The Ruling on Praying Behind Sorcerers

In the last question of their letter, our brother (M. A. 'A) says: In their village, there is an imam who leads them in prayer, and he engages in a matter that greatly confuses them. That matter is: when someone gets married in the village, he does not let the marriage be completed, because severe anger arises between the bride and groom. They are told: "Go to this shaykh so he can make a paper for them and they will reconcile." When the shaykh comes, he brings books from the jinn and the humans and reads from them. He rubs the heads of the bride and groom with perfumed oil and brings red ink, saying: "Soak this ink in water and drink it." Then he says: "Bring me a hen so I can slaughter it." He takes its blood and puts it on the heads of the bride and groom. After that, the anger subsides. Your Eminence, the Shaykh, please continue describing this method that this man follows, and please guide the people in that area.
Answer: This work that this man does is nonsense, error, and mistake, and a deception of the people with no basis or foundation of truth. Rather, it is obligatory for one who feels some anger to seek refuge in Allah from Satan until his anger subsides. It is prescribed for him to perform wudu, the lawful wudu, as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) commanded; because Satan was created from fire, and fire is extinguished by water, and anger is from Satan. So the believer does the lawful things: he seeks refuge in Allah from the accursed Satan, and he performs wudu; this is prescribed. Also, among the causes of extinguishing anger is that if he is standing, he sits, or if he is sitting, he lies down, or he leaves the place until the anger subsides.
As for what this shaykh does of smearing their heads with oil or the blood of the hen or other things he says, all of this has no basis. It is all error, all deception and trickery with no basis. And if the intention of slaughtering the hen is for the jinn, it becomes major shirk, meaning: slaughtering it for the jinn, seeking nearness to the jinn, becomes major shirk. In the authentic hadith: And Allah the Exalted says: meaning: My slaughter has no partner with Him [Al-An'am: 162-163]. And He the Exalted says: So pray to your Lord and sacrifice [Al-Kawthar: 1-2]. And the sacrifice is the slaughter.
So the point is: this work that this man does is wrong. They should turn away from it and not accept it from him, and they should advise him. If he does not accept the advice, they should agree on another person to lead them in prayer, and not let this man lead them; because this man is accused of shirk. His work of slaughtering the hen suggests much evil.
So the result is: a man like this should not be their imam if he does not repent. If he repents, praise be to Allah. Otherwise, they should remove him and seek another imam for their mosque, and not turn to him in the matter of if something of anger or harshness occurs between the bride and groom. They should not turn to him, but rather treat what is between the bride and groom by other means, by advice, by guidance, by reciting the Qur'an. If it is a type of illness, meaning: something has befallen them that stops the husband from his wife, this is treated by reciting the Qur'an for him. He recites for him [Al-Kafirun: 1] ... [Al-Ikhlas: 1] and the two Mu'awwidhat (chapters of protection) and the Verse of the Throne, and the verses of sorcery from Surat Al-A'raf, Surat Yunus, and Surat Ta-Ha. He drinks from that and sprinkles himself with that, and what may befall him of prevention and confinement is removed.
So the result is: this may happen to some people, where they are prevented from their wives. It is treated with the Qur'an and lawful medicines. As for the work of this man, it is invalid work. Yes.
The presenter: May Allah reward you.