Short answer: astrology is haram in Islam, and all four schools agree. The Prophet ﷺ said that whoever goes to a fortune-teller and asks about something will have no prayer accepted for forty nights, and that learning astrology is learning a branch of magic. Believing that the stars control events or show the future is a serious matter of belief, because only Allah knows the unseen. Astronomy, studying the sky to find prayer times, the qibla and the new moon, is allowed and was one of the great Muslim sciences.
What the Prophet ﷺ said
مَنْ أَتَى عَرَّافًا فَسَأَلَهُ عَنْ شَىْءٍ لَمْ تُقْبَلْ لَهُ صَلاَةٌ أَرْبَعِينَ لَيْلَةً
Man atā ʿarrāfan fa-sa'alahū ʿan shay'in lam tuqbal lahū ṣalātun arbaʿīna laylah
Whoever goes to a fortune-teller and asks him about anything, no prayer of his will be accepted for forty nights.
Sahih Muslim 2230, from some of the wives of the Prophet ﷺ
- Believing them. "Whoever goes to a soothsayer and believes what he says has disbelieved in what was revealed to Muhammad."1
- Astrology is a branch of magic. "Whoever acquires a branch of the knowledge of the stars has acquired a branch of magic, and the more he acquires, the more he acquires."2
- Rain "because of a star". After rain one night, the Prophet ﷺ said Allah had told him: some of My servants woke up believing in Me and some disbelieving. Whoever said "we were given rain by the grace and mercy of Allah" believes in Me. Whoever said "we were given rain by such and such a star" disbelieves in Me and believes in the stars.3
Scholars explain that the person who prays for forty nights without reward must still pray: the prayer is valid and the duty is done, but its reward is lost.
What the Quran says
قُل لَّا يَعْلَمُ مَن فِى ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ ٱلْغَيْبَ إِلَّا ٱللَّهُ ۚ وَمَا يَشْعُرُونَ أَيَّانَ يُبْعَثُونَ
Qul laa ya'lamu mman fis sammaawaati wal ardil ghaiba illal laah; wa maa yash'uroona aiyaana yub'asoon
"Say, "None in the heavens and earth knows the unseen except Allah, and they do not perceive when they will be resurrected.""
Quran 27:65 · translation by Sahih International
The Quran names five things whose knowledge is with Allah alone, including what a person will earn tomorrow and where he will die (31:34). Astrology claims exactly that knowledge. The Quran gives the stars three roles instead: guidance for travellers (6:97, 16:16), beauty in the sky, and missiles against the devils (67:5).
وَهُوَ ٱلَّذِى جَعَلَ لَكُمُ ٱلنُّجُومَ لِتَهْتَدُوا۟ بِهَا فِى ظُلُمَٰتِ ٱلْبَرِّ وَٱلْبَحْرِ ۗ قَدْ فَصَّلْنَا ٱلْءَايَٰتِ لِقَوْمٍۢ يَعْلَمُونَ
Wa Huwal lazee ja'ala lakumun nujooma litahtadoo bihaa fee zulumaatil barri walbahr; qad fassalnal Aayaati liqawminy ya'lamoon
"And it is He who placed for you the stars that you may be guided by them through the darknesses of the land and sea. We have detailed the signs for a people who know."
Quran 6:97 · translation by Sahih International
Imam al-Bukhari quotes the early scholar Qatadah: Allah created these stars for three things, to adorn the sky, to drive away the devils, and as signs to guide by. Whoever looks for more in them than that has made a mistake and taken on what he has no knowledge of.4
Astrology versus astronomy
| Astronomy (ilm al-falak) | Astrology (ilm al-tanjim) | |
|---|---|---|
| What it does | Measures the sky: positions, orbits, phases, times | Claims the stars reveal character, fortune or the future |
| Examples | Prayer times, qibla, moon sighting, eclipses, navigation | Horoscopes, star signs, birth charts, lucky days |
| Ruling | Allowed, and needed by the community | Haram |
| In Muslim history | A great science: al-Battani, al-Biruni, al-Sufi | Practised at some courts, and condemned by the scholars |
Our own prayer times, qibla finder and moon sighting pages are all astronomy. They calculate where the sun and moon are; they do not claim the sky decides anything.
