Whatsihris—andtheproofitisreal

Before anything can be said about treating sihr, it helps to know exactly what the word means, how the scholars defined it, and why the overwhelming majority of Muslim scholars held that sihr is real — not merely a trick of the mind.

What the word means

In the Arabic language, sihr covers anything whose cause is subtle and hidden. The Prophet ﷺ said, “Indeed, some eloquence is sihr” — meaning that fine speech can sway hearts in a way the listener cannot quite trace. Saharahu also means “he deceived him”; the Quran relates the disbelievers saying to their prophets, “You are only of those affected by magic” — that is, the deceived.

The early language scholar al-Azhari wrote: “Sihr is a work by which one draws near to Shaytan, and with his help. The root of sihr is turning a thing away from its reality to something else — as if the sorcerer, when he shows falsehood in the form of truth and presents a thing as other than it really is, has ‘turned’ the thing from its true face.”

Shamir related that the Arabs called it sihr “because it turns health into sickness, and hatred into love.” Sihr was sometimes even called tibb (medicine), and a bewitched person matbub — Abu ‘Ubaydah said they used the word hopefully, as a good omen of recovery; others said it was because tibb also means skill, and the sorcerer’s craft was noticed for its cunning.

The Quran also uses the word jibt, which ‘Umar, Ibn ‘Abbas, Abu al-‘Aliyah and al-Sha‘bi explained as sihr — though some said jibt is broader, covering soothsaying, fortune-telling and astrology as well.

How the scholars define it

The jurists differed widely in defining sihr — largely because its nature and effects are so hidden. A few of their definitions:

• Al-Baydawi: “What is meant by sihr is that which is obtained by seeking nearness to Shaytan, and with his assistance — something a person cannot accomplish alone, and which is only granted to one who resembles him in wickedness and foulness of soul. As for the marvels of tricksters, machines, drugs and sleight of hand — these are not blameworthy; calling them sihr is a loose usage, because of their subtlety.”
• The Fatawa Hamidiyyah (quoted by al-Tahanawi): “Sihr is a kind of knowledge drawn from the properties of substances and from calculations concerning the risings of the stars. From these the sorcerer makes a figure in the image of the bewitched person, watches for a particular astrological moment, joins to it words of disbelief and obscenity contrary to the Shariah, and by this reaches the point of seeking help from the devils — and from the whole of that, strange states appear in the bewitched person.”
• Al-Qalyubi: “Sihr, in the Shariah, is the practice by wicked souls of words or deeds from which extraordinary things arise.”
• The Hanbali definition (al-Mawsu‘ah al-Fiqhiyyah): “Knots, incantations and speech — spoken or written — or an act, that affects the body, heart or mind of the bewitched person without direct contact.” This is perhaps the clearest working definition for an ordinary reader.

Is sihr real, or only illusion?

The scholars disagreed over whether sihr has a real existence and a genuine effect on things, or whether it is nothing but illusion.

The Mu‘tazilah, along with al-Jassas of the Hanafis, al-Istirabadhi and al-Baghawi of the Shafi‘is, denied that sihr has any reality: to them it is the sorcerer creating an illusion in the eyes of the onlooker, making him imagine what is contrary to fact — and sihr can only harm, they said, if the sorcerer uses an actual poison or smoke that reaches the victim’s body. Al-Jassas said: “Whenever ‘sihr’ is used without qualification, it is a name for every deceptive, false thing with no reality and no substance.” They cited the verses about Pharaoh’s magicians — “they bewitched the eyes of the people” and “it seemed to him, from their magic, that they were moving” — and it was said the ropes and staffs were hollow and filled with mercury, so they writhed and appeared alive.

The great majority of Ahl al-Sunnah, however, held that sihr is of two kinds:

• Trickery and illusion: sleight of hand, showmanship, devices, and effects built on knowledge of the properties of materials — things which, once explained, anyone could reproduce. Language may call this sihr; the Shariah’s technical usage generally does not.
• Sihr with a real existence and a real effect on bodies. This second kind is affirmed by the Hanafis (as Ibn al-Humam reports), the Shafi‘is and the Hanbalis.

The evidence that sihr is real

From the Quran. Allah says of those who followed the devils in the time of Sulayman: “…they learn from them that by which they cause separation between a man and his wife. But they do not harm anyone through it except by permission of Allah” (al-Baqarah 2:102). A separation actually caused, and a harm actually done — by Allah’s permission — is not a mere illusion. See also al-A‘raf 7:132 and Yunus 10:81. And Allah revealed an entire surah of refuge that names the sorceresses directly:

“The blowers in knots” are the sorceresses. Since Allah commanded us to seek refuge from their evil, it is known that they have a real effect and a real harm.

From the Sunnah. ‘A’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) related the incident in which the Prophet ﷺ was himself bewitched:

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ was bewitched, until it would seem to him that he had done a thing when he had not done it. Then one day, while he was with me, he called upon Allah and called upon Him again, and said: “Do you know, ‘A’ishah, that Allah has answered me about what I asked Him? Two men came to me; one sat at my head and the other at my feet. One said to his companion: ‘What is the man’s ailment?’ He said: ‘He is bewitched (matbub).’ He asked: ‘Who bewitched him?’ He said: ‘Labid ibn al-A‘sam, the Jew of Banu Zurayq.’ He asked: ‘With what?’ He said: ‘With a comb, hair gathered from combing, and the spathe of a male date palm.’ He asked: ‘Where is it?’ He said: ‘In the well of Dharwan.’” The Prophet ﷺ went to the well with some of his Companions, looked at it — date palms stood over it — then returned and said: “By Allah, its water was like an infusion of henna, and its palms like the heads of devils.” I said: “O Messenger of Allah, did you take it out?” He said: “No. As for me, Allah has cured me and healed me, and I feared to stir up evil among the people by it.” So he ordered the well filled in. — Bukhari 5763 and Muslim 2189

Two things stand out. First, the bewitchment was real enough that the Prophet ﷺ sought Allah’s help against it and was cured. Second, when it was over, he deliberately chose not to dig the object up and expose the affair — he feared spreading evil and suspicion among people. That restraint is part of the Sunnah too.

From lived reality. The source observes that every nation, in every age and every religion, has known that sihr exists — it is still known and believed in today, studied in some countries of the West, while in the East its practice has spread widely, even among Muslims.

Knowing that sihr is real is not a reason for fear. Nothing touches anyone except by Allah’s permission — “But they do not harm anyone through it except by permission of Allah” (2:102) — and Allah has taught us the means of protection and cure.