Magic , Fortune-telling and Divination
Magic ( sihr ) is an act of kufr ( infidelity ) , and one of the seven sins which doom a person to Hell . It causes harm but no benefit . Allah says about those who learn it
:
"
And they learn that which harms them and profits them not
" .
[ Surah al-Baqarah (2):102 ]
"
And the magician will never be successful , no matter what amount ( of skill ) he may attain
" .
[ Surah Taa Haa (20):69 ]
The one who deals in magic is a kaafir ( infidel ) , as Allah says
:
"
Sulayman did not disbelieve , but the shayaateen (devils) disbelieved , teaching men magic and such things as came down at Babylon to the two angels , Haaroot and Maaroot , but neither of these two ( angels ) taught anyone ( such things ) things till they had said [ We are only for trial , so disbelieve not ( by learning this magic from us
) ]
" .
[ Surah al-Baqarah (2) :102 ]
The prescribed punishment for the one who practices magic is death , and his income is haraam and impure
.
Some ignorant wrongdoers and weak in faith go to magicians to help them harm someone or take revenge . Others commit the sin of going to a magician to ask his help in undoing some magic cast upon them , when they should turn to Allah to help and heal them . They should do so by reciting His words , such as those surahs that offer protection [ from evil ] and so on / Like Surah al-Falaq and Surah an-Naas
.
Fortune-tellers and their likes are kaafirs ( disbelievers ) who disbelieve in Allah . They claim knowledge of the Unseen except Allah . Many of these fortune-tellers take advantage of simple-minded people and take their money . They use many methods , such as drawing lines in the sand , throwing sea/s.h.e.l.l.s , reading palms , teacups ( or coffee cups ) , crystal balls and mirrors , and so on
.
If they succeed one time , they get fail ninety-nine times , but ignorant people remember only the one time when these liars succeed . They go to them to find out about future , whether they will be successful in marriage or business , or to help them find something they have lost and so on
.
The ruling concerning the person who visits a fortune-teller is as follows
:
If he believes what he says , he is a kaafir who has left Islam , due to the hadeeth in which Prophet :salla: said
:
"
Whoever goes to a fortune-teller or a soothsayer and believes in what he says has disbelieved in what was revealed to Muhammad
" .
Reported by Imaam Ahmad , 2/429 ; see also Saheeh al-Jaami` , 5939
If a person does not believe that they have knowledge of the Unseen , but he visits them out of curiosity or anything else , he is not a kaafir , but his prayers will not be accepted for forty days , as the Prophet said
:
"
Whoever goes to a fortune-teller and asks him about something , his prayers will not be accepted for forty nights
"
Saheeh Muslim , 4/1751
Even though it is still obligatory to pray and to repent for this sin
.
