In this continuing series titled “Residence from the Perspective of Islam,” we have been examining how Muslims should arrange and construct their living spaces, and what kinds of guidelines exist within the religion regarding this matter.
On Building Houses and the Issue of Vastu
Today we will look at a particular issue.
When people build houses — whether houses, shops, companies, or institutions — many of them follow a method known as Vastu. According to this system, certain directions must be followed: the main door must face a particular direction, the kitchen must be located in another direction, and other parts of the building must be arranged according to specific rules.
Those who follow the Hindu religion practice this system according to their belief. They say that if the house is constructed according to these directions, then prosperity will come and the building will be auspicious.
But what is happening today?
Some Muslims themselves are also beginning to follow this Vastu system. When they build houses, they consult Vastu experts and ask them where the door should be placed, where the bathroom should be located, where the staircase should be built, and in which direction everything must face.
First we must understand what this system actually claims.
It says that if the door is placed in a certain direction, good fortune will come. If the bathroom is built in another direction, misfortune will occur. If the staircase has three steps instead of four, one type of result will occur, and if the measurements are different, another result will occur.
Now we must ask a question: Who told them this?
Either it must be something proven scientifically, or it must be something revealed by divine guidance. If scientists conduct research and demonstrate that certain structural designs improve ventilation, safety, or health, then we can accept such conclusions. That would be based on knowledge and logic.
But in this case, what do we see?
Someone simply writes a book claiming that doors must be in this direction, windows must be at that height, the steps must be arranged in a particular way, and the rooms must face certain directions.
Where did he get this knowledge?
He claims that if the house is built in a particular way, certain events will occur in the future. But such claims belong to the unseen realm. Only Allahﷻ has knowledge of the unseen. No human being can declare that certain future events will happen simply because a door faces one direction instead of another.
Therefore when Muslims consult Vastu experts and even demolish parts of houses that are already built because the “Vastu alignment” is wrong, this becomes nothing but superstition.
In fact, some people even demolish perfectly constructed houses simply because someone tells them that the Vastu arrangement is incorrect.
This belief is completely baseless.
The Prophetﷺ clearly declared in his Farewell Sermon that all the superstitions of the age of ignorance are to be crushed under his feet. The Prophetﷺ said that the practices of the Jahiliyyah — the age of ignorance — would be abolished and rejected.
So what is meant by Jahiliyyah?
If a practice has a basis in revelation or clear religious evidence, then it cannot be called ignorance. Likewise, if a practice is supported by rational logic and scientific understanding, then it cannot be considered superstition.
But if someone follows a belief with no evidence, no revelation, and no rational proof, merely because someone claimed it somewhere, then that falls into superstition.
And Vastu belongs exactly to this category.
Who taught you that this direction brings prosperity and another direction brings misfortune? Did revelation come with this information? Did scientists conduct research and prove it?
No.
People simply repeat what someone else wrote.
Therefore Muslims must never adopt this belief. When constructing houses, they may arrange doors and rooms according to convenience, functionality, and practical needs. But if someone believes that Vastu itself determines prosperity or misfortune, then that belief begins to affect one’s faith.
Such a belief enters the realm of superstition and even shirk (associating unseen powers with things other than Allahﷻ ).
Because claiming that certain structures control unseen outcomes is similar to fortune-telling. It resembles astrology or prophecy: “If the house is built this way, such events will happen.”
The Prophetﷺ ﷺ warned that if someone goes to a fortune teller and believes what he says, then he has rejected the message that was revealed to Muhammad ﷺ.
So if a Muslim accepts such beliefs, he is not truly following the teachings of Islam even if he calls himself a Muslim by name.
Therefore this practice of Vastu must never exist among Muslims.
Belief That Certain Houses Bring Misfortune
Another related superstition exists regarding houses themselves.
Sometimes a family lives in a house and several difficulties occur. Someone dies. Illness spreads. Business suffers losses. If two or three misfortunes happen consecutively,
people immediately say: “This house is unlucky. All these problems happened because we live here.”
They believe the house itself determines their destiny. They advise the family to move to another house.
But this belief is also clearly forbidden.
Some people misunderstand certain hadiths and assume that misfortune can exist in houses. Because of this misunderstanding, they decide to change houses whenever difficulties occur.
