Assalamu alaikum!
Clarification is needed about this..
When a person says that his breast has been opened to this matter, or that Allah has cast this matter into his heart, is this equivalent to levelling a false accusation against Allah?
Secondly, have the scholars spoken on this issue or not, whether it really has any reality or not? Or can no one make this claim, etc.?
The explanation of this issue, in light of its delicacy and the principles of the Book and the Sunnah, is as follows: It is proven from the texts of the Book and the Sunnah that Allah Almighty puts a matter of good into the hearts of His believing servants, or opens their breast for the recognition of the truth.
Wa alaikum assalam wa rahmatullah wa barakatuh
The explanation of this issue, in light of its delicacy and the principles of the Book and the Sunnah, is as follows:
It is proven from the texts of the Book and the Sunnah that Allah Almighty puts a matter of good into the hearts of His believing servants, or opens their breast for the recognition of the truth. In Shariah terminology, this is called ilham, ilqa, or the firasah of faith.
Allah Almighty says in the Noble Qur'an: "So the one whose breast Allah has opened for Islam, he is upon a light from his Lord" (Surah al-Zumar: 22).
Similarly, it is related in the hadiths about Sayyiduna Umar Faruq, may Allah be pleased with him, that he was a muhaddath (one into whose heart a matter is cast by Allah). Therefore, its reality cannot be denied.
The answer to this depends on that person's intention and the nature of his claim:
When is it permissible? If a righteous person who follows the Sunnah is perplexed in a matter and then suddenly obtains heartfelt contentment upon some aspect of it, he may declare it to be Allah's favour and an opening of the breast. There is no harm in this, provided that that matter is not against the Qur'an and the Sunnah.
When is it a false accusation? If a person places this ilqa or opening of the breast at the level of revelation, considers it infallible (free from error), or tries through it to change a ruling of the Shariah, then this is equivalent to levelling a false accusation against Allah and to al-qawl 'ala Allah bi-ghayr 'ilm (speaking about Allah without knowledge).
Imam Ibn Taymiyyah and Imam Ibn al-Qayyim, may Allah have mercy on them both, have spoken on this issue in great detail. They have stated some strict rules for it, which are the foundation of the method of the Book and the Sunnah:
The Scale of the Shariah: Every matter that comes into the heart, or opening of the breast, will be weighed in the scales of the Qur'an and the Sunnah. If it is in accordance with the Shariah, it is accepted; if it is opposed to it, it is a satanic whisper; and if it is among the permissible works, it is a personal inclination.
Proof and Evidence: A person's individual ilham or opening of the breast can be a cause of contentment only for his own self (subject to its correctness), but it cannot become a Shariah proof or evidence for others.
Prohibition of the Claim: The scholars dislike that a person should frequently say, "Allah has put this into my heart" or "My Lord speaks to me". This is like the exaggeration of the Sufis, in which they try, by saying haddathani qalbi 'an rabbi (my heart has narrated to me from my Lord), to become independent of the Prophetic Sunnah.
Summary: The reality of the opening of the breast and ilqa exists, but this is not something that just anyone should go around claiming. It is a subtle state of faith which is obtained as a result of following the Sunnah. Giving precedence to any ilqa over the Shariah, or considering it definitive, is misguidance.
Translated from the original Urdu fatwa.