An Article by Adil Salahi, Arab News
People often associate certain things, or events, or signs with good or bad omen. These differ from one culture to another. In old Arabian culture, when people went out on some business, they tried to determine whether their task would be successful. They usually looked for any bird they might see. If the bird flew to the right, they considered this to be a good omen and they continued with their task. If the bird flew left, they thought that was a bad omen and they would not continue with whatever they had embarked upon. In fact, this was so entrenched in their culture that the Arabic name for sensing bad omen is derived from the word Tair, which means bird. It is used even when the object, action or event that causes bad omen has nothing to do with birds.
Apparently this was not limited to Arabs. Even in other cultures, people looked to birds for sensing what may come about. The English word "auspice" is defined in an Oxford Dictionary as "an observation of birds for omens".
All this is forbidden in Islam. It is contrary to the very concept that knowledge of the future is the preserve of God alone. It is also against the principle of putting our trust in God. Therefore the Prophet, peace be upon him, denounces the very idea of bad omen, describing it as a form of associating partners with God. He says: "(Believing in) bad omen is a form of idolatry. It may occur to anyone of us, but God clears it away when we rely totally on Him." (Related by Al-Bukhari in Al-Adab Al-Mufrad, al-Tirmithi and Abu Dawood)
This Hadith is very clear in its import. It describes bad omen as a form of idolatry, or polytheism, but it recognizes that thoughts of such nature may be quick to our minds, and points out the way to get rid of them. The first sentence is very definitive. That it was associated in old Arabian society with the direction a bird flies is indicative of its absurdity. How could a bird know future events? What has the direction of its flight signified in human language? How could it relate its knowledge to the actions of human beings, or to the people around? If the bird were to know all that, it would be far more superior to man in knowledge, when not even the people who attached their omen to its direction of flight could have credited it with that.
A report by Ikrimah, a learned scholar of the generation that followed the Prophet’s companions, mentions that Ikrimah was attending his teacher, Abdullah ibn Abbas, the Prophet’s cousin and learned companion, when a bird passed by and made some sound. A man in attendance said, "Good! Good!" Ibn Abbas said to him: "This bird has neither good nor evil to offer."
Yet people often experience some thoughts of bad omen when they hear something or see an event or an action-taking place. Should this happen, a believer must not entertain such thoughts for long. He should be quick to place his trust in God and rely on Him in all life situations. When a believer does so, all thoughts of bad omen are dispelled because a believer knows that whatever befalls us comes from God. When we place our trust in Him, He is sure to enable us to overcome difficulties and to reward us for our patience when we meet adversity. In this respect, we may recall the Hadith in which the Prophet, peace be upon him, wonders at a believer’s lot: "I wonder at a believer’s affairs, as they all end up into what is good. This applies to none other than believers. If something good comes his way, he expresses his gratitude to God, and it will be good for him; and if he experiences an adversity, he remains patient, and that will again be good for him."
So, we have to differentiate between a temporary thought, which we try to dispel by placing our trust in God, and giving in to bad omen. In the latter case, people change their plans, restrict their movement and do different things to avoid what they think bode ill for them. This is the sort of thing the Prophet, peace be upon him, warns against. The first type is often unavoidable. A man called Muawiyah ibn Hakam said to the Prophet: "I have only recently abandoned ignorant beliefs, and now God has favored us with Islam. Some of our people visit fortune-tellers." The Prophet, peace be upon him, said: "Do not visit them." The man added: "And some of us associate bad omen with certain things." The Prophet, peace be upon him, replied: "This is something that people may occasionally entertain. Let them not be deterred from their purpose." (Related by Muslim)
This Hadith clearly distinguishes temporary pessimistic thoughts from giving in to bad omen. The distinction is at its clearest when one goes ahead with whatever one is planning or what one is about to do, disregarding all negative thoughts and relying totally on God, and, on the other hand, giving in to such thoughts, changing one’s plans and purpose.
All this concerns bad omen but what about good omen? There is a clear distinction between the two, as appears in the following Hadith in which Abu Hurairah quotes the Prophet, peace be upon him, as saying: "Do not entertain bad omen. The best of it is the good one." Asked which is the good one, the Prophet, peace be upon him, answered: "A good word any of you may hear." (Related by al-Bukhari and Ahmad).
