From `Abdul `Aziz Bin `Abdullah Ibn Baz to Muslims all over the world, may Allah guide me and all Muslims to be steadfast adherents of His religion! Amen!
May Allah's Peace, Mercy, and Blessings be upon you!
Some Muslims asked me about what is done by some ignorant people who invoke other than Allah (Exalted be He) and beseech their helps during misfortunes such as appealing to the jinn for help, offering sacrifices to them, and so on. These people may say: "Oh seven (i.e. seven of the jinn), take him". They may say: "Oh seven, do so and so to him," "break his bones," "drink his blood," or "torture him". Some ignorant people may say, "Take him, oh jinn of the noon" or "Take him, oh jinn of the afternoon." This happens in the southern districts. Similarly, they may invoke the dead from among the prophets, righteous people and others. They also may ask the angels for help. Such practices are done by those who regard themselves as Muslims out of ignorance and imitation of previous generations. Some people justify such practices saying that they never mean or believe in these statements but they just say them.
In addition, they asked me about the ruling on marrying from those who are known for doing such practices, the ruling on eating their slaughtered animals, offering the funeral prayer for them, and offering prayers behind them. Also, they asked about the ruling on believing fortunetellers and soothsayers who claim the knowledge of diseases and their causes by looking over an article of clothing that was touched by the patient's body such as one's turban, pants, or scarf.
Answer: All praise is due to Allah Alone! May peace and blessings upon the Last Prophet, upon his family, Companions, and those who follow their guidance until the Day of Recompense!
Allah (may He be Praised) has created the jinn and the human beings to worship Him Alone and to resort to Him Alone for help. Also, He has created them to single Him out with their sacrifices, vows, and other acts of worship. Allah (Glorified be He) sent prophets (may peace be upon them) to establish the fundamentals of religion. He (Exalted be He) sent down the holy books, the greatest of which is the Qur'an, to explain the fundamentals of religion, invite people to them, and warn people against associating others in worship along with Allah (Exalted be He). These fundamentals are regarded as the most important of all Islamic fundamentals
and are the basis for our religion. This is the meaning of the testimony that there is no deity but Allah. This testimony of faith means that none should be worshipped but Allah (Exalted be He). It detracts worship from other than Allah and directs it to Allah Alone. There is so much evidence from the Qur'an and the Prophetic Sunnah on this point.
And I (Allâh) created not the jinn and mankind except that they should worship Me (Alone).
And your Lord has decreed that you worship none but Him.
And they were commanded not, but that they should worship Allâh, and worship none but Him Alone (abstaining from ascribing partners to Him)
And your Lord said: "Invoke Me, [i.e. believe in My Oneness (Islâmic Monotheism) and ask Me for anything] I will respond to your (invocation). Verily! Those who scorn My worship [i.e. do not invoke Me, and do not believe in My Oneness, (Islâmic Monotheism)] they will surely enter Hell in humiliation!"
And when My slaves ask you (O Muhammad ﺻﻠﻰ ﺍﷲ ﻋﻠﻴﻪ ﻭﺳﻠﻢ) concerning Me, then (answer them), I am indeed near (to them by My Knowledge). I respond to the invocations of the supplicant when he calls on Me (without any mediator or intercessor).
Allah (may He be Praised) shows in these Ayahs (Qur'anic Verses) that He has created the jinn and mankind to worship Him Alone. Moreover, He has decreed that none should be worshipped but Him Alone.
Say (O Muhammad ﺻﻠﻰ ﺍﷲ ﻋﻠﻴﻪ ﻭﺳـﻠﻢ): "Verily, my Salât (prayer), my sacrifice, my living, and my dying are for Allâh, the Lord of the 'Alamîn (mankind, jinn and all that exists). He has no partner. And of this I have been commanded, and I am the first of the Muslims."
"Allah has cursed the one who slaughters (a sacrifice) to other than Allah…."
Two men passed by a people who had an idol to which an offering had to be made by whoever passed by that idol. The people asked one of the two persons to give some offering, he said that he had nothing to offer; they told him to offer anything even a small fly; so the man gave a fly as an offering and he was allowed to pass, so his doom would be the HellFire. The second person was also asked to do accordingly but he refused affirming that he will not offer anything to anyone other than Allah. On his refusal, those people beheaded and killed him and his ultimate abode was Paradise.
be He). Allah (Exalted be He) says: And if an evil whisper comes to you from Shaitân (Satan), then seek refuge with Allâh. Verily, He is AllHearer, AllKnower.
Say: "I seek refuge with (Allâh), the Lord of the daybreak,
Say: "I seek refuge with (Allâh) the Lord of mankind,
"When anyone lands at a place, and then says: 'I seek refuge in the Perfect Word of Allah from the evil of what He has created,' nothing will harm him until he marches from that stopping place."
Accordingly, those who seek to be steadfast adherents of their religion and be over all major and minor forms of Shirk should know that invoking the dead, the angels, the jinn, and other creatures, appealing to them for help and taking shelter with them are practices of the the Mushriks of the preIslamic period and the worst of all forms of associating other partners in worship along with Allah (Glorified be He).
Supplication (du'a') is itself worship.
And do not marry AlMushrikât (idolatresses, etc.) till they believe (worship Allâh Alone). And indeed a slave woman who believes is better than a (free) Mushrikah (idolatress), even though she pleases you.
Then, Allah (Exalted be He) explains the reason for this ruling by saying: Those (AlMushrikûn) invite you to the Fire This means that Allah (Exalted be He) forbids Muslims to be related by marriage to those who associate partners in worship with Allah (Exalted be He) as they invite to the Fire through their sayings, deeds, daily activities, and manners.
And never (O Muhammad ﺻﻠﻰ ﺍﷲ ﻋﻠﻴﻪ ﻭﺳﻠﻢ) pray (funeral prayer) for any of them (hypocrites) who dies, nor stand at his grave. Certainly they disbelieved in Allâh and His Messenger, and died while they were Fâsiqûn (rebellious, disobedient to Allâh and His Messenger ﺻﻠﻰ ﺍﷲ ﻋﻠﻴﻪ ﻭﺳﻠﻢ).
Eat not (O believers) of that (meat) on which Allâh's Name has not been pronounced (at the time of the slaughtering of the animal), for sure it is Fisq (a sin and disobedience of Allâh).
Allah (may He be Exalted and Glorified) forbids Muslims to eat the meat of dead animals and the sacrifices offered by those who associate other partners in worship along with Him, as such sacrifices are impure and take the ruling on the meat of dead animals even if the Name of Allah is pronounced over them.
The food (slaughtered cattle, eatable animals) of the people of the Scripture (Jews and Christians) is lawful to you and yours is lawful to them.
If a person says to another, "May a jinni take you!" and the like, these statements are regarded as insults which should not be uttered by Muslims like any other insult. Such insulting statements are not regarded as forms of Shirk unless the person uttering those words while believing that the jinn can do harm to people without Allah's Permission and Will.
Say (O Muhammad ﺻﻠﻰ ﺍﷲ ﻋﻠﻴﻪ ﻭﺳﻠﻢ): "I possess no power over benefit or harm to myself except as Allâh wills. If I had the knowledge of the Ghaib (Unseen), I should have secured for myself an abundance of wealth, and no evil should have touched me. I am but a warner, and a bringer of glad tidings unto people who believe."