One narration reported by Ibn Umar states that omens can exist in three things: a wife, a house, and a riding animal. This narration appears in Sahih Bukhari.
But the same narrator, Ibn Umar, also narrated another version where the wording changes.
In that version the Prophetﷺ says: “If omen were to exist in anything, it would be in a house, a wife, or a horse.”
Notice the wording: “If omen were to exist.”
This phrase does not affirm the existence of omens. Rather it denies them.
The Arabic expression “if it were to exist” is commonly used to refer to something that does not actually exist.
The Qur’an itself uses this style.
For example, when some people claimed that Allahﷻ had a son, the Qur’an says: “If the Most Merciful had a son, I would be the first to worship him.”
(Qur’an 43:81)
But this statement does not mean Allahﷻ has a son. Rather it demonstrates the impossibility of such a claim.
In the same way, the hadith saying “if omen existed it would be in these three things” actually indicates that omens do not exist at all.
Therefore misfortune does not come from a wife, a house, or a vehicle.
A man does not become poor because of the woman he married. Nor does prosperity come because a particular wife entered his life. Likewise, wealth does not come because of a car or disappear because a vehicle was sold.
Similarly, a house does not determine a person’s destiny. Whether a house is a small hut or a large mansion, it has no control over the wealth or difficulties that a person experiences.
Everything that happens to a person happens according to the provision and decree written for him by Allahﷻ .
Therefore, blaming a house for misfortune is nothing but superstition. Muslims must understand this clearly.
Aisha (Mother of Believers)’s Refutation of the Misunderstood Hadith About Omens
Furthermore, this matter becomes even clearer when we examine another narration. When this report reached the attention of Aisha (Mother of Believers), she reacted with intense anger and strongly rejected it.
What was the report?
Abu Hurairah narrated that the Prophetﷺ said: “There are omens in three things: a woman, a house, and a riding animal.”
Earlier we saw that Ibn Umar narrated something similar. But here the narration is attributed to Abu Hurairah, who reports that the Prophetﷺ ﷺ said that omens exist in these three things: wife, house, and vehicle.
When people heard this narration, they went to Aisha (Mother of Belivers) (RA) and asked her: “Abu Hurairah is narrating that the Prophetﷺ said there are omens in these three things. Is this really part of Islam?”
The moment Aisha (Mother of Belivers) heard this, she became extremely angry.
The narration describes her anger vividly. It was not ordinary irritation; it was a powerful reaction. It is said that she became so angry that it was as though she would leap between the heavens and the earth. Her anger was so intense that her hands trembled.
Why did she react so strongly?
Because she said: “How can such a statement be attributed to the Prophetﷺ ﷺ? In a religion that rejects omens completely, how could the Prophetﷺ say that omens exist in three things?”
Aisha (Mother of Belivers) then explained what actually happened.
She said that the Prophetﷺ ﷺ was referring to the beliefs of the people of the age of ignorance (Jahiliyyah). In that era, people used to claim that misfortune comes from three things: wives, houses, and riding animals.
The Prophetﷺ merely mentioned that people of the age of ignorance used to say this.
But Abu Hurairah, according to Aisha (Mother of Belivers)’s explanation, narrated the statement without mentioning that the Prophetﷺ ﷺ was quoting the beliefs of the people of ignorance. As a result, it sounded as though the Prophetﷺ himself affirmed the idea.
Aisha (Mother of Belivers) declared firmly: “I swear by Allahﷻ who revealed the Qur’an to Muhammad ﷺ — the Messenger of Allahﷻ never said that omens exist in these three things.”
This narration appears in the Musnad of Ahmad.
Aisha (Mother of Belivers) said clearly that the Prophetﷺ ﷺ never declared such a belief. Instead he merely stated that people in the age of ignorance used to believe such things.
But that part of the statement was omitted in the narration attributed to Abu Hurairah. Because of that omission, the meaning became distorted.
So Aisha (Mother of Belivers) rejected the narration strongly.
And she did not merely reject it emotionally — she supported her argument with a Qur’anic verse.
She recited a verse from the Qur’an: Surah Al-Hadid (57:22)
“No calamity occurs on the earth or within yourselves except that it is written in a record before We bring it into existence.”
