Allah The Exalted stated about Al Qur’an:
إِنّ هَـَذَا الْقُرْآنَ يِهْدِي لِلّتِي هِيَ أَقْوَمُ وَيُبَشّرُ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ الّذِينَ يَعْمَلُونَ الصّالِحَاتِ أَنّ لَهُمْ أَجْراً كَبِيراً
“Indeed, this Qur’an guides to that which is most suitable and gives good tidings to the believers who do righteous deeds that they will have a great reward.” (Al Israa’/The Night Journey: 9)
كِتَابٌ أَنزَلْنَاهُ إِلَيْكَ مُبَارَكٌ لّيَدّبّرُوَاْ آيَاتِهِ وَلِيَتَذَكّرَ أُوْلُو الألْبَابِ
(This is) a blessed Book which We have revealed to you (O Muhammad), that they might reflect upon its verses and that those of understanding would be reminded.” (Shaad/The Letter “Saad”: 29)
وَنُنَزّلُ مِنَ الْقُرْآنِ مَا هُوَ شِفَآءٌ وَرَحْمَةٌ لّلْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَلاَ يَزِيدُ الظّالِمِينَ إَلاّ خَسَاراً
“And We send down of the Qur’an that which is healing and mercy for the believers, but it does not increase the wrongdoers except in loss.” (Al Israa’/The Night Journey: 82)
There are still more verses which explain that Allah descended Al Qur’an to mankind as a guidance, a bless, a healing, and a way to salvation, in this world, and in Hereafter. And these aims shall be useful for mankind if they read it, reflect upon it, and perform all of it’s contents. Al Qur’an will be least useful if it only be possessed, displayed, used as an adornment, or kept at home.
It is undeniable that Al Qur’an have plenty of virtues, including protection of oneself from satan and his annoyance. But how to achieve that virtue? Could be it achieved by reciting it (and understand it’s meaning), or by hanging it on the walls or upon the door?
Surely, the way to achieve such virtue is by reciting it.
مَا مِنْ مُسْلِمٍ يَأْخُذُ مَضْجَعَهُ يَقْرَأُ سُوْرَةً مِنْ كتَابِ اللهِ إِلا وَكَّلَ اللهُ بِهِ مَلَكاً فَلاَ يَقْرَبَهُ شيْءٌ يُؤْذِيْهِ حَتَّى يَهُبَّ مَتَى هَبَّ
“None of the muslim who climb to his bed then read one verse from The Book of Allah, but Allah will send an angel to him. Thus, nothing get near to him will harm him, until he wake up whenever he wake.” (Narrated by Tirmidhi, no. 3407. The status/class is weak, according to Sheikh Al Albani, but it was classed good by Al Hafidh Ibn Hajar on his commentary upon the book ‘Al Adzkar’)
قُلْ هُوَ اللهُ أَحَدٌُ وَالْمُعَوِّذَتَيْنِ حِيْنَ تَمْسِي وَحِيْنَ تُصْبِحُ ثَلاثَ مَرَّاتٍِ تَكْفِيْكَ مِنْ كُلِّ شَيْءٍِ
“If someone read Soorah Al Ikhlash and Al Mu’awwidzatain (Soorah Al Falaq and An Naas) thrice in the evening and in the morning, it will suffice him from any other thing.” (Narrated by Abu Dawud, no. 5082, An Nasa’i 8/250, At Tirmidhi no. 3575, and Ahmad 5/312: the status is good and/or sahih)
لا تَجْعَلُوْا بُيُوْتَكُمْ مَقَابِرَ إِنَّ الشَّيْطَانَ يَنْفِرُ مِنَ الْبَيْتِ الَّذِيْ تُقْرَأُ فِيْهِ سُوْرَةُ الْبَقَرَةِ
“Do not make your house resemble the graves. Indeed, satan will run away from a house which is recited in it soorah Al Baqara” (Narrated by Muslim, no. 780)
من قالها حين يمسي أجير منها حتى يصبح ومن قالها حين يصبح أجير منها حتى يمسي
“Whoever recite the verse of The Throne in the evening, he will be guarded from the annoyance of Jinn until morning. And whoever recite it in the morning will be guarded until evening.” (Read: Sahih At Targhib part 1, no. 662).
اقْرَأُوْا سُوْرَةَ الْبَقَرَةِ فَإِنَّ أَخْذَهَا بَرَكَةٌ وَتَرْكَهَا حَسْرَةٌ وَلا تَسْتَطِيْعُهَا الْبَطَلَةُ
“Read soorah Al Baqara, because reading it will summon blessings an leaving it means loss. A sorcerer could do no harm to it’s reader.” (Narrated by Muslim no. 804)
الْآيَتَانِ مِنْ آخِرِ سُوْرَةِ الْبَقَرَةِ مَنْ قَرَأَهُمَا فِيْ لَيْلَةٍِ كَفَتَاهُ
“The last 2 verses of soorah Al Baqara, whoever read it in the night, then it’ll suffice him.” (Narrated by Bukhari, no. 3768 and Muslim no. 807) [1]
All of the valid argumentations indicate that the virtue of Al Qur’an could only be reached -minimally, if we read it.
Al Qur’an is not a charm, or amulet, which verses were written upon something and wrapped in garment to repel calamity and threats, nor it is an adornment or tool to increase selling, thus mankind use it in grandiosity. There were no guidance from The Messenger of Allah -Shallallaahu’alayhe wa Sallam, nor from his Companions, or the trusted jurists, which depicted that they hang the verses of Qur’an on their wall as decoration and charm.
