Halloween is a satanic party with a pagan origin according to Wikipedia, (Halloween or Hallowe’en (less commonly known as Allhalloween,All Hallows’ Eve, or All Saints’ Eve is a celebration observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Hallows’ Day.
It begins the observance of Allhallowtide, the time in the liturgical year dedicated to remembering the dead, including saints (hallows), martyrs, and all the departed).
This festival can be traced to the Scottish pagan, according to the Celtic belief, it’s the day which ghost of the dead returned to earth, so different sacrifices are needed to be done to gear up their happiness. Other academics believed that Halloween began solely as a Christian holiday.
This Halloween traditions usher in activities that are alien to Islam such as trick or treating (trick refers to a threat on the community, while treat is a form of confectionery), Divination games, playing pranks, Kids dress up in different witches, goblins and heroes costume, some Christian attend church service to light candle in the grave of their dead.
As Muslims it’s not permissible for us to even congratulate the non Muslims in their Festival talk less of outright participation and celebration of festival that comprises different strange believes and practices.
The prophet has warned us and made it forbidden for us to immitate the non – believers in their practice.
عن أبي سعيد رضي الله عنه، أنَّ النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم قال: ((لَتَتَّبِعُنَّ سَنَنَ مَنْ قَبْلَكُم شِبْرًا بشبْر، وذراعًا بذراع، حتَّى لو سَلَكُوا جُحْر ضَبٍّ لَسَلَكْتُمُوهُ))؛ قلنا: يا رسول الله؛ اليهودُ والنَّصارى؟ قال النَّبيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم: ((فَمَن؟!))؛ رواه الشيخان
Abu Sa’id al-Khudri reported Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: You would tread the same path as was trodden by those before you inch by inch and step by step so much so that if they had entered into the hole of the lizard, you would follow them in this also. We said: Allah’s Messenger, do you mean Jews and Christians (by your words) “those before you” ? He said: Who else (than those two religious groups) ?
Al Imam Adh-Dhahabi also said: “If the Christians have a festival and the Jews have a festival, then that is exclusively for them, so no Muslim should join them in that as he does not join them in their religion or their direction of prayer”. A barrier must be established between our religion and theirs.
It’s so pathetic that Halloween which has become an integral part of Western countries has now been introduced to the Muslim nation, especially in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia which was proudly sponsored by it’s government with the sole aim of making the kingdom an entertainment hub.
Halloween is a ‘blind imitation” of the west and it is a non-Islamic celebration, This party is Haram especially in Saudi Arabia where Masjid al-Haram and the holy Kaaba exist.
It saddened the heart that “The land of Tawheed” can welcome and sponsored an apparent Shirk by adding it to one of the activities of the 2022 Riyadh season with the Theme ‘Carnival of Horrror’. Subhanallah!!!
We can’t fathom it that Scholars of the Kingdom with their historical staunch stand against Kufr and innovation can watch while such evil prevail without unanimously issuing a public Fatwa against it. This no doubt will forestall such celebration in the future or reduce the number of it’s celebrant.
This is evil, Allah has commanded the Muslims to speak against evil and enjoin what is good.
Allah says:
[You are the best nation brought forth for the people of the world: you enjoin right and you forbid wrong, and you believe in Allah.] (Qur’an 3/110.)
And He said: Believing men and believing women are the protecting friends of each other: they enjoin right and they forbid wrong.] Qur`an 9/71.
In the same vein, Abu Huraira, a companion of the Prophet and narrator of many hadith used to say: “You are the best people for the people, you tie them in chains and shackles and drag them off to paradise.”
Imam Ibn Taymiyyah also said:
‘Just as Allah has informed us that this ummah will fulfill this function, He has also made it a collective obligation (fardh kifaya) upon the Muslim Ummah saying: [Let there be from among you a group which calls to what is good, enjoins right, and forbids wrong. These are the successful ones.]’
Silence on a public evil is disastrous and can give birth worst to worst atrocities to be perpetuated, a good example is what we are witnessing in Saudi Arabia where Tawheed is being dragged by an open celebration of kufr, This is so Pathetic.
We hereby enjoin other Muslims not to imitate such an act. This is one of the sign of the last hour.
This Halloween festival being sponsored by the headship of the Kingdom is similar to the “Egungun” and “Eyo” festival, a pagan festival common in Yoruba Land. Scholar of fiqh will “ماقارب الشيئ يعطيه حكمه” (i.e Similarities takes the same judgement”). Halloween is kufru and forbidden lets us desist from celebrating such practice, The Sunnah is for us to do everything that will oppose the practice of the Pagan, it’s so pathetic that some Muslims are justifying this practice to be a mere entertainment, this justification inform their participation.
The Prophet, peace be upon him, said, “How will it be for you when you stop enjoining Al-Ma’ruf and forbidding Al-Munkar?” The Companions asked inquisitively, “Will it happen, O Messenger of Allah?” The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said, “Yes, and worse than that is going to happen.” The Companions asked again, “What can be worse than that, O Messenger of Allah.” The Messenger, peace be upon him, replied, “How will it be for you when you enjoin Al-Munkar and forbid Al-Ma’ruf.” The Companions asked, “Will it happen, O Messenger of Allah?” The Prophet, peace be upon him, said, “Yes, but worse than that.” The Companions asked, “What is worse than that, O Messenger of Allah?” The peace be upon him, said, “How will it be for you when you perceive Al-Ma’ruf as Munkar and Al-Munkar as Ma’ruf?”).
[Ibn Abi ad-Dunya in the book of Enjoining Ma’ruf and forbidding Munkar]
Islam is very strict on his position towards correcting evil especially the one that propagate an open festival of Kufr such as Halloween even if the evil is coming from the leader which we have been advised not to revolt against by carrying arms, but we can speak the truth to them through admonition.There are narrations from the prophet that establish this.
A cousin of ‘Awf Ibn Mālik al-Ashja‘ī narrates: “I heard ‘Awf Ibn Mālik al-Ashja‘ī say that he heard the Prophet (sws) say: “The best among your rulers are the ones you love and they love you, they pray for you and you pray for them. The worst among your rulers are those you hate and they hate you, you curse them and they curse you.’ The narrator says: We said: ‘O Messenger of God, should we declare war on them in such circumstances?’ The Messenger of God replied: ‘No, never fight them as long as they establish regular prayer among you. If someone happens to be under a ruler who defies God, then he should detest his evil. However, he may never stop obeying him.)* This Hadith has made it clear to us that we can detest any form of evil being practised by an unjust leader especially when he is sponsoring an open disbelief (كفر بواح).
The prophet said in a narration: ‘Ubādah Ibn al-Sāmit narrates: We pledged hearkening to and obeying to the Prophet (sws) in all circumstances, easy and straitened, and comfort and difficulty even when we are wronged, and not to dispute with the one in authority over us unless he commits an act of open disbelief, for which we have clear proof from the word of God to consider it disbelief*.
Halloween party will takes the ruling of it’s source, it’s a pagan practice, it’s an open disbelief which must be condemned not by only the scholar but all Muslims.
May Allah continue to guide us to the right path and direct the thought of all our scholars and leaders towards the right direction (‘Amin).