Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Witchcraft and the Occult
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The hadith literature are replete with references to witchcraft and the occult. The belief in the "evil eye" عين الحسد is particularly prominent. According to this ancient and widespread belief, the act of envying what another person has or possess can put the metaphysical, mystical "eye" upon them, bringing misfortune of various kinds on whom is on the receiving end of the eye. This eye can be warded off by, variously, giving the person who is envious the object of their envy, using charms made to look like the eye itself (among them the so-called خمسة or hamsa), prayers, scripture reading, or various forms of magic. The belief itself is widespread in Middle Eastern and Mediterranean societies and is attested to widely in ancient Greek literature, where it was part of the metaphysical world of the ancient Greek paganism. The hadith tradition paints the prophet Muhammad himself as contending with the evil eye via prayers. Like with the evil eye, the tradition is unanimous in recognizing the reality of سحر "sahr" as in magic or witchcraft, which is envisioned as a black, malevolent force in league with shaytan.
Evil Eye
Islam Q&A, Fatwa No. 20954
Quran
Magic
The verse 113:4 (Those who blow on knots), is typically believed to be referring to those who practice magic,[1][2] with knots being commonly associated with magic in antiquity.[3]
2. From the evil of what He has created 3. And from the evil of the utterly dark night when it comes 4. And from the evil of those who blow on knots
5. And from the evil of the envious when he enviesAnd verse 113:5 (evil of the envious when he envies) is believed to be referring to the 'The Evil Eye'.[4]
Emran El-Badawi (2024)[5] notes its link with previous superstitions around magic, with both the Qur'anic surah's 113 and 114 belonging to a genre of popular literature centered around magic protection from higher powers, which was prevalent in antiquity. The amulet, like many other magical artifacts from that time, includes invocations of multiple divinities or angels to maximize protection, a practice common in Syriac and Greco-Egyptian traditions, and there have been early Islamic papyri found as small amulets with these surah on.[6] However these Qur'anic amulets/phrases are distinct in their strict monotheism, invoking only the one God, unlike the multiple deities in earlier traditions. El-Badawi (2024) draws a link between these apotropaic readings and the protective role they play, emphasizing that the Qur'anic Surahs maintain a connection with this ancient tradition of seeking divine protection through sacred texts.
At least once, angels (Harut and Marut are named in this verse) and satans (believed to be jinn) teach humans magic:
This verse also seems to imply that Jews would also perform this magic.
At least some Jinn appear to have magic powers able to transport King Solomon several hundred miles from Israel to Yemen in the blink of an eye.[7]
39. A stalwart of the jinn said: I will bring it thee before thou canst rise from thy place. Lo! I verily am strong and trusty for such work.
40. The one who had knowledge of the Book said, ‘I will bring it to you in the twinkling of an eye.’ So when he saw it set near him, he said, ‘This is by the grace of my Lord, to test me if I will give thanks or be ungrateful. Whoever gives thanks, gives thanks only for his own sake. And whoever is ungrateful [should know that] my Lord is indeed all-sufficient, all-generous.’And pharaoh has wizards in his employ in ancient Egypt, who's magic is overthrown by Moses's.
who desires to expel you from your land; what do you command?' They said, 'Put him and his brother off a while, and send among the cities musterers, to bring thee every cunning sorcerer.' And the sorcerers came to Pharaoh, saying, 'We shall surely have a wage, if we should be the victors?' He said, 'Yes, indeed; and you shall be among the near-stationed.' He said, “You throw”; when they threw, they cast a magic spell upon the people’s eyes and terrified them, and they brought a great magic. And We signalled to Moses: ‘Throw down your staff.’ And behold, it was swallowing what they had faked. So the truth came to pass, and false was proved what they were doing. So they were defeated there and returned humiliated.
The sorcerers fell to the ground in homage,Verse 68:51 has also been taken by classical scholars to refer to the Evil Eye:
Such as Ibn Kathir's prominent tafsir:[8]
Hadith
The evil eye is a fact
The evil eye causes black spots, and a type of prayer (ruqya) can prevent it:[9]
Responsible for the deaths of many Muslims
The evil eye is responsible for the deaths of many Muslims (second only to the will of Allah).
Muhammad was affected by the evil eye
Muhammad was affected by the evil eye and the witchcraft of a Jew.
The Punishment for Magic
Scholars
Witches must be executed
“They followed what the Shayaateen (devils) gave out (falsely of the magic) in the lifetime of Sulaymaan (Solomon). Sulaymaan did not disbelieve, but the Shayaateen (devils) disbelieved, teaching men magic and such things that came down at Babylon to the two angels, Haaroot and Maaroot, but neither of these two (angels) taught anyone (such things) till they had said, ‘We are for trial, so disbelieve not (by learning this magic from us).’”
[al-Baqarah 2:102]
A practitioner of witchcraft may do something that makes him an apostate, so he commits kufr and should be executed for his apostasy. Or he may practice witchcraft by doing something that does not constitute kufr. In that case there is a difference of scholarly opinion, but the correct view is that he should also be executed if it is proven that he is a practitioner of witchcraft. This is what the Sahaabah (may Allaah be pleased with them) did and enjoined other to do. If he is executed, he should not be washed or shrouded or buried in the Muslim graveyard.
There should be no hesitation in executing the practitioner of witchcraft, whether we say that he is a kaafir or not, because this is what is proven from the companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). Executing him prevents the spread of evil and serves as a deterrent to his fellow practitioners of witchcraft.Islam Q&A, Fatwa No. 69914
External Links
- ↑ https://surahquran.com/english-aya-4-sora-113.html
- ↑ https://versebyversequranstudycircle.wordpress.com/2012/07/23/tafseer-of-surah-al-falaq-part-4/
- ↑ https://www.jstor.org/stable/1520741
- ↑ See tafsirs on verse 113:5
- ↑ El-Badawi, Emran. Female Divinity in the Qur’an: In Conversation with the Bible and the Ancient Near East (p. 147 - 155). Springer Nature Switzerland. 2024. Kindle Edition. A PDF of the relevant pages can be read on an r/AcademicQuran post: The historical context of Surahs 113 and 114.
- ↑ Ibid. pp. 152.
- ↑ Maududi - Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi - Tafhim al-Qur'an (Tafsir on verses 27:38-14)
- ↑ https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Kathir/68.48
- ↑ https://simplyislam.academy/blog/what-is-ruqyah