The story of Haaroot and Maaroot– I

One of the stories in the Quran, is the story of Haaroot and Maaroot.
Allaah Says what means:"And they ]i.e., the Children of Israel[
followed ]instead[ what the devils had recited during the reign of
Sulaymaan )Solomon(. It was not Sulaymaan who disbelieved, but the
devils disbelieved, teaching people magic and that which was revealed
to the two angels at Babylon, Haaroot and Maaroot. But they ]i.e., the
two angels[ do not teach anyone unless they say: 'We are a trial, so
do not disbelieve ]by practicing magic[.' And ]yet[ they learn from
them that by which they cause separation between a man and his wife.
But they do not harm anyone through it except by permission of Allaah.
And they ]i.e., people[ learn what harms them and does not benefit
them. But they ]i.e., the Children of Israel[ certainly knew that
whoever purchased it ]i.e., magic[ would not have in the Hereafter any
share. And wretched is that for which they sold themselves, if they
only knew."]Quran 2: 102[
The Children of Israel received a Great Book from Allaah, namely the
Quran, which confirmed what they had been told in the Tawraah )i.e.
Torah(; they were claiming to adhere to their scripture, yet they
disbelieved in the Messenger )Muhammad(and a group of them also threw
the Scripture of Allaah )i.e., the Tawraah( behind their backs and
shunned it, despite them knowing that it was the truth, as Allaah
tells us, saying what means:"…A party of those who had been given the
Scripture threw the Scripture of Allaah ]i.e., the Tawraah[ behind
their backs as if they did not know ]what it contained[."]Quran 2:
101[
It is the way of Allaah that He punishes those who shun that which
benefits them; He therefore busies them with things that are of no
benefit to them, or makes them indulge in what harms them. Whoever
shuns the worship of the Most Merciful will be afflicted with the
worship of idols.
Whoever shuns Islamic monotheism will be afflicted with association
with Allaah. Whoever shuns the Sunnah will be afflicted with religious
innovation. Whoever shuns adhering to the Islamic texts will be
afflicted with blind imitation of others who have no evidence to back
up their actions.
Whoever shuns hoping in, loving and fearing only Allaah will be
afflicted with directing all these acts to other than Him. Whoever
refrains from spending his wealth for the sake of Allaah will be
afflicted with spending it for the sake of Satan.
Whoever shuns humbling himself to Allaah will be afflicted with being
humiliated by other people, and whoever shuns the truth will be
afflicted with adhering to falsehood.
This is exactly what happened to the Jews when they shunned the Book
of Allaah; they were afflicted with following in the footsteps of
Satan. During the reign of Sulaymaanthey refused to believe in the
Book of Allaah, and were thus afflicted by following what the devils
recited and invented.
The devils introduced magic to the people and claimed that
Sulaymaanused magic and that it was the means for him to have such
great power and a vast empire.
Indeed they lied, because Allaah is the One who granted him enough
power and such a vast empire that he had no need to resort to magic,
or to seek the help of the devils. As a matter of fact, Allaah
facilitated the devils for the disposal of Sulaymaan; Allaah Says what
means:"They made for him what he willed of elevated chambers, statues,
bowls like reservoirs, and stationary kettles…"]Quran 34: 13[
Allaah utilised them for Sulaymaanto use, and so they were under his
command, but after the death of Sulaymaanthe devils came out to the
people claiming that the reason behind his control over them was the
magic he used and practiced, but Allaah exposes their lie saying what
means:"And they ]i.e., the Children of Israel[ followed ]instead[ what
the devils had recited during the reign of Sulaymaan. It was not
Sulaymaan who disbelieved …"]Quran 2: 102[
Whoever practices or uses magic is a disbeliever, but Sulaymaannever
disbelieved and never practiced magic; indeed Allaah confirms the very
opposite, saying what means:"…It was not Sulaymaan who disbelieved,
but the devils disbelieved, teaching people magic…"]Quran 2: 102[ They
disbelieved by teaching people magic and how to use it, thereby
misguiding them.
