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Fatwa CenterIbn Hajar's statement about regarding what is forbidden as permissible
Question
Assalaamu alaykum. I have a question regarding the following statement: Ibn Hajar said in Al-Fath, 1/244, "Regarding forbidden things as permissible is kufr (disbelief), and leading others to kufr is also kufr. However, this view is subject to further examination. The majority of the scholars are of the view that this does not constitute kufr unless one believes that this forbidden thing is permissible. Does it mean that saying that something is permissible although it is forbidden does not constitute kufr unless the person believes in what he says? May Allaah reward you.
Answer
All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah and that Muhammad 
is His slave and Messenger.
The statement of Ibn Hajar 
was in the context of addressing the issue of attributing lies to the Prophet and the stern warnings against lying or taking part in narrating lies and attributing them to him as compared to the gravity of attributing lies to anyone else although both acts are prohibited. He made mention of this point so as to underline whether attributing lies to the Prophet constitutes kufr in and of itself or whether it is declared kufr if the doer believes it to be allowable. The last view was adopted by the majority of the scholars. He wrote, "The majority of the scholars are of the view that this does not constitute kufr unless one believes that this forbidden thing is permissible." Thus, his statement is related to a specific case; there is no relation between this statement and what the questioner mentioned at the end of his question based on the statement attributed to the majority of scholars by Al-Haafith Ibn Hajar .
It is legislatively prohibited to deem lawful what Allaah has deemed unlawful or to deem unlawful what He deemed lawful. Allaah, The Exalted, says (what means): {And do not say about what your tongues assert of untruth, "This is lawful and this is unlawful," to invent falsehood about Allaah. Indeed, those who invent falsehood about Allaah will not succeed.} [Quran 16:116] However, when one declares unlawful what Allaah has deemed lawful and vice versa, he may not bear a sin for that in certain cases and may even be rewarded for that as in the case of ijtihaad (personal reasoning of scholars regarding new cases untackled by the Quran and Sunnah).
Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah wrote, "Also, as for this making unlawful what is lawful and making lawful what is unlawful, if it occurs from a scholar whose intention is to follow the Messenger but the truth in this matter was not clear to him and he feared Allaah as much as he was able, then Allaah will not take him to task for his mistake. Rather, he will be rewarded for the ijtihaad that he undertook in obedience to his Lord..."
Allaah knows best.
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