{"_id":"69a8588994c241381cb064a9","title":"{\"ops\":[{\"insert\":\"Can the hadith about practicing medicine without knowledge apply to other professions?\\n\"}]}","question":"{\"ops\":[{\"insert\":\"Can the following hadith be extrapolated to other fields, or at least to fields that impact people’s health, wellbeing, finances, or religion?\\n\\nʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAmr reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:\\n“Whoever practices medicine without any prior knowledge of medicine will be held liable.”\\n\\nSource: \"},{\"attributes\":{\"link\":\"https://sunnah.com/ibnmajah:3466\"},\"insert\":\"Sunan Ibn Mājah 3466\"},{\"insert\":\"\\n\"}]}","answer":"{\"ops\":[{\"insert\":\"Yes, it is definitely sinful to deceive others by presenting yourself as someone you are not, especially when taking money from those who believe you're qualified for a job you are unfit to do. Historically, Islamic authorities appointed officials known as muḥtasibs to oversee markets and public welfare. One of their duties was to ensure that professionals such as physicians were properly trained and conducted their work with integrity and competence.\\n\\nA translated excerpt from a 5th-century AH Hanbali scholar outlining the responsibilities of these regulatory officials:\\n\\n\\\"Among the things that the officials of ḥisbah (market regulation) are required to oversee concerning the people of various trades in the marketplaces are three categories:\\nThose whose work must be assessed based on whether they fulfill their duties or fall short.\"},{\"attributes\":{\"list\":\"ordered\"},\"insert\":\"\\n\"},{\"insert\":\"Those whose integrity must be assessed in terms of trustworthiness or betrayal.\"},{\"attributes\":{\"list\":\"ordered\"},\"insert\":\"\\n\"},{\"insert\":\"Those whose output must be evaluated in terms of quality or deficiency.\"},{\"attributes\":{\"list\":\"ordered\"},\"insert\":\"\\n\"},{\"insert\":\"\\nAs for those whose performance is judged in terms of fulfilling their responsibilities or falling short, they include doctors and teachers.\\n\\nThis is because medicine deals directly with human lives, and negligence in it may lead to harm or death. And as for teachers, they lay down the foundations upon which young children are raised, and what is ingrained in childhood becomes difficult to change in adulthood. Therefore, only those whose knowledge is sound and whose teaching methods are good should be allowed to continue, while those who are deficient or corrupt in their influence must be prevented from taking on roles that damage souls and corrupt character.”\\n\\nAnother translated excerpt from a 9th-century Shāfiʿī scholar specifically addressing the oversight of physicians:\\n\\n\\\"A physician is someone who possesses knowledge of the composition of the human body, the temperaments of its organs, the diseases that may arise within them, their causes, symptoms, signs, the remedies beneficial for them, and the alternatives when certain medications are not available. He must know how to derive these treatments, and the method of treating diseases by matching them with suitable medicines in the correct quantities, while differing between them in qualities.\\n\\nWhoever does not meet these qualifications must not be allowed to treat the sick. It is not permissible for such a person to undertake treatment that involves risk, nor to interfere in matters in which he has no knowledge.\\n\\nIn the hadith of ʿAmr ibn Shuʿayb from his father from his grandfather, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:\\n\"},{\"attributes\":{\"italic\":true},\"insert\":\"“Whoever practices medicine without prior knowledge of medicine, then he is liable.”\"},{\"insert\":\"\\n\\nIt is proper for the physicians to have a senior among them, one experienced in the craft, to supervise. It has been reported that the kings of the Greeks would appoint a well-known wise man in every city, who would then examine the other physicians in the town. If he found anyone deficient in knowledge, he would order him to return to study and forbid him from treating patients.\\n\\nWhen a physician visits a patient, he should ask about the cause of the illness and the nature of the pain. He should then prescribe a regimen of drinks and medicines. He should write a prescription and give a copy to the patient’s caretakers, witnessed by those present. On the following day, he should return and examine the patient’s condition, inspect his urine sample, and ask whether the illness has improved or not. Then he should adjust the treatment accordingly, write a new prescription, and hand it to the patient’s family. He should do this again on the third day, the fourth, and so on — until the patient either recovers or dies.\\n\\nIf the patient recovers, the physician is entitled to his fee and honorarium. But if the patient dies, his family should take the written prescriptions to the city’s renowned physician. If he determines that the treatment was sound and consistent with medical standards, and that there was no negligence or shortcoming, he will declare: “This was a death due to the completion of his appointed term.”\\nHowever, if he finds otherwise, he will say: “Take the blood money from the physician, for he is the one who caused his death due to his poor skill and negligence.”\\n\\nThis level of vigilance was maintained to ensure that only those qualified practiced medicine, and so that no physician would become negligent in any aspect of care.\\n\\nIt is also incumbent upon the muḥtasib (market inspector) to require physicians to abide by the Oath of Hippocrates, which he imposed upon all physicians. He should make them swear not to administer harmful drugs, not to concoct poisons, not to provide abortive drugs to women or sterilizing agents to men, to lower their gaze when entering upon patients, not to disclose secrets, not to violate privacy, and not to engage in anything blameworthy or illicit.\\n\"}]}","tags":[{"_id":"668d9ff00b76658b4c2329a9","tag":"Contemporary Life: Jobs and Career","count":120},{"_id":"668d9ff70b76658b4c232a80","tag":"Seerah: Sunnah and Hadith","count":68},{"_id":"668d9fe50b76658b4c232851","tag":"Contemporary Life: Knowledge","count":33}],"createdOn":"2026-03-04T16:06:33.735Z"}