In this Hadith, the Prophet, peace be upon him, gives a clear order that finding bad omen in any sign is unacceptable in Islam. In fact it is forbidden, unless one tries to dispel its effects by placing his trust in God. Next the Prophet, peace be upon him, speaks about good omen as being the best. The comparison here is not between two good things with one being better than the other is, because there is nothing good in allowing bad omen to dictate our course of action. The comparison is merely in what we feel when something causes us to be optimistic or pessimistic about something we are embarking upon.
Besides, the Prophet, peace be upon him, explains that people normally find good omen in a good word they hear. It is not a sign by a bird or some other animal or an inanimate object. A good word may affect a person because it expresses some favorable feeling, or describes a positive situation. It is in human nature that we like fine expressions, beautiful scenes, peaceful surroundings, even when nothing of it belongs to us. Similarly, words that speak of a good thing happening to us soon are bound to have a good effect on us. We note here that such words may be without foundation, but the fact that they give us a sense of optimism is beneficial, provided that we attribute all future events to God’s will.
To give an example, a mother says to her daughter on the morning she is taking her exams, "I feel in my heart that you will do well. The daughter feels optimistic and approaches her exam in good spirits. There is nothing wrong with that, as long as the daughter does not attribute her fine results to her mother’s words or feeling.
Another Hadith that illustrates the meaning further is reported by Anas who quotes the Prophet, peace be upon him, as saying: "Do not cause disease transmission, and do not entertain bad omen. But I like hopeful optimism based on a good word." (Related by al-Bukhari and Muslim)
I recently read in Arab News an article about bad omen and that it should be shunned and paid no attention. It mentions that in pre-Islamic days, the Arabs used to let a bird fly in order to determine their course of action. If the bird flies to the right, they considered it a good omen, but if it flies to the left, that signaled a bad omen and they would not go ahead with whatever they wanted to do. But I also read about a person who wanted to travel. When he went to the travel agent, he found him closed at a time when he should not be. He took it as an indication and did not travel. Yet the first action is criticized while the second is praised. Are they not the same? Please explain.
The two actions are greatly different and could not be treated at the same level. Those Arabs in their ignorant days held the bird and then allowed it to fly believing that the direction would give them an indication whether their action will be profitable or not. Thus, they allowed the bird, or the direction it would fly, to determine their action. They also did this habitually believing that it was an infallible method of determining the result of their action. This is determining an omen and attributing knowledge of the future to the bird. Hence, it is totally unacceptable.
I know the second case personally. The man was embarking on a very serious change of his life course, and he felt that he must do the Istikhara in order to seek God’s help in choosing whether to travel or not. The Prophet, peace be upon him, has taught us to do the Istikhara before any decision of importance. When you do the Istikhara you make your choice with God’s help. How do you know which course to follow? It is by letting things go their way, and finding out what is easy and does not require much effort on your part. When this man did the Istikhara, he wanted to see which course was facilitated for him. Had he managed to book a suitable flight easily, and get a good fare, he would have traveled. On the other hand, if he found that getting a flight booked within the time range he needed was too difficult, that would have indicated something for him. The difficulty suggests that it is better not to travel. Hence, when he found the travel agent closed at a time when he is not normally closed, and this meant that he would miss the next flight, he felt that this was an indication in answer to his Istikhara. Hence, he did not travel. His is the right attitude because he made his decision with God’s help.
1. When my parents suggested that I should marry a certain girl, I did the Istikhara, and when there was no impediment, I agreed. However, my parents went to a fortuneteller and he told them that the woman is a bad omen and if I marry her I would lose my job. I tried to persuade my parents that their action is wrong, but they would not accept that. I would have challenged their position if I had not seen a Hadith in Al-Bukhari stating that bad omen could be in a woman, a house or a horse. Please comment.
2. You said in a recent article that if a person finds himself uncomfortable with his wife, horse or house, he could change them, although none of these can by themselves bring him any harm. However, if a man is entertaining such thoughts, does it not mean he thinks of them as bringing bad omen? Are we not giving a man the green signal to change his wife whenever he feels like a change? Besides, changing one‚s horse or house seems to imply lack of faith in God. On another subject, is there any verse, which we should read to avoid the effects of an envious eye?