The Jews practiced the magic that Allaah sent the two angels with,
namely Haaroot and Maaroot, as a means of testing people and seeing
who amongst His slaves would remain steadfast and who would deviate,
or who would remain upon faith and who would disbelieve.
These two angels, Haaroot and Maaroot, were sent to teach people magic
in the land of Babylon in Iraq as a test for these people. One may
ask: "How can Allaah send these two angels to teach people magic if
practicing magic is disbelief?" The answer is that it is done in
order to subject people to a trial, as Allaah Says what means:"…But
they ]i.e., the two angels[ do not teach anyone unless they say: 'We
are a trial, so do not disbelieve ]by practicing magic[…'"]Quran 2:
102[
These angels would initially warn people not to learn this magic, and
that to do so would entail disbelief, but if they insisted on learning
magic, then they would teach them it; this magic could thereafter be
used for prohibited reasons, such as to separate spouses. The Jews
practiced the magic that they accused Sulaymaanof using.
The Jews learnt magic and became specialists in it, and to this day
the most skilled magicians are the Jews, especially the Moroccan Jews.
These Jews shunned the news of the description and imminent arrival of
the Prophet Muhammadthat was in their scripture; they also shunned the
new Book )i.e. the Quran(; they eschewed all this and instead resorted
to learning and practicing magic.
In this story, Allaah mentions some of the evil consequences of magic,
such as what means:"…And ]yet[ they learn from them that by which they
cause separation between a man and his wife…"]Quran 2: 102[
This is while Allaah describes marriage as something that results in
harmony when He Says what means:"…He placed between you ]i.e., man and
his wife[ affection and mercy…."]Quran 30: 21[
Magic separates man from his wife, which is proof that it does have an
effect, but this effect only occurs by the will of Allaah. Some types
of magic make a person love another and act as if he is enslaved to
him or her; such a person would feel that he simply cannot live
without this person; another type of magic results in the opposite,
whereby a person may hate another to the extent that he cannot even
look him in the eye; a father can be bewitched in order to make him
despise his children or wife, as in the previously mentioned verse of
Chapter Al-Baqarah.
Allaah Says what means:"But they ]i.e. the Children of Israel[
certainly knew that whoever purchased it ]i.e. learnt and practiced
magic[ would not have in the Hereafter any share."]Quran 2: 102[
The scholars differed in their interpretation of this verse. Some of
them stated that Allaah did not send down these angels with magic to
teach people, but rather it was the devils who taught people magic. On
the other hand, many from the Salaf )predecessors(were of the view
that Allaah sent down to the earth these two angels from the heavens
as a punishment to them; others said that they were angels who
deviated and were an exceptional case from all the other angels, who
never disobey Allaah; yet others said that they were honourable angels
who were sent down to teach people magic as a way of testing them, but
who only taught those who insisted on learning it after having been
informed and reminded that magic is a form of disbelief, and after
having been sternly warned against learning and practicing it.
Undoubtedly, learning magic is prohibited, and practicing it is
disbelief, as indicated in the verse, in addition to many prophetic
narrations that affirm this fact.

The Story of Haaroot and Maaroot – II

Magic is a reality and not mere illusion; some people consider tricks
of the hand or deceptions of the eye to be magic, but magic is much
more than that; it is a reality, and could lead one to hate what he
used to love, such as the case which Allaah informs us of in the
abovementioned verse where it can separate man from his wife. Indeed
the goal that the devil strives hardest to achieve is to separate man
from his wife, as in the narration of Jaabir ibn 'Abdullaahwho stated
that the Prophetsaid:"Satan places his throne on the water, then he
sends his troops to people; the closest devil in position to him is
the one who causes the most mischief and trials amongst people. One of
them )i.e., from his troops( comes to him and says: `I continued to
whisper to so and so until he committed such and such a sin.` Satan
responds: `I swear by Allaah! You have not done much.` )This process
continues( until one )devil( comes and says: `I continued to whisper
to him until I made him separate from his wife.` Thereupon, Satan
brings him close to him and hugs him, saying: `Yes! You are the
one.`"]Muslim[ Meaning, that he is the one who has achieved the
greatest accomplishment. This separation is caused by either magic or
by any other means.
