Section 1: Claiming Knowledge of the Unseen by Reading Palms, Teacups, Stars and the Like

The intent with the word hidden is anything, which is hidden from man of the affairs of the future or the past, or such things as cannot be seen. Allah - the Most High - has restricted knowledge of such to Himself. Allah - the Most High - said: “Say: ‘None in the heavens and the earth knows the Ghayb (unseen) except Allah...” (Qur’an 27: 65) So, none knows the hidden except Allah. He could expose His Messengers to some of His hidden knowledge due to some wisdom, or for some benefit. Allah - the Most High - said: “(He Alone) is the All-Knower of the Ghayb (unseen) and He reveals to none His Ghayb (unseen). Except to a Messenger (from mankind) whom He has chosen (He informs him of the Unseen as much as He likes)...” (Qur’an 72: 26-27) That is, none comes to know of anything of the unseen except he whom Allah has chosen for His Message. So, He makes him aware of whatever He wills of the unseen. This is because he will present, as proof of his Prophethood, signs and wonders amongst which is information about the unseen, which Allah has made him aware of. This encompasses Messengers from amongst both the angels and mankind. None other than these are exposed to the unseen according to the syntax of the verse. Therefore, whoever lays claim to knowing the unseen, by whatever means, other than that which Allah has exempted regarding His Messengers, is a liar and a disbeliever. Whether he lays claim to it by reading the palms of the hand, or reading teacups, or divination, or magic, or astrology, or any other means, the ruling is the same. This is what occurs with some magicians and tricksters, who inform people about the location of some missing items, or about unseen things and the causes of some illnesses. They say for example: ‘So-and-so made such-and-such (charm) and you became ill as a result.' In this, they employ the jinns and the devils, while they pretend to the people that they come to know these by way of their fiddling with these items (the palms, teacups, stars etc.), in order to deceive people. Shaykh al- Islam Ibn Taymiyyah said: ‘The fortuneteller has a Qarin (associate jinn) from amongst the devils who informs him about several of the unseen things which he has heard stealthily. Then they mingle truth with falsehood.'- Till he said: ‘There are amongst these people, those whom the devils bring meals of fruits and sweat things and such other things which cannot be found in that area. There are also amongst them, those who the jinns make to fly to Makkah or the holy house in Jerusalem and so on.'' Their information about such could be through astrology. This is the use of the constellational situations of celestial bodies as indication for occurrences on earth, such as the times of the blowing of the wind and the coming of rain, or change in market prices, and other such matters, which they believe can be known from the movement of planets and stars in their orbits, and their constellations. They say: ‘Whoever marries with (at the time of) such-and-such stars, such-and-such will occur to him. Whoever travels with such and such star, such and such of fortune or misfortune will occur to him, whoever is born at the time of such and such star will achieve such and such fortune or misfortune.' An example is the hoax about zodiac signs and their effects, which are commonly published in some disreputable Some ignorant people and those with weak Faith go to these astrologers asking them about their future life, about what will happen to them and about marriage and so on. Whoever lays claim to knowledge of the unseen or believes in one who makes such a claim, is a polytheist and disbeliever, because he claims partnership with Allah in that which is His peculiarity. The stars are subjugated creatures, they have no ability over affairs and do not indicate misfortune, or fortune, or death, or life. These are all the works of the devils who listen stealthily (in the heavens). 1 Majmu’ah at-Tawhid, 797 - 801