What is known as al-Hawi
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Fatwa number ( 18787 )
Q: We ask you to answer this important question, which is: What is the ruling on al-Hawi ? Knowing that al-Hawi has characteristics, among which are: 1- Al-Hawi is a man who, when he was an infant, had a dead scorpion placed with the milk of his mother’s breast, or the dead scorpion was placed on the breast only, and they say that by this the child—namely al-Hawi—acquires immunity against scorpions, snakes, and worms, so they do not bite him or harm him. 2- Al-Hawi is not bitten by scorpions, snakes, or worms, and nothing affects him. 3- If al-Hawi spits on the one who has been bitten, he is cured of the poison by al-Hawi’s saliva alone. 4- If al-Hawi urinates or spits on a scorpion or snake, it dies immediately, but the quality in al-Hawi is taken from him, so he becomes like the rest of people; therefore, al-Hawi does not spit on a scorpion or a snake, nor does he kill a snake or a scorpion. 5- If al-Hawi is in a gathering and there is a scorpion or a snake in it, he draws a circle on the ground around the scorpion or the snake, so it cannot get out of it, even if it dies inside it. 6- If an adult man wants to become al-Hawi, he must go
to al-Hawi to be made al-Hawi. 7- Some say there is a dhikr in which the worms are addressed, and some say his father is the one who recites the dhikr to his son when he places the dead scorpion on him when he is small. I have described to you its complete form according to what those who know al-Hawi told me. So we ask you to answer to end the dispute and remove the difficulty. May Allah protect you.
A: It is established from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) from the hadith of Khawlah bint Hakim that she said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said:Sahih Muslim 2708a It was narrated by Muslim in (his Sahih). And what was narrated by Imran ibn Husayn that he said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Jami` at-Tirmidhi 2057Sahih (Darussalam) It was narrated by Ahmad. And what is meant by al-hammah is that which has poison, whether a snake or a scorpion. And what was narrated by Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) that she said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to say in ruqyah: Sahih al-Bukhari 5745 It was narrated by al-Bukhari. So these
hadiths indicate that repelling the harm of those that have poison and the like is only by the lawful ruqyah, which is seeking refuge in Allah alone, turning to Him, and believing that He is the One who benefits and harms, and none other. And what indicates this is what was reported in (the Sahihs of al-Bukhari and Muslim )Sahih al-Bukhari 2276. And this is the wording
al-Bukhari. And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to seek protection for al-Hasan and al-Husayn, as is reported from him in the hadith of Ibn 'Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both), who said: It was narrated by al-Bukhari and Muslim and al-Tirmidhi and Abu Dawud and Ibn Majah and Ahmad . The nature of snakes, scorpions, and the like is to harm human beings; for this reason, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) described them as "waswaq" (vermin) in his saying: Sunan an-Nasa'i 2881Sahih (Darussalam) He mentioned among them the snake and the scorpion. Therefore, what those charlatans claim, namely that they are able, through the things mentioned in the question, to transform these harmful venomous creatures into tame, peaceful ones, and that they can control them and contain them by preventing them from leaving a place, or that their saliva alone cures anyone struck by their venom, and that they do not harm the handler or sting him, as well as what they claim about milking a mother snake's breast onto a dead scorpion and giving it to a child so that the child acquires immunity against scorpions and snakes—all of this is lying and fabrication, a type of superstition, seeking the aid of Shayatins (Satan) and relying on the jinn, cooperating with them in sin and transgression, and deceiving the common people and those of weak
minds, and some of them claiming to be awliya (close friends of Allah) based on what happens through their hands in these matters. So it is not permissible to be deceived by them or misled by their words; rather, it is obligatory to disapprove of them and stay away from them, warn people of their evil, and believe that they are people of religious innovation and misguidance. And success is from Allah, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad and his family and his Companions.
Q: We ask you to answer this important question, which is: What is the ruling on al-Hawi ? Knowing that al-Hawi has characteristics, among which are: 1- Al-Hawi is a man who, when he was an infant, had a dead scorpion placed with the milk of his mother’s breast, or the dead scorpion was placed on the breast only, and they say that by this the child—namely al-Hawi—acquires immunity against scorpions, snakes, and worms, so they do not bite him or harm him. 2- Al-Hawi is not bitten by scorpions, snakes, or worms, and nothing affects him. 3- If al-Hawi spits on the one who has been bitten, he is cured of the poison by al-Hawi’s saliva alone. 4- If al-Hawi urinates or spits on a scorpion or snake, it dies immediately, but the quality in al-Hawi is taken from him, so he becomes like the rest of people; therefore, al-Hawi does not spit on a scorpion or a snake, nor does he kill a snake or a scorpion. 5- If al-Hawi is in a gathering and there is a scorpion or a snake in it, he draws a circle on the ground around the scorpion or the snake, so it cannot get out of it, even if it dies inside it. 6- If an adult man wants to become al-Hawi, he must go
to al-Hawi to be made al-Hawi. 7- Some say there is a dhikr in which the worms are addressed, and some say his father is the one who recites the dhikr to his son when he places the dead scorpion on him when he is small. I have described to you its complete form according to what those who know al-Hawi told me. So we ask you to answer to end the dispute and remove the difficulty. May Allah protect you.