Some magicians use magic to bewitch the eyes of people and make them
believe that they are seeing something that they are not, as Allaah
says regarding the magicians of Pharaoh what means:"…And they
presented a great ]feat[ of magic."]Quran 7: 116[ People thought, as a
result of their magic, that they were seeing snakes instead of ropes
and sticks.
Some people claim that there is a prophetic narration that is as
follows: "Learn magic but do not teach it to others." This is a
fabrication; such words were never uttered by the Prophet.
The Islamic ruling regarding the magician is that he is to be
beheaded, as the Prophetsaid:"The punishment for the magician is that
he must be beheaded."]At-Tirmithi & Al-Haakim[ This is because such a
person is an apostate, even if he fasts, prays and claims that he is a
Muslim, because his practice of magic invalidates any good deeds he
may perform.
There are two ways of being relieved from the effects of magic:
- The incorrect way is to go to magicians for this purpose; this is
prohibited because the Prophetsaid:"He who approaches a magician and
believes what he says will have his prayers rejected for forty
days."]Muslim[ Thus, it is prohibited to approach them or to seek
their assistance in removing the effect of magic done on one by
others.
- The correct way is by reciting the legislated Ruqyah )i.e. the Quran
and certain prophetic supplications(. Examples of this would be the
Chapters Al-Faatihah, Al-Ikhlaas, Al-Falaq, An-Naas and the Verse of
the Throne, or Ayat Al-Kursi, which is the two-hundred and fifty fifth
verse of Chapter Al-Baqarah. An example of a prophetic supplication
that is useful in this regard is:"Allaahumma Rabban-naas,
athhibil-ba's, wash'fi, Antash-Shaafi, laa shifaa'a illaa shifaa'uka,
shifaa'n laa yughaadiru saqama ]O Allaah! The Lord of mankind! Remove
this disease and cure )him or her(. You are the Great Curer. There is
no cure but through You, which leaves behind no
disease[.'']Al-Bukhaari[
One may also recite Quranic verses in water and add to it seven dried
and crushed Lote-tree leaves. This method is confirmed to have been
practiced by some of the Salaf such as Wahb ibn Munabbih.
Some people recite the verses that address the issue of magic, like
those found in Chapters Al-A'raaf, Yoonus, and Taa Haa over this water
and then add the crushed leaves to it, then they recite Chapters
Al-Ikhlaas, Al-Falaq, An-Naas and some authentic Prophetic
supplications over it. They then wash their body with this water. This
is a method that has been proven to be beneficial by experience.
The Prophetwas bewitched by Labeed ibn Al-A'sam, who had strong
relations with the Jews, and the Jews requested his assistance due to
him being renowned for his experience in magic.
The Prophetwas afflicted by this magic for six months. Hewould think
that he was sleeping with his wives while in fact he was not.
Hepersevered through this period, and when he feared that it would
affect his zeal for worship, hesupplicated to Allaah, asking Him to
remove it from him.
'Aa'ishahnarrated: "Magic was done on the Prophetso he began to think
that he was doing things that he was not actually doing. One day,
heinvoked )Allaah( for a long period and then said:"I feel that Allaah
has inspired me as how to cure myself. Two persons came to me )in a
dream( and sat down, one by my head and the other by my feet. One of
them asked the other: 'What is the sickness of this man?' The other
replied: 'He has been bewitched.' The first asked: 'Who has bewitched
him?' The other replied: 'Labeed ibn Al-A'sam.' The first one asked:
'What materials did he use?' The other replied: 'A comb, the hair
gathered on it, and the outer skin of the pollen of a male date-palm.'
The first asked: 'Where are they?' The other replied: 'In the well of
Tharwaan.'"
So the Prophetheaded out towards the well. He later returned and said
to me:"The date-palms )i.e., the ones on the well( are like the heads
of devils."I asked: 'Did you take out those things with which the
magic was done?' Hereplied:"No, for I have been cured by Allaah, and I
am afraid that this action may spread evil amongst the people."Later
on the well was filled up with earth." ]Al-Bukhaari[
The hair that was on the comb was taken, and a knot was made in which
the magic was placed; then, the hair that contained the magic was
placed inside the outer skin of the pollen of a male date-palm, and
this was placed under a rock, inside the well. When some
Companionswent to remove this magic from the well, they found that its
water was the colour of Henna, due to the effect of magic on it.
