innocent and free of guilt. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him) said: "Whoever says of a believer something that is not
true, Allaah will cause him to dwell in themud of khabaal until he
stops saying that." Narrated by Abu Dawood 5129 from Ibn 'Umar (may
Allaah be pleased with him); classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh
Abi Dawood.
Mud of khabaal refers to mud and mire and what comes from the sweat
ofthe people of Hell.
May Allaah help us all to do that which He loves and which pleases Him.
And Allaah knows best.
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