This question often arises when discussing practices such as Ruqyah Firesheets. To answer it properly, we must begin with an important distinction.

There is a clear difference between:

• Burning sacred text to protect it from desecration
• Burning it to mock, insult, or show hostility toward Islam

Islamic law does not judge actions merely by their outward appearance, but by their intention.

The Prophet ﷺ said:  “Actions are judged by intentions.” (Sahih al-Bukhari, Sahih Muslim)

The same physical act can carry completely different rulings depending on its purpose.

Why Did ʿUthman (ra) Burn Manuscripts?

During the lifetime of the Prophet ﷺ, the Qur’an was revealed in multiple divinely sanctioned modes of recitation.

The Prophet ﷺ said: “Indeed, this Qur’an has been revealed upon seven ahruf (modes), so recite whatever is easy for you.” (Bukhari, Muslim)

After the Prophet’s passing, Islam spread rapidly into new regions. Muslims from different lands were reciting according to what they had learned from different Companions. Over time, disagreements began to emerge.

During a military campaign, Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman observed serious disputes among soldiers from Iraq and Sham. Concerned that these disagreements could divide the Muslim community, he urged the Caliph to act.

ʿUthman ibn ʿAffan (ra) responded by standardising the written mushaf. He:

• Commissioned official copies
• Sent them to major regions
• Ordered other unofficial written materials to be destroyed

Importantly, destroying the Mushaf was not an act of disrespect. It was done to preserve unity and prevent confusion. The objective was protection of the Qur’an, not harm.

This action is recorded in Sahih al-Bukhari and the full hadith is below:

Narrated Anas ibn Malik:

Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman came to ʿUthman at the time when the people of Sham and the people of Iraq were waging war to conquer Armenia and Azerbaijan. Hudhayfah was afraid of their differences in the recitation of the Qur’an, so he said to ʿUthman:

“O Chief of the Believers! Save this nation before they differ about the Book as the Jews and Christians did.”

So ʿUthman sent a message to Hafsah saying:

“Send us the manuscripts so that we may compile the Qur’an into perfect copies and return the manuscripts to you.”

Hafsah sent them to ʿUthman. Then ʿUthman ordered Zayd ibn Thabit, ʿAbdullah ibn al-Zubayr, Saʿid ibn al-ʿAs and ʿAbd al-Rahman ibn al-Harith ibn Hisham to rewrite the manuscripts in perfect copies.

ʿUthman said to the three Qurayshi men:

“If you disagree with Zayd ibn Thabit on any point in the Qur’an, then write it in the dialect of Quraysh, for it was revealed in their tongue.”

They did so, and when they had copied the manuscripts into complete copies, ʿUthman returned the original manuscripts to Hafsah.

He sent to every region one copy of what they had copied, and ordered that all other Qur’anic materials, whether written in fragmentary manuscripts or complete copies, be burned. [Sahih Bukhari]

The Scholarly Principle: Preserving Sanctity

Classical scholars addressed what should be done when a muṣḥaf becomes worn, damaged, or unusable.

Imam al-Nawawi writes in al-Majmuʿ: “If the muṣḥaf becomes worn and torn, and it is no longer possible to benefit from it, it should be buried in a pure place. It has also been said that it may be burned.”

Ibn Qudamah states in al-Mughni: “There is no harm in burning the mushaf if it becomes worn out, and ʿUthman did this.”

The consistent objective across the schools of law was clear:

To protect the words of Allah from being degraded, stepped on, or thrown into impure places.

Even today, Islamic institutions burn or shred worn copies so that they are not discarded disrespectfully.

A Necessary Theological Clarification

It is also important to understand that Allah is not contained within ink or paper.

Allah says: “There is nothing like unto Him.” (Qur’an 42:11)

Paper is material.
Ink is material.
Both are subject to physical change.

Allah, however, is beyond material form and beyond destruction.

Fire is a created substance. If someone believes fire can harm Allah, that implies:

• A created thing can overpower or affect the Creator.

• Allah is subject to physical processes.

• Allah is vulnerable to material forces.

That contradicts:

• His self-sufficiency (as-Samad)

• His absolute power (al-Qadir)

Believing fire can harm Allah is forbidden in Islam and would fall under the following types of Shirk:

• Shirk in Rububiyyah (associating partners with Allah in His Lordship): Because it assigns independent power to creation over the Creator.
• Shirk in Asmaʾ wa Sifat (associating partners with Allah in His Names and Attributes): Because it attributes to Allah a deficiency (being harmed, affected, limited).

Applying This to Ruqyah Firesheets

The Ruqyah Firesheets method is not performed with the intention of insult or disrespect. The purpose is supplication; asking Allah to remove or burn away evil through the act of merging the ruqyah words with fire.

This is comparable to the well-known ruqyah practice where Qur’anic verses are recited over water (to merge the ruqyah words with water) and then drunk. The intention is to seek healing from Allah. Once the water is consumed, the spoken words are no longer present in their original form. This does not prevent a person who has drunk Quranic ruqyah water from entering the toilet, because the Qur’an is no longer present as spoken words.

Similarly, once a firesheet has been burned:

• The text can no longer be read.
• It cannot be desecrated.
• Its physical form has changed entirely.

The act is carried out with reverence and intention of supplication, not destruction.

It should also be noted that both fire and water are just elements created by Allah. Fire can destroy, but it can also purify e.g. sterilisation. Water can save a person via hydration, it can also kill a person via drowning. As with all elements, they are not inherently good or bad. It is the intention of how we use them which is important, as explained earlier on.

Conclusion

The historical precedent of ʿUthman (ra), the statements of classical jurists, and established theological principles demonstrate that burning written Qur’anic material — when done to preserve sanctity — is not inherently haram.

The ruling depends on intention.

Burning out of hostility is sinful.
Burning to protect sanctity is permissible.

The Ruqyah Firesheets method operates within this framework of reverence, supplication, and preservation.