The Prophetwas inspired by Allaah as to where the location of the
magic was; it was removed and the knot was undone, so the magic was
ruined.
The question of 'Aa'ishahwas an indirect way of asking why the
Prophetdid not punish the man who bewitched him, and heexplained why,
saying:"I am afraid that this action may spread evil amongst the
people."Meaning, that since the punishment of being a magician is
execution by beheading, and because people did not know that he
practiced such evil, nor did they witness him doing it on the
Prophetthen punishing him would have encouraged people to accuse
anyone of doing magic, even if they were innocent, and justify it by
quoting this action of the Prophet.
Hewas very careful not to execute anyone whose crime was not obvious
to everybody, and it is for this same reason he refrained from killing
Ibn Salool, who was the head of hypocrites, despite him knowing that
he was being a disbeliever, a liar and a hypocrite.
Hedid not kill him because it would not have been clear to people why
he killed him, due to this Ibn Salool pretending to be Muslim.
One may ask: "How could the Prophetbe bewitched when he was conveying
the message?"
The answer is that the magic never affected any aspect of his mind,
memory or mission; it only affected his relations with his wives.
Another question that might be asked is: "Does the fact that hewas
bewitched not contradict being protected by Allaah? Allaah Says what
means:"…And Allaah will protect you from the people…"]Quran 5: 67[
The answer is that the protection referred to in this verse was
against certain matters only, such as being killed before conveying
the message fully, or being prevented from conveying the message in
any way.
In fact, proof of the fact that such protection was limited is that
hewas afflicted greatly by the disbelievers: they offended and beat
him, and besieged him and his followers. Healso suffered hunger and
fell into a pit that the disbelievers had dug for him. They did all
these things but were unable to prevent him from conveying the message
of Allaah.
Some magic is performed by blowing into knots and other materials
which magicians compile, which makes the bewitched person believe he
is performing actions that is not actually doing; another type makes a
person incapable of having sexual intercourse with his wife; another
type makes the wife imagine that her husband is a beast or a snake
whenever he tries to approach her sexually; there is another type that
makes the husband imagine that his wife has a foul stench whenever he
attempts to approach her sexually, even though she may be clean and
smell pleasant.
There are women who resort to magic in order to make their husbands
divorce his other wife or wives, so that she can have him all to
herself - and this is one of the greatest ways of oppressing others.
One may ask: "There are deadly types of magic; are they incurable?"
The answer is that they are curable, unless the effects of this magic
coincide with the designated time of the person's death. If that is
the case, then nothing can help him. Allaah Says what means:"But never
will Allaah delay a soul when its time has come. And Allaah is
Acquainted with what you do."]Quran 63: 11[
The one who bewitches others and thereby causes their death must be
sentenced to death, because such a person killed a soul intentionally
and without due right.
Some people wear amulets, claiming that they protect them from magic,
but they only add to the evil and make them weaker in faith.
In Islam, ends do not justify means; there are people who resort to
magic in order to reconcile, for example, between two disputing
people. This is prohibited, even if people claim that they have good
intentions and are only using it for a good purpose.This is refused in
Islam because the means used are evil, and regardless of the sought
result, using magic remains prohibited.

The true faith )Eemaan(

The word, Eemaan literally means, "to know," "to believe," to put
one's trust in something or someone." In Islamic Sharee'ah
)legislation(, Eemaan means putting one's entire trust in, and having
complete faith in Allaah, His Prophetand His message.
Therefore, one who puts his entire trust in Allaah should not only
testify to his faith by word of mouth, but must also accept it with
all his heart and soul and then staunchly adheres to it physically.
Furthermore, he is obliged to do good works in keeping with the
fundamentals of the faith, as coinciding faith with right action is
absolutely vital.
