Today’s Friday sermon has called on people to distance themselves from sorcerers and soothsayers, warning that if a person goes to such a figure and asks about something — even for the purpose of seeking a cure for illness or merely out of curiosity — that person’s prayers will not be accepted for 40 days.

Today’s sermon, dedicated to the topic “The evil of practising sorcery,” highlighted the dangerous harms that come even to those who go to sorcerers seeking a cure.

The sermon cited a hadith of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. The meaning of the hadith is: “Whoever goes to a soothsayer and asks him about something, his prayers will not be accepted for forty days.” The sermon also stated that whoever believes what a sorcerer or soothsayer says has disbelieved in what was revealed to the Prophet.

Noting that sorcerers who work under the guise of providing cures cause great strife among individuals, families and society, the sermon called on people not to fall for such things and destroy their faith. It further stated that the strongest shield against the dangers of sorcery is to place complete trust in Allah and to supplicate to Him.

The sermon said that no matter what sorcery a sorcerer performs, nothing can afflict a person except what Allah has decreed for them, and this must be believed with certainty. In this regard, the sermon stated that it is not appropriate for Muslims to attribute causes such as a dream one sees, a pain in the body, a child’s poor academic results, or a delay in someone’s marriage to sorcery.

The sermon said the creed of Muslims is to believe that every blessing and every hardship comes by the decree of Allah, and that performing the five obligatory prayers on time, being diligent with the morning and evening supplications, and increasing the recitation of the Qur’an in the home — especially Surah Al-Baqarah — closes the paths of Satan and dispels the doubts in one’s heart.

Noting that if one seeks treatment, one must go through the authentic path of sharia-compliant ruqya established in the Sunnah, the sermon also clarified what those performing sharia-compliant ruqya will and will not do. It stated that sharia-compliant ruqya is treatment carried out using verses of the Qur’an and supplications and remembrances established from the Prophet ﷺ, and does not include any secret recitations or unknown words.

The sermon also said that a person performing ruqya correctly will not ask for the names of one’s parents, will not instruct one to carry unknown pieces of cloth, amulets or pieces of paper, and will not ask for a sacrifice to be made to anything other than Allah or for anything else contrary to the teachings of the religion. The sermon called on people not to follow such things, saying these are the acts of sorcerers.