The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) also said:

“You will surely follow the ways of those before you, as closely as one arrow feather matches another, so that even if they entered a lizard’s burrow, you would enter it too”—to the end of the hadith.

Although the Muslims have received Allah’s Book, the Quran, many of those who profess to belong to their ranks and whom Satan has led astray have turned away, casting Allah’s Book behind their backs and following what the devils recite. They do not honour those whom the Quran commands them to befriend, nor do they treat as enemies those whom the Quran commands them to oppose. Instead, they revere anyone they see performing extraordinary feats of the kind that sorcerers and soothsayers perform with the devils’ assistance—feats brought about through what the devils recite. Some of them recognize that this comes from the devils, yet exalt it out of their own desire and prefer it to the way of the Quran. Such people are unbelievers, like those of whom Allah Most High says:

“Have you not seen those who were given a portion of the Scripture? They believe in superstition and false gods, and say of the disbelievers, ‘These are better guided than the believers.’”

“Those are the ones whom Allah has cursed; and whoever Allah curses, you will never find anyone to help him.”

They resemble those of whom Allah Most High says:

“And when a messenger from Allah came to them confirming what was with them”—up to His words—“but the devils disbelieved.”

Others do not recognize that this comes from the devils. Groups among those versed in speculative theology and religious learning, as well as devotees and Sufis, may fall into this. They have even deemed the worship of heavenly bodies and idols permissible because of the extraordinary phenomena they have witnessed in connection with them, which the devils help them bring about. Through these phenomena, they achieve some of their aims involving wrongdoing and acts of obscenity. Thus they paid no heed to their associating partners with Allah or their disbelief in Him and His Book if