Abu’Ubaid narrated in his book Fadlaailul-Qur’an (1/111), a valid narration from Ibrahim An Nakha’i, that he said: “They (the Companions -may Allah be pleased with them) hated all kinds of tamima (amulet)[2], whether it was taken from The Qur’an or not from the verses of The Qur’an.”
The following is a citation from fatwa of the Standing Committee for Research and Fatwa, regarding a question:
س: يجري بيع لوحات تعلق على الحائط مكتوب عليها آية الكرسي تعلق على الغرف تكريما وافتخارا بالقرآن الكريم، هل مثل هذه اللوحات محرم بيعها في الأسواق واستيرادها إلى المملكة؟
ج: القرآن نزل ليكون حجة على العالمين، ودستورا ومنهاجا لجميع أفراد المسلمين، يحلون حلاله ويحرمون حرامه، ويعملون بمحكمه، ويؤمنون بمتشابهه، يحفظ في الصدور، ويكتب في المصاحف والرقاع والألواح ونحوها؛ للرجوع إليه وتلاوته منها عند الحاجة، هذا هو الذي فهم المسلمون الأوائل ودرج عملهم عليه، أما ما بدأ يظهر في هذه الأزمنة من كتابة بعض القرآن على لوحة أو رقعة كتابة مزخرفة وتعليقها داخل غرفة أو سيارة أو نحو ذلك فلم يكن هذا من عمل السلف، وقد يكون في ذلك من المفاسد أعظم مما قصد الكاتب أو المعلق من تعظيمه والافتخار به من شغل المعتنين بذلك عن الاهتمام بأغراض القرآن التي نزل من أجلها، فالأولى بالمسلم أن يترك هذه الأشياء ويبتعد عن التعامل فيها، وإن كان الأصل فيها الحل خشية أن يكثر استعمالها والتعامل فيها فتشغل الناس عما هو المقصود من القرآن.وبالله التوفيق. وصلى الله على نبينا محمد، وآله وصحبه وسلم.
اللجنة الدائمة للبحوث العلمية والإفتاء
Question: Often there are selling of wall decoration which contains the verse of The Throne. The decoration usually hanged in a room as a mean of honoring and pride upon Al Qur’an Al Kariim (The Noble Qur’an). Are those decorations forbidden to be sold in the markets, and forbidden to import them into this kingdom/country?
Answer: Al Qur’an was descended to be a guidance, laws, and way of life for all Muslims. They (Muslims) legalize the legal ones and they prohibit the forbidden ones (based on what mentioned in Al Qur’an), perform the laws, they believe in the unspecific verses. Al Qur’an was remembered in the hearts of muslims, written upon sheets of papers, leaves, and stems of plant, and upon other medias; to be a reference and to be read (from those sheets) when needed. This was the understanding of the first generation of Muslim, and their way to make the best use of The Qur’an. Whereas the innovations that we find today, of people writing certain verses of Qur’an on decorations or decorated papers to be hanged on the walls, are not the deeds of the predecessors. Furthermore, the damage caused by such action is larger than the honoring and pride they aimed by hanging it, such as, they will be busy caring for the thing, rather than focusing on the main aim of The use of Qur’an. Due to this reason, it is better for a muslim to abandon such things and to avoid interactions and involvement within them, although the basic ruling for such thing is legal, since it is worried that it will deviate him from the real intention of The Qur’an itself.
Guidance comes from Allah alone. May blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his companions.
Standing Committee for Research and Fatwa – ‘Abdul ‘Aziz Ibn Baaz (Chairman), ‘Abdurrazzaq Al ‘Afifi (Vice Chairman), ‘Abdullah Ibn Ghudayan (Member); and ‘Abdullah Ibn Qu’ud (member) [3]
[finish]
Conclusion:
Hanging The Qur’an on the wall, or other place, whether as adornment or a charm is forbidden in shari’a. Satan will only run away from recitation of Qur’an, not from adornment. The Qur’an was sent down not to be used as decoration, which, will potentially make his owner proud [4]. It is advisable for all muslim to avoid such things. And Allah knows best.
Author: Abul Jauzaa’ – finish written in the middle of night, 3rd of June, 2008 (at 00.02 am, West Time Zone of Indonesia)
Footnotes:
[1] An Nawawee said: “There are people who stated that it will suffice him from the night prayer; other said that it will suffice him from (annoyance) of Satan; and the other said that it will suffice him from every diseases. And possibly it will suffice from all of those being mentioned.” [Syarh Sahih Muslim 6/91]
[2] The messenger of Allah Shallallaahu’alayh wa Sallam said:
إنَّ الرُّقَى وَالتَّمَائِمَ وَالتِّوَلَةَ شِرْكٌ
“Indeed, incantations, charms, and tiwala (magical implant or spell or the like), are shirk.” [Narrated by Abu Daud no. 3883, Ibn Maja no. 3530, Ahmad 1/381, and others; the status is sahih]
[3] Fatwas of Al Lajnah Ad Daaimah (Standing Committee for Research and Fatwa) no. 1871, part 4, page no. 72-73.
[4] Some people hang the verses of Qur’an on their walls to show their commitment in shari’a. But in fact, some of them even deviating from shari’a in their daily life. For example, some of them hang the verses about pilgrimage (Hajj) on their walls, but they do not perform their obligation of pilgrimage, although they are capable of it. The others hang verses of veils (head scarfs, jilbab) but their wives and daughters do not wear it. The others hang the verses of obligational prayers (shalat), but sadly, he and his family often neglect it…. To Allah alone we seek protection (from such actions)!