Drawing out the name of a thief

Question

Divination, that is, drawing out a name — is this permissible or not? Given that it has mostly been observed that a wrong name comes out in it, another person is wrongly disgraced and defamed, and mostly the stolen property is not even recovered.

Answer

This divination is not a proof of the Sacred Law. It is not permissible to declare the person whose name comes out a thief and forcibly recover the stolen property from him, or to punish him, have him arrested, or humiliate and disgrace him. However, if it is for the purpose that, if he is the thief, he will return the property out of fear, then this measure is acceptable.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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