What is the ruling on believing in the ability of "Khwaja Hafez Shirazi's" poetry to reveal the future, and the claim that this came after Shirazi's union with the Creator and his reception of cosmic consciousness, especially since the proponents of this belief are Shiites?
Muhammad ibn Bahaa’ al-Din, "Hafiz al-Shirazi," was a Persian Shiite Sufi poet, born in 726 AH and died in 791 AH. He was known for his ghazal poetry and his claim to have received poetry from Ali ibn Abi Talib. His poetry contains atheistic statements, and some scholars refused to pray over him. He is called "Lisan al-Ghayb" (Tongue of the Unseen) and "Tarjuman al-Asrar" (Interpreter of Secrets).
The charlatanry in his poetry manifests in two ways: 1. Purchasing envelopes containing excerpts from his poetry with explanations, which the buyer believes to be an omen telling them about their future or present. 2. Opening his divan randomly on occasions, while reciting Al-Fatiha for his soul, and believing that what appears is an omen or guidance for a specific purpose.
The ruling on these actions is haram (forbidden), similar to the forbidden practice of seeking omens by divination arrows (istiqsam bil-azlam), because it involves delving into the knowledge of the unseen (ilm al-ghayb). Scholars have agreed on the prohibition of seeking knowledge of the unseen from the Qur’an, so how about from a poetry collection? It is necessary to avoid such people, especially due to the prohibition of friendships between genders in Islam, and out of fear of being influenced by their false beliefs, such as rejectionism.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
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