What does Islam say about superstitions?

Question

I'm hoping for a detailed answer with quotes from the Quran that show superstitions are fake, I've read about the bird superstitions a long time ago but does the Quran only cover that one superstition? Or all superstitions? Thank you for all your answers Jazākallāh.

Answer 1

The Qur'an strongly opposes various superstitious beliefs. Believing Fortunetellers and Astrologers is listed as major sin #46 in Al-Dhahabi's Major Sins (pdf); this is supported by Qur'an verses such as:

And do not pursue that of which you have no knowledge. Indeed, the hearing, the sight and the heart - about all those [one] will be questioned.
_{Qur'an 17:36}

[He is] Knower of the unseen, and He does not disclose His [knowledge of the] unseen to anyone
_{Qur'an 72:26}

Other Qur'an verses are also negative towards superstitious beliefs:

Indeed, Allah [alone] has knowledge of the Hour and sends down the rain and knows what is in the wombs. And no soul perceives what it will earn tomorrow, and no soul perceives in what land it will die. Indeed, Allah is Knowing and Acquainted.
_{Qur'an 31:34}

O you who have believed, indeed, intoxicants, gambling, [sacrificing on] stone alters [to other than Allah ], and divining arrows are but defilement from the work of Satan, so avoid it that you may be successful.
_{Qur'an 5:90}

There's probably more examples I haven't listed above.

The Qur'an doesn't enumerate all possible superstitions. Nevertheless, scholars generally describe all superstitions as bad, e.g. AskImam, MuftiOnline, IslamWeb.

Answer 2

In the name of God, the Most Merciful, the Most Kind.

Answer:

Your question: What does Islam say about superstitions?

As per What does Islam have to say about superstitions?:

Superstitions have been the bane of nations throughout the ages. They are almost as bad as idolatry as they involve false beliefs in things that have no real power. Although some superstitions seem innocuous, they can also become exceedingly dangerous, especially when put into the minds of ignoramuses who take it as Bible Truth. This is especially so among certain peoples of the East. There superstitious people can do some really terrible things like believing that seeing widows or blind people will bring them bad luck. Some even kill their own offspring if they happen to be born under the ‘wrong star’.

Islam prohibits all types of superstitious beliefs, because it attributes to people or things that which is rightly God’s. Take for instance astrology which is widespread in many parts of the world and even in the West. It supposes that the stars influence people’s future. In some parts of Asia like India, people believe in auspicious times to embark on a venture. Even politicians take astrology very seriously, especially when elections draw near, doing everything within their means to stay in line with the positions of the planets, with which their personal fortunes are believed to ebb and rise.

In addition, from the same blog:

Not only does one’s mental and physical health suffer, but also one’s spiritual life. Why, because superstitions can open the door to polytheism. Satan preys on the fear of people who always fear for their future. Why, because man’s knowledge is limited. He does not even know what will happen tomorrow. As we are told in the Qur’an:”No soul knows what it will earn tomorrow” (Luqman:34). So Satan has a field day playing around with superstitious folk, making them fear things which need not be feared and keeping them away from striving for the good things in life, and worst of all preventing them from placing their trust in God and God alone.

This is why Islam regards belief in superstitions as a sign of disbelief in God. In fact superstition itself arises out of a lack of faith in God. If he were to fear God, will he fear other things? Certainly not! But if a man fears not God, then he will certainly fear other things. That is the nature of man. Superstition also goes against the Islamic view that knowledge of the future is the preserve of God alone. Not a leaf falls from a tree or a raindrop from the sky but He has full knowledge of it. While the eye of the Muslim is ever on the look out for signs of God’s Grace in the realm of Nature, we do not take these signs themselves as our deities or destinies portending good or evil. As Muslims we hold that whatever befalls us comes from God. That is why we always say Insha Allah (God Willing) when we express a desire for the future. It is God alone who can bring about good or prevent harm, for He Himself tells us:

”And if God touches you with harm, none can remove it but Him, and if He touches you with good, then He is able to do all things” (The Cattle:17)

Also prophet Muhammad said:

”(Believing in) bad omen is (a form of) polytheism.” (Aboo Dawood)

If for example, you see a black cat that will cut off your path, and you start to think that will bring you bad, then I have a message for you. God Almighty Says:

”That is only Satan who frightens [you] of his supporters. So fear them not, but fear Me, if you are [indeed] believers.” (3:175)

As per Prophet Muhammad's Attitude Toward Superstitions:

The Prophet forbade consulting soothsayers who claimed to predict the future of children by looking at their physical features, or foretell the future by looking at a glass full of water, the sun, or a piece of crystal. Prophet Muhammad said "Do not go to soothsayers." One day, Muawiyya b.Hakem as-Sulaim, one of the Companions of the Prophet, said to him, "We were going to soothsayers in the period of ignorance before Islam. We would find out if something was an ill omen for us or not." The Prophet told his Companions not to believe what the soothsayers were saying, and advised them to do whatever they intended to do, regardless of what a soothsayer might say to them. When a group of people asked the Prophet about soothsayers, he replied, "Soothsayers are nothing." He also explained, "Anyone who acknowledges a soothsayer or a stargazer by consulting them would be assumed as having rejected the Quran." Only God can see everyone’s future perfectly and no one can.

CONCLUSION: Islam is against all kind of superstitions.

I hope that I gave you good answer.

References:

1) http://www.lastprophet.info/prophet-muhammads-attitude-toward-superstitions-

2) https://asiffhussein.com/2015/12/14/what-does-islam-have-to-say-about-superstitions/