Healing using false superstitious methods (Amulets, Taweez, Lucky Charms, and more)
The following sermon was delivered by Shaikh Abdul-Aziz bin Abdullah bin Hasan AlShaikh and addresses the misguidance of people wearing Tamimah (also referred to by names such as amulets / Taweez / talisman, etc.) for the purpose of healing or preventing problems. As we can see that such acts are not only prohibited, they constitute Shirk, which is the worst forms of sin and puts the person out of Islam.
– Start of the sermon text:
Allah the Exalted said:“And if Allah touches you with harm, there is none who can remove it but He, and if He intends any good for you, there is none who can repel His Favour which He causes it to reach whomsoever of His slaves He wills. And He is the Oft-Forgiving, the Most Merciful.” (10:107)Bringing harm or benefit is only in the Hands of Allah and, therefore, none among the creation can avert any type of harm that Allah has intended for him or her. Such matters are restricted to Allah’s domain alone. Consequently, there is neither a need nor a justification for anyone to seek anything other than from Allah to remove an affliction, avert it before it strikes, or bring a type of good or cause it to continue. Allah alone has power over such aspects, and thus, none else is worthy of being invoked or sought for help in this regard, or begged to remove hardships, or asked to repel afflictions.Mankind is prone to fall ill, and in this case, Allah has commanded them to seek healing for illnesses that might touch them, using only the lawful means. Any unlawful means and methods will never avail, but instead bring harm.For instance, hanging lucky charms and beads around the necks of children or animals, for the claimed purpose of repelling the evil eye or to fend off an illness, are acts of Shirk (Polytheism) and reliance on others beside Allah. The Messenger of Allah (S. A. W. S.) forbade such superstitious acts and stated that lucky charms (amulets, Taweez, etc.) and like methods, will only intensify the disease and magnify the presence of evil!What benefit would tying knots, collecting beads on a string, wearing an iron ring on the hand or foot, magic spells or writing unintelligible words bring? None. Rather, they will only bring harm, misguidance and spoil the minds and pure nature:We learn from the prophet’s traditions that “The Messenger of Allah (S. A. W. S.) once saw a man wearing an iron ring around his hand and asked him, "What is this?" The man said, "To repel Al-Wahinah," which was a common disease among Arabs during that time. The Prophet (S. A. W. S.) said, "Take it off of your hand, for verily, it will only increase your weakness! If you die while wearing it, you will never attain success."”We observe that the Messenger of Allah (S. A. W. S.) stated in this Hadith that wearing a ring or a lucky charm will not prevent illness. On the contrary, it will intensify the disease along with the weakness it brings to the body. He also told that man that if he died while wearing that ring, he would never attain success.The Prophet t (S. A. W. S.) also said:"Whoever hangs a Tamimah (lucky charm), then may Allah never complete his aim, and whoever wears a Wada’ah (beads), then may Allah never allow him to rest."In another narration the Prophet (S. A. W. S.) said:“Whoever wears a Tamimah, will have committed Shirk."In these ahadith, the Prophet (S. A. W. S.) invoked Allah against those who wear beads and lucky charms for the purpose of bringing benefit or averting harm. Therefore, they will never attain success in their aims, nor acquire what they wished, nor taste calmness or comfort, but will instead suffer from worry and depression, because they rely on other than Allah and defy the Messenger’s command and way.Once, a group of people came to the Messenger (S. A. W. S.) to swear their allegiance to embrace Islam and he accepted their Bai’ah (oath of allegiance) except for one man. When they asked the Messenger of Allah of the reason, he said that he did so because that man was wearing a Tamimah (Iucky charm). So the man inserted his hand inside his clothing, took the lucky charm and tore it off. The Messenger then accepted the Bai ‘ah from him, saying, "Whoever wears a Tamimah will have committed Shirk." Further, when Hudhaifah visited an ill person and touched his arm, he found a knot tied around it. He asked him, "What is this?" The ill man said, "A Ruqyah (healer, or lucky charm) that was prescribed to me." Hudhaifah tore the knot and said to him, "If you died while wearing this, I would not have prayed the funeral prayer for you."As Muslims, we are required to rely on Allah alone and then seek the lawful means and ways to repel harm or heal illnesses. We are required to abandon and shun every action, statement and creed that was not allowed for us to indulge in. We are required to raise our children to be righteous and to steer them away from all types of superstitions and whims. We are required to rear them to rely on Allah alone and to nurture the pure nature that Allah created in them. This way, they will trust in Allah alone for each and every thing, invoke Him alone in times of affliction and hardship and stay away from liars and sorcerers. If we apply this good method, we will dissipate all types of evil creeds and statements and erase them from our societies, while preserving our good nature from misguidance and superstitious whims. We should also assert that wearing a Tamimah that neither contains a part of the Quran, nor mentions Allah’s Name, is an act of Shirk. Wearing a lucky charm that contains the Quran or Allah’s Names, is a disallowed act alsobecause the Prophet (S. A. W. S.) forbade wearing the Tamimah, regardless of what is written inside it. Moreover, the habit of wearing the latter type of Tamimah might direct to Shirk and writing something other than the Quran in it later on. Also, when the Quran is hung around one’s neck, it is carried into the bathrooms and dirty places along with the person who is wearing it. Surely, the Quran was not revealed for the purpose of being hung around one’s neck, but as a healer for the ills of the hearts. The Quran was not revealed so that one makes Tamimah out of it, or sell Tamimah that contains parts of it for money, thus acquiring a little miserable sum for selling Allah’s Words.[Source: Taken (with some typo corrections) from Ahadith Al-Minbar, by Shaikh Abdul-Aziz bin Abdullah bin Hasan AlShaikh, p. 59]
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It should be noted that while all scholars agree that wearing anything for the purpose of healing (or preventing ills) that does not contain verses of the Quran is an act of Shirk, there are some differingopinions about wearing those that have Quranic verses. Consider that the (Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa’imah, 1/212) states that, “The scholars are agreed that it is haraam to wear amulets if they contain anything other than Qur’aan, but they differed concerning those which do contain Qur’aan. Some of them said that wearing these is permitted, and others said that it is not permitted. The view that it is not permitted is more likely to be correct because of the general meaning of the ahaadeeth, and in order to prevent means of shirk.” (Shaykh ‘Abd al-‘Azeez ibn Baaz, Shaykh ‘Abd-Allaah ibn Ghadyaan, Shaykh ‘Abd-Allaah ibn Qa’ood.) (Source: Islam-qa.com)
Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid states the following:
“Undoubtedly not allowing (wearing amulets with Quranic verses) that is a safer precaution to prevent means that lead to wrong beliefs, especially in our own times. If most of the Sahaabah and Taabi’een regarded it as makrooh in those noble times when the faith in their hearts was greater than a mountain, then regarding it as makrooh in these times of trials and tribulations is more appropriate and is more on the safe side.”
