and objectives solely through the revealed law, not through science, experiment, or the senses. We would never have known that maintaining kinship ties lengthens one’s life and enlarges one’s provision except through his statement—may Allah’s blessings and peace be upon him: “Whoever would love to have his provision expanded and his lifespan prolonged, let him maintain his ties of kinship.”¹ The same applies to the other examples.

Many people gravely misunderstand both kinds of means and fall into serious delusions. They may assume that some natural cause will bring about a given end, when reality is otherwise; or they may believe that a particular Sharʿī practice will achieve a certain religious objective, while the truth is the opposite.

One illustration of a practice that is invalid both legally and empirically is what a passer-by often sees on Victory Street in Damascus. A few individuals set up small tables before them, on which sits a little animal that looks like an oversized mouse. Next to it lie folded cards bearing phrases that predict people’s fortunes—phrases the animal’s owner, or someone equally ignorant and whimsical, has written or dictated. Two close friends may walk past, and one says to the other, “Come, let’s check our luck.” They hand the man a few coins, whereupon he sends the tiny creature to pull out one of the cards and hand it over. The friend then reads it, pondering the supposed fortune it contains!

How much intellect can a person possess if he takes an animal as his guide to inform him of what he does not know and to unveil for him that which is hidden from his fate?

¹ Recorded by al-Bukhārī and Muslim.