Fatwa

  1. Fatwa
  2. Islamic Creed
  3. Polytheism
  4. Slaughtering and making vows for other than Allah

Slaughtering a sacrifice for the Jinn
Fatwa No: 22446

Question

What is the ruling on slaughtering a sacrifice for the Jinn in order to ward off their harm?

Answer

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu 'alyhi wa sallam, is His slave and Messenger.


Slaughtering a sacrifice for the sake of closeness and submission is an act of worship that should not be dedicated to any other than Allaah The Almighty who Says (what means):

{Say, "Indeed, my prayer, my rites of sacrifice, my living and my dying are for Allaah, Lord of the worlds. No partner has He. And this I have been commanded, and I am the first [among you] of the Muslims.”} [Quran 6: 163-164]
{So pray to your Lord and sacrifice [to Him alone].} [Quran 108: 2]

On the authority of ‘Ali ibn Abi Taalib the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said that Allaah The Almighty cursed those who slaughter a sacrifice for others than Him. [Muslim]. An-Nawawi mentioned that if the one who slaughters a sacrifice for other than Allaah The Almighty intends to glorify whom he slaughters for and in this case he is a disbeliever.

Accordingly, if the slaughtering in question is done in order to draw oneself closer to the Jinn and to satisfy them so they do not harm the person, this act is considered major Shirk (polytheism) which results in apostasy. However, if the person slaughters a sacrifice for the sake of Allaah The Almighty in order to ward off the evil Jinn, this slaughtering is not for other than Allaah The Almighty and does not result in apostasy; however, it is a type of minor Shirk because the person considers something to be a means of warding off evil while it is not. Allaah The Almighty did not make the act of slaughter a means for expelling the Jinn. Some people say that slaughtering a sacrifice for the Jinn is a means for warding off the Jinn while there is no Sharee’ah text to support this; consequently, one should refrain from this act.

As for those who believe that the Jinn will harm them if they do not slaughter a sacrifice; then this thought is induced by Satan. Allaah The Almighty gives the Jinn the authority over such people when they resort to them. Consequently, the Jinn oblige such people to commit evil acts. Allaah The Almighty Says (what means), {And there were men from mankind who sought refuge in men from the jinn, so they [only] increased them in burden.} [Quran 72: 6] If such a person relies truly on Him, Allaah The Almighty will not give the Jinn power over him.

Allaah Knows best.

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