The second is patronage (walā’). The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “Walā’ is a bond like the bond of lineage.” Concerning lineage, a person is obliged to affiliate himself with his own people—his father, grandfather, great-grandfather, and so on. It is unlawful for him to claim relation to anyone other than his father when he knows that man is not his father. Suppose, for instance, that his father belongs to a certain tribe which he regards as inferior to another; he then attaches himself to the more prestigious tribe in order to rid himself of the stigma of his own. Such a man—Allah’s refuge is sought—is accursed: upon him rests the curse of Allah, the angels, and all mankind, and on the Day of Resurrection Allah will accept from him neither compensation nor ransom.

If, however, a person affiliates himself with a well-known ancestor such as his grandfather or great-grandfather without disowning his own father, there is no harm. The Prophet ﷺ declared at the Battle of Ḥunayn, “I am the grandson of ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib; I am the Prophet, and that is no lie,” even though he is Muhammad son of ʿAbd Allah son of ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib. He mentioned ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib because that forebear was more famous among Quraysh and held higher standing than his father ʿAbd Allah. Everyone still knew that he was Muhammad son of ʿAbd Allah; he did not repudiate his father.

Similarly, people may identify themselves by the tribal name, saying for example “Aḥmad ibn Taymiyyah,” and the like, which simply denotes affiliation to the tribe. What incurs the severe threat is claiming descent from someone other than one’s true father out of dissatisfaction with one’s lineage, in the hope of elevating oneself and masking one’s perceived deficiency by such false affiliation.