Chapter: A Clarification of Certain Forms of Sorcery

Ahmad said: “Muhammad ibn Jaʿfar narrated to us; ʿAwf narrated to us from Ḥayyān ibn al-ʿAlāʾ; he said: Qaṭan ibn Qabīṣah narrated to us from his father, who said that he heard the Prophet ﷺ declare, ‘Al-ʿiyāfa (divination by interpreting the flight of birds), al-ṭarq (drawing lines on the ground), and al-ṭiyarah (taking bad omens) are all part of al-jibt (sorcery).’ (1)

ʿAwf explained: “Al-ʿiyāfa is reading omens from birds, and al-ṭarq is the practice of drawing lines upon the earth.”

As for al-jibt, al-Ḥasan said: “It is the howl of Satan.” The chain of transmission is sound.

Abū Dāwūd, al-Nasāʾī, and Ibn Ḥibbān in his Ṣaḥīḥ also recorded the connected portion of this report.

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Relevance of this chapter to the Book of Tawḥīd: After the author—may Allah have mercy on him—mentioned sorcery in the previous chapter, he now cites some of its specific forms. These practices are widespread and often hidden from people, to the point that they have been mistaken for the miraculous gifts of righteous saints. This led many to venerate their practitioners, ultimately falling into grave shirk.

Biographical notes
1- Ahmad: Imām Ahmad ibn Ḥanbal.