world and the stars

What Islam Says About Horoscopes

News today was not even worth reading! Let me check my horoscope and see what the stars have in store for me today!” Really? Do you really think a star can govern your life and is generous enough to let you know about it beforehand?!

What Is A Horoscope?

A horoscope is an astrological chart or diagram representing the positions of the Sun, Moon, planets, astrological aspects, and sensitive angles at the time of an event, such as the moment of a person’s birth. In common usage, horoscope often refers to an astrologer’s interpretation, usually based on a system of solar Sun sign astrology.

Why Horoscopes Are Wrong?

horoscope and islam

Reading horoscopes risks our emaan and breaks the foundation of our belief in Allah. Horoscopes claim to predict our future when a fundamental aspect of our belief is that no one knows the future except Allah.

Allah says (meaning in English):

“Say: None in the heavens and the earth knows the ghayb except Allah, nor can they perceive when they shall be resurrected.”  [Surah Al-Naml: 65]

Believing in horoscopes is an act of Shirk. We are giving the attribute of knowing the future and unseen to some created beings, which, in reality only belongs to Allah. [Also read: In Allah We Trust: What Tawakkul Really Means]

Allah’s Perfect Knowledge

Allah says:

“And with Him are the keys to the Ghayb (all that is hidden), none knows them but He and He knows whatever there is in [or on) the earth and the sea; not a leaf falls, but He knows it. There is not a grain in darkness of the earth nor anything fresh or day, but is written in a clear record.”  [Surah Al-Ana’am: 59]

Ponder upon this beautiful verse! There is nothing hidden at all from the sight and knowledge of Allah.

We can’t even accomplish to count the number of leaves on a single tree, but nothing escapes Allah’s knowledge. He not only knows about the leaves falling, but it is all written down as well. Subhan Allah!

The Prophet ﷺ Did Not Know Unseen

Allah told the Prophet ﷺ to inform:

“Say, I hold not for myself (the power of) benefit or harm, except what Allah has willed. And if I knew the unseen, I could have acquired much wealth, and no harm would have touched me. I am not except a warner and bringer of good tidings to a people who believe.”  [Surah Al-A’raaf: 188]

horoscope and islam

Even our beloved Prophet Muhammad ﷺ did not have knowledge of the unseen except what Allah revealed to him. He ﷺ only spoke and said what Allah revealed to him.

When Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, the most honored of all creation, did not know the future, then how can some ordinary star or man know?

Qadr: A Pillar Of Emaan

In the famous hadeeth of Jibreel, the Prophet ﷺ said Emaan is “that you affirm your faith in Allah, in His angels, in His Books, in His Apostles, in the Day of Judgment, and you affirm your faith in the Divine Decree about good and evil.[Sahih Muslim]

A pillar of emaan is that we believe in the Qadr (destiny), the good and bad. Sheikh Ibn Al-Uthaimeen explained belief in Qadr as:

“The belief that Allah knew everything on the whole and in detail which took place in the past, is taking or will take in the future and forever, whether it is related to His actions or the actions of His Ibaad (creatures).” [1]

Believing in horoscopes hinders our belief in Qadr[Also read: How To Understand Allah’s Will And Decree]

Dr Bilal Philips says,

“Those who practice astrology are also in Kufr because they claim knowledge of the future which is known to Allah. By attributing to themselves some of Allah’s divine qualities of knowledge, they falsely offer those who believe in them an opportunity to avoid harm which Allah has destined for them and to gain good which Allah has not destined for them.” [2]

Astrology Is Shirk And Kufr

Zaid bin Khalid narrated:

horoscope and islam

“The Messenger of Allah ﷺ led the morning prayer at Hudaybiya. There were some marks of the rainfall during the night. At the conclusion of prayer he turned towards people and observed: ‘Do you know what your Lord has said?‘ They replied: ‘Allah and His Messenger know best.’ Upon this he (the Holy Prophet) remarked: He (Allah) said:

‘Some of My slaves entered the morning as My believers and some as unbelievers. He who said: We have had a rainfall due to the Blessing and Mercy of Allah, he is My believer and a disbeliever of stars, and who said: We have had a rainfall due to the rising of such and such (star) disbelieved Me and affirmed his faith in the stars.’[Sahih Al-Bukhari and Muslim]

Shah Ismail Shaheed said regarding this hadith,

“It means that the one who cherishes a belief that the stars (which are merely a creation of Allah) exercise their influence in the matters of the universe, Allah considers such a person as one who negates Him. Such a person is none but a star-worshipper.”

He also writes,

“Thus, we understand that believing in propitious and unpropitious hours, making an enquiry as to which day or date is auspicious or inauspicious and giving one’s credit to the observations of an astrologer are the activities which open the door to Shirk.”

horoscope and islam

Reading, practicing and learning horoscopes or astrology is forbidden in Islam. Ibn Abbas narrated from the Prophet ﷺ, “Whoever acquires knowledge of any branch of astrology, has acquired knowledge of a branch of magic. The more he increases in that knowledge the more he increases in sin.[Sunan Abu Dawood and Ibn Majah]

Prophet ﷺ said, “The salah (daily prayer) of whoever approaches a fortune-teller and asks him about anything will not be accepted for forty days and nights.[Sahih Muslim]

Dr Bilal Philips says

“If, however, one believes in the predictions of their horoscope, whether spoken by an astrologer or written in books of astrology, he falls directly into Kufr (disbelief) as stated by the Prophet ﷺ: ‘Whoever approaches an oracle or fortune teller has disbelieved in what was revealed to Muhammad.[Sunan Abu Dawud]

The astrologer’s claim is just as opposed to the Tawheed as the ordinary fortune-teller. He claims that people’s personalities are determined by the stars, and their future actions and the events of their lives are written in the stars.” [3]

Scholars On Horoscopes

Shaikh bin Baaz said,

“I state that astrology, horoscopes, and fortune telling are all practices of Jahiliyyah that Islam came to remove. They fall under shirk, for they include adhering to other than Allah and believing in the existence of a support of other than Him.

They also include believing fortune-tellers and soothsayers who falsely claim to have the knowledge of Ghayb (the Unseen), and manipulate the minds of inexperienced and naive people to embezzle their money and spoil their creeds.” [4]

Sheikh Muhammad Saleh al-Munnajid said, “The one who reads the horoscopes in newspapers and magazines and believes what they say about the influence of the stars and planets is a Mushrik, and the one who reads them for entertainment is a Sinner, because it is not permitted to entertain oneself by reading things that contain shirk, because Shaytaan will try to lead him to shirk through this.” [5]

Conclusion

Subhan Allah, we are only harming ourselves by believing in horoscopes. Horoscopes have no power and bring no benefit. We are ripping apart our emaan, threatening our soul to Shirk and also making our worship worthless. [Also read: Book Review: Belief In Allah By Umar Al-Ashqar]

Let us not forget that Allah is our Lord and He has perfect knowledge of the hidden and the apparent. He is sufficient for us. Let us seek His guidance and turn to Him for help for all our troubles.

May Allah preserve us all from the acts of shirk. Ameen.

References:
[1] Explaining the Fundamentals of Faith by Muhammad bin Saleh al- Uthaimeen, pg 99. Islamic Dawah and guidance center, Dammam publication.
[2]  The Fundamentals of Tawheed, by Dr Abu Ameen Bilal Philips, pg 88
[3]  The Fundmentals of Tawheed by Dr Abu Ameena Bilal Philips, pg 95-96
[4]  Fatawas of Bin Baaz. Volume 2, pg 123
[5]  https://www.kalamullah.com/forbidden.html#7

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