Shar‘i Status of Kashf (Mystical Unveiling) and the Islamic Position on Knowledge of the Unseen
Source: Fatāwā ʿIlmiyyah, Vol. 1 – Kitāb al-ʿAqāʾid, p. 87
Question:
What is the Shar‘i status of kashf (mystical unveiling)? Can kashf or ilhām (inspiration) be accepted as religious evidence?
❖ Definition and Understanding of Kashf
Kashf refers to “mukāshafah”—a term used by some individuals to claim they witness unseen realities such as Paradise, Hell, angels, and other metaphysical matters.
Kashshāf Iṣṭilāḥāt al-Funūn (Vol. 2, p. 1254) defines:"In common usage, kashf and ilhām are two terms referring to the same experience."
This concept is highly emphasized in Sufi and esoteric circles, but it must be evaluated under the guidance of the Qur’an and Sunnah.
❖ Hadith Evidence on Kashf
The Prophet ﷺ said:"Indeed, among the nations before you were people who received inspiration (muḥaddathūn), and if there is anyone among my Ummah, then it is ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb."
(Saḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 3469)
☑ This Hadith confirms that inspiration (ilhām) may have existed among earlier nations, but in the Ummah of Muhammad ﷺ, it is not established as a norm.
❖ Kashf vs. Knowledge of the Unseen (ʿIlm al-Ghayb)
Kashf essentially implies knowledge of the unseen, yet the Shari‘ah clearly denies such a status to anyone other than the Prophets, and that too only through revelation (waḥy).
Allah ﷻ says:"قُل لَّا يَعْلَمُ مَن فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأَرْضِ الغَيبَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ"
"Say: None in the heavens and the earth knows the unseen except Allah."
(Surah al-Naml: 65)
The Prophet ﷺ said:"Indeed, I do not know what will happen tomorrow, nor do I know what is in the hearts."
(Musnad Aḥmad: 25838, Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Ḥibbān: 7/279)
If even the Prophet ﷺ did not possess independent knowledge of the unseen, then any claim by a saint, shaykh, or pīr to possess it is baseless and false.❖ The Story of ʿUmar (رضي الله عنه) Saying: “Yā Sāriyah al-Jabal!”
This incident is frequently quoted to validate kashf or ilhām. It is said that ʿUmar (رضي الله عنه), while delivering a sermon in Madinah, addressed Sāriyah, a military commander hundreds of miles away:
"O Sāriyah, head toward the mountain!"
However, this narration is weak and rejected according to Hadith standards due to:➊ The presence of Muḥammad ibn ʿAjlān, a mudallis (ambiguous narrator) who is weak.
➋ No authentic chain of transmission exists for this narration.
☑ Therefore, kashf cannot be validated on the basis of this unreliable story.
❖ False Claims of Kashf and Ilhām
Stories of kashf and ilhām by so-called saints are:
➊ Often fabricated, exaggerated, or based on psychological experiences.
➋ No saint, scholar, or mystic is given access to ghayb like the Prophets.
➌ In Sharī‘ah, kashf and ilhām hold no legal or juristic weight.
Ibn Taymiyyah (رحمه الله) stated:"Claims of kashf and ilhām are often the result of deception, satanic whispers, or false dreams. Such experiences are not religious proofs."
(Majmūʿ al-Fatāwā, 11/231)
❖ Summary
✔ Kashf and ilhām are not valid religious evidence.
✔ Neither the Prophet ﷺ nor the Companions (رضي الله عنهم) used kashf as a basis for Shar‘i rulings.
✔ The story of “Yā Sāriyah al-Jabal” lacks authentic sanad and cannot prove mystical experiences.
✔ Kashf is essentially a claim to knowledge of the unseen—a domain exclusively reserved for Allah ﷻ.
✔ Accepting the kashf of a saint, pīr, or mystic as authoritative contradicts Sharī‘ah.
“And Allah knows best what is correct.”