Do you think you can tell the hour when a man goes out and no evil befall him or can warn of the time at which if one goes out harm will accrue? Whoever testifies to this falsifies the Qur'an and becomes unmindful of Allah in achieving his desired objective and in warding off the undesirable. You cherish saying this so that he who acts on what you say should praise you rather than Allah because according to your misconception you have guided him about the hour in which he would secure benefit and avoid harm.
O' People! Beware of learning the science of stars except that with which guidance is sought on land or sea, because it leads to divining and an astrologer is a diviner, while the diviner is like the sorcerer, the sorcerer is like the unbeliever and the unbeliever would be in Hell. Get forward in the name of Allah.
Amir al-mu'minin has argued about astrology being wrong or incorrect
in three ways, firstly, that if the view of an astrologer is accepted
as correct it would mean falsification of the Qur'an, because
an astrologer claims to ascertain hidden things of the future
by seeing the stars while the Qur'an says:
Secondly that under his misconception the astrologer believes
that he can know his benefit or harm through knowing the future.
In that case he would be regardless of turning to Allah and seeking
His help, while this indifference towards Allah and self-reliance
is a sort of heresy and atheism, which puts an end to his hope
in Allah. Thirdly, that if he succeeds in any objective, he would
regard this success to be the result of his knowledge of astrology,
as a result of which he would praise himself rather than Allah,
and will expect that whomever he guides in this manner he too
should be grateful to him rather than to Allah . These points
do not apply to astrology to the extent it may be believed that
the astrological findings are in the nature of effect of medicines
which are subject to alteration at the will of Allah. The competence
achieved by most of our religious scholars in astrology is correct
in this very ground that they did not regard its findings as final.
(1). When Amir al-mu'minin decided to march towards Nahrawan to
suppress the rising of the Kharijites, `Afif ibn Qays al-Kindi
said to him, "This hour is not good. If you set out at this
time. then instead of victory and success you will face defeat
and vanquishment." But Amir al-mu'minin paid no heed to his
view and ordered the army to march that very moment. In the result
the Kharijites suffered such a clear defeat that out of their
nine thousand combatants only nine individuals saved their lives
by running away while the rest were killed.
Say: "None (either) in the heavens or in the earth knoweth
the unseen save Allah... " (27:65)