What does this verse mean?
It means that every hardship, sorrow, or disaster that occurs in the world — whether it affects the earth or affects people personally — has already been recorded by Allahﷻ in a divine register before it happens.
It is not caused by a house.
It is not caused by a wife.
It is not caused by a vehicle.
Every event happens according to what Allahﷻ has written in the divine record.
Therefore Aisha (Mother of Belivers) argued that claiming misfortune comes from houses, wives, or animals directly contradicts the Qur’an.
She rejected the narration in two ways:
- She said the statement was incorrectly reported and that the Prophetﷺ never said it in that form.
- She demonstrated that the belief itself contradicts the Qur’an.
Her anger shows how serious this issue is. When a belief threatens the foundation of faith, the companions of the Prophetﷺ reacted strongly.
Misfortune Comes Only From Divine Decree
From all this we understand a fundamental principle.
No hardship that happens to a person is caused by his house, his wife, or his vehicle.
If a person experiences repeated trials while living in a house and he begins to believe that the house itself is unlucky, then this shows a weakness in faith.
One of the central pillars of Islamic belief is belief in destiny (Qadar).
Children learn this even in the earliest stages of Islamic education:
- We believe in Allahﷻ
- We believe in the angels
- We believe in the Prophetﷺs
- We believe in the revealed books
- We believe in the Day of Judgment
- And we believe in destiny — both its good and its bad
Every good thing that happens occurs because Allahﷻ wrote it to occur. Every hardship that happens occurs because Allahﷻ decreed it. Nothing happens because of houses, wives, or vehicles.
If a black cat crosses someone’s path and his task fails, he should not blame the cat. If Allahﷻ decreed that the task should fail, it will fail regardless of the cat.
Similarly, some people believe that if they see certain people before starting an important task, it is a bad omen. Others believe certain people are “lucky faces” whose presence guarantees success.
All of this is superstition. Success and failure come only from Allahﷻ .
Wealth and Hardship Are Not Signs of Goodness or Evil
Another misunderstanding must also be corrected.
People sometimes assume that wealth means a person is righteous and poverty means a person is sinful. But this is not true. Allahﷻ gives wealth to some people and withholds it from others according to His wisdom.
He gave immense wealth to Prophetﷺ Sulaiman. But He also gave wealth to Pharaoh (Fir‘awn) and Haman, who were among the worst tyrants. So, wealth does not prove righteousness.
Similarly, hardship does not prove wickedness.
The Prophetﷺ ﷺ himself experienced severe poverty. There were times when his household had nothing to cook. Aisha (Mother of Belivers) said that sometimes three days would pass without a fire being lit in their home for cooking.
They survived on dates and water. Did the Prophetﷺ ever say that the house was unlucky? Did the companions say the wives were the cause of poverty? No. They understood that whatever happened occurred according to Allahﷻ ’s decree.
The Proper Response to Hardship
When hardship comes, Muslims should not blame objects or people.
Instead, they should turn to Allahﷻ in supplication. The Prophetﷺ ﷺ taught that nothing changes destiny except sincere prayer (du‘a). If Allahﷻ has written hardship for someone, that hardship will occur. But when a person humbly prays to Allahﷻ , the same Allahﷻ who decreed the hardship can also remove it.
Therefore the solution is not fortune tellers, charms, talismans, or magical remedies.
When people do not understand destiny, they run to magicians and fortune tellers who give them amulets and strange rituals. But none of these things can change what Allahﷻ has written.
Only Allahﷻ can change it.
The Real Meaning of Faith
True faith means believing that everything happens according to Allahﷻ ’s decree.
When the angel Jibreel (Gabriel) came to teach the religion to the companions, he asked the Prophetﷺ about faith. The Prophetﷺ replied that faith includes believing completely in destiny — both its good and its bad. Without belief in destiny, faith itself becomes incomplete.
Therefore, Muslims must build houses according to practicality and comfort — for ventilation, safety, and convenience. But they must never believe that the structure of the house determines their fate.
All destiny belongs to Allahﷻ alone. And any belief that attributes unseen power to houses, people, animals, or objects weakens faith and leads toward superstition.