1. There are two separate issues here. The first is that of the Hadith, which mentions that an omen may happen to be in one of three things. This is merely a statement of fact. It does not mean it is inevitable that a person may get something disastrous if he happens to marry a certain woman, live in a particular house or ride a certain horse. People may simply happen to think in a way that suggests a bad omen. But two Hadiths also related by Al-Bukhari also suggest that there is no bad omen at all, because the wording in these Hadiths is as follows: “If bad omen happens to be present, then it may be in a house, a woman and a horse.” This implies that there is no bad omen in reality; it is people who may feel that a particular house, woman or horse brings bad luck. Once again, this is a comment on what takes place in reality and how people believe. It is phrased in the conditional form to indicate disapproval of the whole idea of bad omen.
What actually happens is that people tend to attach any unfortunate event to what they did recently. If a good rider happens to have a fall, after having bought a new horse, he accuses the horse of bringing bad omen. The cause of the fall may have nothing to do with the horse, but still the thought of bad omen may persist. The same is true with marriage or buying a house. These three are so much involved in a person’s life that they become easy targets for blame of our misfortunes. This is not the way a true believer should react. A believer is one who is patient in adversity, thankful for whatever may happen to him, knowing that it is all from God. He compares his fortunes with those of people in more difficult circumstances and thanks God for His blessings.
The second issue is that of relying on fortunetellers. This is unacceptable in Islam, because it attributes to such people knowledge that does not belong to them. The Prophet, peace be upon him, describes them as liars, even when they happen to say something true. This is because they do not know it to be true when they say it. If a fortuneteller says that you will get a pay rise the following week, then he is telling a lie even if you happen to have a rise that same week, because he cannot know in advance what will happen that week. Moreover, the Prophet, peace be upon him, speaks about seeking the help of fortunetellers in highly disapproving terms. He is quoted as saying: “Whoever goes to a fortuneteller and believes him disbelieves in what has been revealed to Muhammad.” So the Prophet, peace be upon him, equates going to a fortuneteller and believing him with a rejection of the faith of Islam.
This means that the proper action for you to take is to disregard what the fortuneteller has said altogether. Since you have done the Istikhara, and there was no indication that this marriage may have problems, then you will be well advised to go ahead with it.
If you like, you may do the Istikhara again. If you encounter problems, other than your parents’ insistence on following the fortuneteller’s advice, then do not go ahead. Your decision should be based on the fact that you have done the Istikhara and you have left the choice to God. The thought of the fortuneteller and whatever rubbish he says should be banished completely from your mind. If fact, defying it while relying on God’s help and kindness will, God willing, bring you grace in abundance from God. I may go further than that and say that if you marry this woman and then you lose your job, you must not attach that to your marriage. You simply accept it as a test from God and if you pass that test, rejecting the fortuneteller and what he says, God will not fail to reward you for that. ~
2. When we have a Hadith, we try to understand it as it is. We quoted a Hadith which makes it clear that omen is mostly associated with a woman, a house or a horse. And we quoted several Hadiths which make it clear that bad omen is wrong. One must not associate adversity with anything in particular. However, people may even subconsciously think that some adversity is associated with one or the other of these three things. When such thoughts occur to a person, he or she should dispel them altogether, reminding themselves that nothing occurs except by God’s will, and that nothing has a will of its own.
However, a wife, a horse, a house and, in our modern times, a car become part of one’s day-to-day life. If one is uncomfortable with them, they may even cause problems. Therefore a change could be the best way out, provided always that one must not blame one’s wife, horse, car or house for any misfortune that befalls one. There is no lack of faith in God if one does this, because one is simply seeking what is more comfortable, and relying on God’s will. It is also necessary to guard against putting blame on any of these for one’s misfortunes, because this may bring us to bad omen, which is not allowed in Islam.
It is recommended to read the last two Surahs of the Qur’an, i.e. Surahs 113 and 114, in order to dispel the harm of an envious eye. If one fears envy from another person, one should read these two short Surahs, and it is better to repeat them three times. You may note that Surah 113 concludes with an appeal for refuge with God from the evil of an envious person.