What is the fiqh of cursing and praying against people [Archive]

Abu Sabaya

16th March 2007, 08:22 PM

'Alaykum as-Salam wa Rahmatullah wa Barakatuh;

There are three different positions in regards to this.

The first opinion is that cursing a specific individual (la'n al-mu'ayyan) is not allowed in any circumstance, except for those for whom there is textual proof that they are cursed, such as Fir'awn, Abu Jahl, Abu Lahab, etc. This opinion was reported from some of the companions of Ahmad bin Hambal. This position was also taken by al-Ghazali and an-Nawawi, and they use as evidence for this the general texts that prohibit cursing, such as the Prophet's saying: "Verily, I was not sent as a curser," etc., and that the texts that appear to permit cursing are referring to the case of groups, not individuals.

The second opinion taken by a group of the scholars is that it is limited to the case of the kafir. The proof they bring for this is the abundance of verses in the Qur'an in which curses are made upon the disbelievers (mainly, the People of the Book), as well as the fact that the essence of a curse is to expel one from the Mercy of Allah, and this is only truly possible in the case of the kafir, and is not appropriate with the Muslim, no matter how much of a sinner he may be. An example of this is a narration of 'Abdullah bin 'Umar in 'Sahih al-Bukhari,' and al-Bara' bin 'Azib in 'Sahih Muslim,' that the Prophet had cursed a group of specific mushrikin, naming them one by one. Examples from the Salaf include what the scholar Ibn Muflih mentioned in his book 'al-Adab ash-Shar'iyyah' (1/271), that Ahmad bin Hambal would say about some members of the heretical sects: "May Allah's Curse be upon him," "May Allah's Anger be upon him," "May Allah destroy this evil person," etc.

The third opinion is that it is allowed to curse anyone who deserves to be cursed, and they say that the texts that prohibit cursing of individuals are in reference to those who do not deserve to be cursed. This opinion was expressed by Ibn al-Jawzi, and it is also reported that Ahmad bin Hambal had approved of the cursing of Yazid bin Mu'awiyah (a Muslim). Also, Nasr bin Ibrahim al-Maqdisi mentioned, in 'Mukhtasar al-Hujjah,' that al-Imam Malik was asked about the Qur'an, and about Qadar, to which Malik replied: "Are you from the companions of 'Amr bin 'Ubayd? May Allah's Curse be upon 'Amr, for he has brought about this innovation."

Another proof that supports the third opinion is the hadith of the Prophet that is reported in 'Sahih Muslim' (2601), that he said: "I have made this term with my Lord, and the term with my Lord is that I said to Him: "I am a human being, and I am pleased just as a human being is pleased, and I become angry just as a human being becomes angry. So, for any person from amongst my Ummah whom I curse - and he in no way deserves it - let that, O Lord, be a source of purification and purity and nearness on the Day of Resurrection.""

...as the Prophet's saying "...I am a human being..."and "...he in no way deserves it..."in addition to the fact that he was referring to people "amongst my Ummah," indicates that this curse would fall upon Muslims (as a form of rebuking), would took place from his own ijtihad, and would not be limited to individuals cursed in the Revelation.

(summarized from http://www.ahlalhdeeth.com)

Note: the Salaf would only consider it allowed to curse a Muslim in the specific case that he was one who openly and proudly committed major sins, and even then, they considered it to be makruh to curse such a person.

So, one sees that the third position is more in accordance with the actions of the Salaf, in that they would withhold from cursing any specific individual, except in the case that the person truly deserved it (as in the above paragraph).

In conclusion, Abu Basir said:

"...so, cursing general groups of people whom it is allowed to curse, such as the oppressors, the disbelievers, the drinkers of alcohol, etc. - from those whom the Shar' has established the general cursing of - there is no problem in this. As for the cursing of a specific person, it is absolutely necessary to see if the conditions required for being able to curse him are present.

In any case, it is necessary for the Muslim to prevent himself from being accustomed to cursing anyone, as the true Muslim is not one who curses often. This means that sometimes, he curses those who clearly deserve to be cursed, according to the Shari'ah. However, his speech does not revolve around cursing others, as this does not conform with the character of the Muslim. Likewise, it is necessary to warn against falling into the cursing of a believer, or cursing one who does not deserve to be cursed, as the Prophet said: "Cursing a believer is equivalent to killing him." He also said: "Whoever curses something that does not deserve to be cursed, the curse comes back to him," and: "If the curse is directed to one who deserves it, it goes to him. Otherwise, it comes back to the one from whom it originated.""

And Allah Knows best.