The Islamic Ruling on Palmistry: Qur’an, Hadith, and Juristic Evidences
Source: Fatāwā Muḥammadiyyah, Vol. 1, p.182
❖ Question
Some people believe in the permissibility of palmistry. What is the ruling in light of the Qur’an and Hadith?
❖ Answer
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu wa-s-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh, Ammā Baʿd!
✿ The Principle Ruling on Palmistry
Considering palmistry permissible is completely against the explicit texts of the Qur’an and Sunnah, because it is linked with the knowledge of the unseen (ʿilm al-ghayb), which is exclusively for Allah ﷻ.
Allah says:
﴿وَعِندَهُ مَفاتِحُ الغَيبِ لا يَعلَمُها إِلّا هُوَ…﴿٥٩﴾… سورة الأنعام
﴿قُل لا يَعلَمُ مَن فِى السَّمـوتِ وَالأَرضِ الغَيبَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ…﴿٦٥﴾… سورة النمل
﴿إِنَّ اللَّهَ عِندَهُ عِلمُ السّاعَةِ وَيُنَزِّلُ الغَيثَ…﴿٣٤﴾… سورة لقمان
﴿قُل لا أَملِكُ لِنَفسى نَفعًا وَلا ضَرًّا…﴿١٨٨﴾… سورة الأعراف
These verses affirm that the unseen is known only to Allah.
✿ The Five Keys of the Unseen (مفاتیح الغیب)
As explained by the Qur’an and the Prophet ﷺ, these five matters are known only to Allah:
① The exact time of the Hour (Day of Judgment).
② When and where rain will descend.
③ What is in the wombs.
④ What a person will earn tomorrow.
⑤ In which land a soul will die.
✿ Clarifications
- Palmistry, astrology, and similar practices falsely claim knowledge of the unseen.
- These claims contradict the Qur’an, Sunnah, and consensus of the Ummah.
- Even the Prophet ﷺ himself declared that he did not know the unseen, except what Allah revealed.
ʿĀʾishah (RA) said:
“Whoever claims that Muḥammad ﷺ saw his Lord has lied… and whoever claims that he knew the unseen has lied, for Allah says: ‘None in the heavens and earth knows the unseen except Allah.’”
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī)
✿ Juristic Warning
The Ḥanafī jurist, Ibn al-Bazzār al-Kurdī (d. 847H), ruled that if someone contracts a marriage with Allah and His Messenger ﷺ as witnesses, it is invalid and dangerous for his faith—because it implies belief that the Prophet ﷺ knew the unseen, which contradicts the Qur’an.
✿ Severe Warnings for Fortune-Tellers, Soothsayers, and Palmists
① Ḥadīth of Ḥafṣah (RA):
“Whoever goes to a fortune-teller and asks him about something, his prayer will not be accepted for forty nights.”
(Muslim)
② Ḥadīth of Ḥudaybiyyah Incident:
Those who attribute rain to stars are described as disbelievers in Allah.
(Muttafaqun ʿalayh)
③ Ḥadīth of Abū Hurayrah (RA):
“Whoever goes to a soothsayer and believes him has disbelieved in what was revealed to Muḥammad ﷺ.”
(Aḥmad, Abū Dāwūd)
◈ Conclusion
- Palmistry and similar practices are haram and directly oppose Qur’an and Sunnah.
- Claiming knowledge of the unseen is disbelief, since it is Allah’s exclusive attribute.
- Visiting or believing palmists, astrologers, and fortune-tellers incurs severe warnings and may lead to kufr.
ھذا ما عندي والله أعلم بالصواب