Acceptance of Allaah as your Lord is like making a promise to place
Him at the center of your life, so that He may become the pivot of
your thoughts and emotions. It means entrusting yourself to Him
entirely, and focusing all your hopes and aspirations, fears and
entreaties upon Him. Then, instead of living for worldly things, you
should live for the service of your Sustainer. He, Al-Mighty, will
thus become all in all in your life.
A Muslim declares his faith by saying: "Ash-hadu Allaa Ilaaha
Illallaah, Wa Ash-hadu Anna Muhammadun Rasoolullaah" )testify that
there no god )worthy of worship( except Allaah and that Muhammad is
the Messenger of Allaah( Its recital is called the Shahaadah.
For Muslims there are certain requirements, which have to be observed
regarding the Shahaadah. They are as follows:
• It has to be uttered aloud, at least once in a lifetime.
• It's meaning has to be fully understood.
• It should be believed in "with the heart."
• It should be physically implemented.
• It should be professed until death.
The six basic beliefs
There are six things that are essential for a Muslim to believe in.
These essential beliefs are pillars without which ones faith is not
accepted. They are called the articles )or pillars( of faith.
1.Allaah:To believe in Allaah, to believe that He exists, that He is
One, and that He Alone is the Creator, and Lord over everything, and
that He Alone is Worthy of worship. Additionally, one must believe in
all the beautiful Names and Attributes with which Allaah described
Himself or His messenger described Him with.
2.The Angels:To believe in the angels who always obey Him and are His
creation of Allaah, and that Allaah created them from light.
3.The Revealed Books:Allaah revealed Books to His Prophets for the
guidance of mankind. We must believe that all these Books mentioned in
the Quran were revelations from Allaah.
4.The Messengers of Allaah:To believe in Allaah's prophets. We must
believe in all the prophets and give them due respect.
5.The Last Day:To believe in the Day of Judgment and to believe that
life in this world will come to an end one day and that everything in
this world will perish. Then Allaah will bring all beings back to life
and will judge them according to all that they did while they lived on
earth.
6.The Predestination and Divine Decree:To believe that everything
comes from Allaah. This means that Allaah knows everything that is
going to happen, whether good or bad, Has predestined for it to happen
and decreed it.
Man too often lives for worldly objectives which come to dominate his
thoughts and emotions and thus resulting in him leading a heedless
life. The life that is truly worth striving for is that which is lived
for the sake of attaining the pleasure of one's Lord.
Man should live in remembrance of Allaah. His name should be on his
lips as he wakens and as he sleeps. As he halts or proceeds on his
way, he should live in trust of Allaah, and when he speaks or remains
silent, it should be for the pleasure of his Lord.

Fathwa, - Don't judge Islam by yourhusband's injustice

Question
salamalaykoum...I am confused ..i am a revert to islam but honestly i
feel i have done a terrible mistake . There are so many issues wrong
w/ my marriage and my husband says its Shariah and Allah will punish
me , if i say different. We are married 6yrs now we have 2 children
together i live in usa he lives in uk..we have not seen eachother in
almost 3yrs. he does not maintain me or our kids. He works in uk and
says he makes only enough for him and says hadiths says Allah doesnt
give a person more than they can handle.Im tired , i do everything for
our kids , they have seen their father one time and dont know him. he
says we are married but yet i dont have a document showing we are ,
then i read on your site other questions about how if a husband
divorces his wife , she is not entitiled to any maintance from him nor
shelter ..thats absurd...how can you say in islam that as women if we
divorce we no longer have rights ..after having children w/ our
husbands we are left to either 2 things , either leave our kids w/ our
exhusbands or we take our kids w/ us and we suffer cuz we can not work
nor maintain them , becuz our so called exhusbands dont have to
maintain us or give us any maintance , then we should go out and work
like men ...i think the maintaince in western society takes care of
the women and gives her more rights than in islam ..im sorry to say
and may Allah forgive me but in isalm this is wrong ...how can a woman
survive after divorcing if she has nothing or nobody to help her ,
that means if she has kids she must leave them w/someone while she
works to maintain and take care of her kids ....i think islam is wrong
in this , how can a women are not protected in islam , they are
neglected ...protected as long as they are married but if husband is
abusive and she divorces him then she gets nothing ,but children to
raise on her own , cuz of course we wont give up our kids to be raised
by a man who is abusive...so wrong & sad..christianity gives the woman
rights
Answer
All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify
that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that
Muhammadis His slave and Messenger.