The ruling, school by school
Astrology that claims to tell the future or the unseen is haram, and going to an astrologer is a major sin. Believing that the stars themselves cause events, or that an astrologer truly knows the unseen, is disbelief (kufr). Learning enough astronomy to know prayer times, the qibla and the months is allowed, and some of it is a communal duty. Ibn Abidin sets out this distinction in Radd al-Muhtar.
Other madhhabs
- Shafi'i, Maliki and Hanbali
- The same in substance. All four schools forbid astrology and consulting astrologers, call belief in the stars as causes disbelief, and allow astronomy for worship and travel.
Horoscopes "for fun", star signs and birth charts
- Reading horoscopes for fun. Scholars say this is not allowed either. It is a form of asking the astrologer, and the hadith of the forty nights covers asking, not only believing. Fun has a way of turning into half-belief.
- Knowing your star sign. Knowing the name of the constellation for your birth month is just a fact. Using it to describe your character, or to judge other people by it, is the problem.
- Zodiac compatibility and marriage charts. Matching couples by stars or birth charts, including the kundli matching common in South Asia, is not allowed. Islam's way to choose is to look at faith and character, consult family, and pray istikhara.
- Apps and columns. Uninstalling them is the easy part. If you have believed in them, make tawbah: Allah forgives all sins for the one who returns to Him (39:53).
Eclipses, omens and lucky days
On the day the Prophet's ﷺ son Ibrahim died, the sun eclipsed, and people said it was because of his death. The Prophet ﷺ corrected them at once: "The sun and the moon do not eclipse because of the death or life of anyone." He told them to pray and make dua instead.5 Even when a sign seemed to honour his own family, he would not let people read the sky as a message. He also said: "There is no contagion of itself, no bad omen, no hamah and no Safar,"6 rejecting the beliefs of his time about unlucky birds and an unlucky month.
FAQ
Is it haram to read horoscopes for fun?
Yes, scholars say it is not allowed, because it is a form of asking an astrologer, which the hadith in Sahih Muslim 2230 warns against. Believing them is more serious still.
Is it haram to know my zodiac sign?
Knowing which constellation matches your birth month is only a fact. Believing it shapes your character or future is what is forbidden.
Is astronomy haram in Islam?
No. Astronomy is allowed and was a great Muslim science. Prayer times, the qibla and the Islamic months all depend on it.
Are there lucky or unlucky days in Islam?
No. The Prophet ﷺ rejected bad omens and the idea of an unlucky month (Bukhari 5757). Some days and nights have special virtue, such as Friday and Laylatul Qadr, but none bring bad luck.
What if I believed in astrology before?
Make sincere tawbah and stop. Allah forgives every sin for the one who turns back to Him (39:53).
Sources
- Sunan Abu Dawud 3904 and Jami at-Tirmidhi 135, from Abu Hurayrah; graded sahih by al-Albani.
- Sunan Abu Dawud 3905 and Sunan Ibn Majah 3726, from Ibn Abbas; graded hasan by al-Albani.
- Sahih al-Bukhari 846 and Sahih Muslim 71, from Zayd ibn Khalid al-Juhani.
- Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of the Beginning of Creation, chapter on the stars: the statement of Qatadah, quoted without a full chain.
- Sahih al-Bukhari 1043, from al-Mughirah ibn Shu'bah.
- Sahih al-Bukhari 5757, from Abu Hurayrah.
- Ibn Abidin, Radd al-Muhtar, introduction, on which sciences are allowed and which are forbidden.
- Quran 27:65, 31:34, 6:97, 16:16, 67:5 and 39:53, Arabic from the Uthmani text, translation by Sahih International.
The rulings on this page are pending review by the scholars on our team.