Jafr is not a Sharʿi proof

Question

Question: A man has come to our village; he is touring our village and town. He belongs to the Bohra community (an Ismaili Shi‘i community of India) and prays in the Muslims’ mosques. He travelled for some years, going to the country of Kuwait, and there he learned the science of jafr (divination by letters and their numerical values), by means of which he presents ever new tricks to the public.

Answer

The science of jafr was taught neither by the Noble Qur’an nor by the Prophet ﷺ; the noble Companions ﵃ did not learn it, the hadith scholars paid no attention to it, and the jurists and the noble saints did not consider it worthy of attention. Rather, in the books of fiqh — al-Ashbah wa-l-Naza’ir, al-Durr al-Mukhtar and others — learning it is forbidden.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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