Assalamo Alaikum,
Adil Salahi, Saudi Arabia.
Questions and comments can be e-mailed to Br. Salahi at: [email protected] ]
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”.
Needless to say, 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 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-Tirmidhi 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 signify 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 much 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 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 bodes ill for them. This is
the sort of thing the Prophet 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
said: “Do not visit them.” The man added: “And some of us associate bad
omen with certain things.” The Prophet 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 Hurayrah quotes the Prophet as saying: “Do not entertain bad omen.
The best of it is the good one.” Asked which is the good one, the
Prophet answered: “A good word any of you may hear.” (Related by
al-Bukhari and Ahmad).
In this Hadith, the Prophet 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 speaks about good omen as being the best. The comparative here
is not between two good things with one being better than the other,
because there is nothing good in allowing bad omen to dictate our course
of action. The comparative is merely in what we feel when something
causes us to be optimistic or pessimistic about something we are
embarking upon.
Besides, the Prophet 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 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)