Fatwa ID: 03361
Answered by: Maulana Naieem Mohammad
Question
Assalamulaikum
A brother reached out to me saying he found a taweez in his car and one in his office. Should he open them and see what’s written inside or should he do anything in specific?
بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمنِ الرَّحِيْم
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
Answer
Wa Alaikum Salam,
The Prophet (s.a.w) had taught us various duas for protection against evil that He personally used and encouraged his companions to practice. Unfortunately, many Muslims seem dissatisfied with the perfect yet simple method of our Nabi (s.a.w). Instead, they have adopted the methods of the idol-worshippers by using amulets and incantations which are a crossbreed between Quran and paganism. These amulets, drawings, symbols, codes and tables are what they refer to as “Taweez”. Such experimentation with the pure words of Allah will only lead towards a crooked heart and misguidance.
Many of our scholars have fallen prey to such deceit and thus claim that their elders or teachers could not have been wrong for practising such methods and were correct in teaching it to their disciples. The messenger of Allah (s.a.w) has warned us about such blind tribalism and has said that it is from the habits of pre-Islamic ignorance.
The following narrations shed light on this:
Related by Imam Al-Bukhari in his Sahih (8/137)[1], that a young man from the Muhajirun and a young man from the Ansar quarrelled. So the Muhajir said: "O Muhajirun! (meaning: rally to my help)" And the Ansari said: "O Ansar!" So the Prophet (s.a.w) heard this and said: "Is it with the call of jahiliyyah that you are calling out, and I am present amongst you!"
The Prophet (s.a.w.) also said:
"Whosoever leaves off obedience and separates from the Jama'ah and dies, he dies a death of jahiliyyah. Whoever fights under the banner of the blind, becoming angry for 'asabiyyah (partisanship and party-spirit), or calling to 'asabiyyah, or assisting 'asabiyyah, then dies, he dies a death of jahiliyyah."[2]
These narrations encourage us to search for the methods that were passed down from our Prophet (s.a.w).
We believe that everything happens only by the permission of Allah alone. Good and evil are both under his control. Benefit and harm occur only by his will. This means that the evil of black magic or the benefits derived therefrom happen only by the will of Allah and as a trial for those involved. Sometimes people use “Taweez” as a means of protection and sometimes as a method to harm, influence or create the desired effect on others. These types of actions are strongly linked to disbelief due to a person trying to change the decree of Allah and by them resorting to doubtful or forbidden methods to do such. The Messenger (s.a.w) has mentioned, ”Nothing changes the divine decree of Allah except dua.”[3]
It is part of being a Muslim to believe and accept this statement and to contradict it leads to disbelief.
With all the above being said, a person who finds in his possession such amulets or taweez should observe the following:
- If he/she had willingly procured it, then he/she should make sincere repentance to Allah, destroy it using the following method and avoid it in the future.
- If it was found in one’s possession without prior knowledge of its existence, then he/she should avoid opening it or investigating its contents. Perhaps it may be from such amulets which harm an individual or is effective only when opened or physically contacted by the intended victim.
Method:
It should be handled with tools such as tongs or a shovel and placed in an opaque bag or container.
Thereafter it should be transported to a nearby source of flowing water or the sea and disposed off within that body of water.
If such a water source is not available, then it should be thoroughly burnt without being opened in the same container or bag that it was transported in. This should be done at a location far from the property, individual or house where it was discovered.[4]
May Allah forgive us for our mistakes and guide us to follow the beautiful traditions of our beloved Prophet (s.a.w).
Only Allah knows best
Written by Maulana Naieem Mohammad
Checked and approved by Mufti Mohammed Tosir Miah
Darul Ifta Birmingham