Islam is the religion that came to ensure happiness for people in this
world and in the Hereafter with its comprehensive and balanced
legislations. Allaah Says )what means(: }This day I have perfected for
you your religion and completed My favor upon you and have approved
for you Islam as religion.{]Quran 5:3[ Hence, every person who
embraces Islam and understands it very well should be happy with this
bounty and not feel sorry about it.
The )wrong( conclusions that you made are due to the following two matters:
1- Being wronged by your husband who falsely attributes his injustice to Islam.
2- Your wrong understanding to some religious rulings.
However, before talking about these two matters, we would like to draw
your attention to the fact that in Islam the marriage contract has
conditions that must be fulfilled so that the marriage will be valid;
you may read these conditions in Fatwa 83629. The most important of
these conditions are the consent )and presence( of the woman's
guardian and the presence of two witnesses: this is so, so that the
marriage will be authenticated and the rights of the wife and children
will be protected.
It should also be mentioned that the husband is obliged to have good
marital relationship with his wife and it is not permissible for him
to be absent from her more than six months except with her consent;
this has already been discussed in Fataawa 85711and 88304.
As regards the conduct of your husband, he is wrong in many aspects.
For instance, a husband is obliged to spend on his wife and children
according to reasonable grounds and we have already clarified this in
Fatwa 85012, and we also clarified in it that a wife is not required
to spend on herself )and children( even if she is working and that if
she spends without the intention of doing that as an act of charity,
she is permitted to ask her husband to reimburse her for whatever she
had spent.
With regard to the statement that a divorcee is not entitled to
expenditures and accommodation, then this is not completely true. For
example, a husband is obliged to spend on a divorced wife who is
divorced a revocable divorce as long as she is in her waiting period,
and he is also obliged to spend on a divorced wife who is divorced an
irrevocable divorce if she is pregnant until her waiting period is
over ]i.e. until she gives birth[. Afterwards, it is her guardian who
is obliged to spend on her if she has no money as is the case before
she gets married; for more benefit in this regard, please refer to
Fatwa 88233. Also, you may refer to Fatwa 83934for the rights of a
divorced woman on her husband.
However, if we presume that a woman has no one to spend on her, then
in this case it is the Muslim community who is obliged to spend on
her. If the Islamic ruling is applied in a Muslim country, then it is
the treasury that will spend on such woman. As regards the children,
it is their father who is obliged to spend on them in any case as long
as they are young and needy and not able to earn their living.
Concerning what you attributed to some non-Muslim societies that they
give the woman more right than in Islam and that Islam neglects the
woman, then this is very wrong and it is an injustice to Islam. Is it
not enough an injustice in Christianity that a woman is not permitted
to separate from her husband and be divorced from him unless she
commits adultery? For more benefit on the status of woman in Islam
and how Islam preserved her rights, please refer to Fataawa 81237and
81205.
It seems, dear sister, that you want to judge Islam by some wrong
behaviors of Muslims or by some misconceptions that are presented to
you, and there is no doubt that this is not permissible. Therefore, we
advise you to be steadfast on you belief and supplicate Allaah to make
a way out for you to get out of hardship and enable you to take your
right from your husband who wronged you and who wronged Islam to which
he affiliates himself.
Finally, it should be noted that you have the right to take your
husband to the court so that you get your rights from him and the
rights of your children. So, we advise you to take the matter to the
authorities who are responsible for the issues of Muslims so that they
would repel the injustice of your husband from you.
Furthermore, you are obliged to repent to Allaah from such grave
statements by saying that you were wrong by embracing Islam because
such a statement may lead to apostasy and whoever apostates from Islam
he only harms himself and he loses his religion and his worldly life.
Allaah Says )what means(: }And whoever of you reverts from his
religion ]to disbelief[ and dies while he is a disbeliever - for
those, their deeds have become worthless in this world and the
hereafter, and those are the companions of the Fire, they will abide
therein eternally.{]Quran 2:217].
Allaah Knows best.