A: It is established from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) from the hadith of Khawlah bint Hakim that she said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
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 would harm him until he marches from that stopping place.
من نزل منزلاً فقال: أعوذ بكلمات الله التامات من شر ما خلق، لم يضره شيء حتى يرتحل من منزله ذلكNo Ruqyah except for the (evil) eye and the scorpion sting.
لا رقية إلا من عين أو حمةIn the Name of Allah The earth of our land and the saliva of some of us cure our patient.
بسم الله تربة أرضنا، بريقة بعضنا، يشفى سقيمنا، بإذن ربناhadiths indicate that repelling the harm of those that have poison and the like is only by the lawful ruqyah, which is seeking refuge in Allah alone, turning to Him, and believing that He is the One who benefits and harms, and none other. And what indicates this is what was reported in (the Sahihs of al-Bukhari and Muslim )
Narrated Abu Sa`id: Some of the companions of the Prophet (ﷺ) went on a journey till they reached some of the 'Arab tribes (at night). They asked the latter to treat them as their guests but they refused. The chief of that tribe was then bitten by a snake (or stung by a scorpion) and they tried their best to cure him but in vain. Some of them said (to the others), "Nothing has benefited him, will you go to the people who resided here at night, it may be that some of them might possess something (as treatment)," They went to the group of the companions (of the Prophet (ﷺ) ) and said, "Our chief has been bitten by a snake (or stung by a scorpion) and we have tried everything but he has not benefited. Have you got anything (useful)?" One of them replied, "Yes, by Allah! I can recite a Ruqya, but as you have refused to accept us as your guests, I will not recite the Ruqya for you unless you fix for us some wages for it." They agrees to pay them a flock of sheep. One of them then went and recited (Surat-ul-Fatiha): 'All the praises are for the Lord of the Worlds' and puffed over the chief who became all right as if he was released from a chain, and got up and started walking, showing no signs of sickness. They paid them what they agreed to pay. Some of them (i.e. the companions) then suggested to divide their earnings among themselves, but the one who performed the recitation said, "Do not divide them till we go to the Prophet (ﷺ) and narrate the whole story to him, and wait for his order." So, they went to Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) and narrated the story. Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) asked, "How did you come to know that Suratul- Fatiha was recited as Ruqya?" Then he added, "You have done the right thing. Divide (what you have earned) and assign a share for me as well." The Prophet (ﷺ) smiled thereupon.
عن أبي سعيد الخدري رضي الله عنه قال: انطلق نفر من أصحاب النبي - صلى الله عليه وسلم - في سفرة سافروها، حتى نزلوا على حي من أحياء العرب، فاستضافوهم فأبوا أن يضيفوهم، فلُدِغ سيد ذلك الحي، فسعوا له بكل شيء، لا ينفعه شيء. فقال بعضهم: لو أتيتم هؤلاء الرهط الذين نزلوا لعله أن يكون عند بعضهم شيء. فأتوهم فقالوا: يا أيها الرهط: إن سيدنا لُدِغ، وسعينا له بكل شيء لا ينفعه، فهل عند أحد منكم من شيء؟ فقال بعضهم: نعم والله، إني لأرقي، ولكن والله لقد استضفناكم فلم تُضيفونا، فما أنا براقٍ لكم حتى تجعلوا لنا جعلاً. فصالحوهم على قطيع من الغنم. فانطلق يتفل عليه ويقرأ (الحمد لله رب العالمين) فكأنما نشط من عقال، فانطلق يمشي وما به قَلَبة. قال: فأوفوهم جُعلهم الذي صالحوهم عليه. فقال بعضهم: اقسموا. فقال الذي رقى: لا تفعلوا حتى نأتي النبي - صلى الله عليه وسلم - فنذكر له الذي كان فننظر ما يأمرنا. فقدموا على رسول الله - صلى الله عليه وسلم - فذكروا له، فقال: وما يدريك أنها رُقية؟ ثم قال: قد أصبتم، اقسموا واضربوا لي معكم سهمًا، فضحك النبي صلى الله عليه وسلمal-Bukhari. And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to seek protection for al-Hasan and al-Husayn, as is reported from him in the hadith of Ibn 'Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both), who said:
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to seek protection for al-Hasan and al-Husayn and say: Your father used to seek protection for Ismail and Ishaq with these, I seek protection for you with the perfect words of Allah from every Shaytan and every poisonous creature, and from every evil eye.
كان النبي - صلى الله عليه وسلم - يعوِّذ الحسن والحسين ويقول: إن أباكما كان يعوذ بهما إسماعيل وإسحاق، أعيذكما بكلمات الله التامة من كل شيطان وهامَّة، ومن كل عين لامَّةThere are five kinds of vermin which may be killed out and inside the Haram
خمس فواسق يُقتلن في الحل والحرمminds, and some of them claiming to be awliya (close friends of Allah) based on what happens through their hands in these matters. So it is not permissible to be deceived by them or misled by their words; rather, it is obligatory to disapprove of them and stay away from them, warn people of their evil, and believe that they are people of religious innovation and misguidance. And success is from Allah, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad and his family and his Companions.
Source
www.alifta.gov.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.