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The question

How authentic is the story of Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) and 'Sariya the Mountain'? And can it be explained by what is known as ‘telepathy’ or ‘spiritual communication,’ which is said to be a phenomenon currently studied? Can it also be used to explain situations such as remembering someone right before they call you, or the feeling that a certain moment has happened before (déjà vu)? Is there a connection between this and Qur'anic verses about the soul, sleep, and prophetic supplications?

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Source: FtawySummary from Ftawy's records · added here Sep 2, 20261 min readAlso available in العربية
The answer

What happened to Umar ibn al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, in the story of Sariya is a matter of mukashafa (unveiling/spiritual insight) and ilham (inspiration), and a miracle from Allah to Umar. The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said: "Indeed, there were among the nations before you people who were muhaddathun (inspired ones), and if there is anyone among my Ummah, it is Umar ibn al-Khattab." A muhaddath is one who is inspired, or one whose intuition is always correct, such that truth flows from his tongue without intention, or angels speak to him without him being a prophet. This story has no connection to communicating with spirits or contemporary invalid spiritual research. Furthermore, there is no Shar'i evidence for the phenomenon of "déjà vu"

Summary from Ftawy's records · added here

Reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.

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Ftawy
Original fatwa ID
104571
Added here
. This is when the answer was added to El Fatwa, not the fatwa's date.
Text
Summary from Ftawy's records, reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
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Read the full answer on Ftawy