يُلْقُونَ السَّمْعَ
Who gives ear,
means, they try to overhear what is said in the heavens, and they try to hear something of the Unseen, then they add to it a hundred lies and tell it to their human comrades, who then tell it to others. Then the people believe everything they say because they were right about the one thing which was heard from the heavens.
وَأَكْثَرُهُمْ كَاذِبُونَ
and most of them are liars.
This was stated in an authentic Hadith recorded by Al-Bukhari from A'ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, who said,
"The people asked the Prophet about fortune-tellers, and he said;
إِنَّهُمْ لَيْسُوا بِشَيْء
They are nothing.
They said;"O Messenger of Allah, they say things that come true."
The Prophet said;
تِلْكَ الْكَلِمَةُ مِنَ الْحَقِّ يَخْطَفُهَا الْجِنِّيُّ فَيُقَرْقِرُهَا فِي أُذُنِ وَلِيِّهِ كَقَرْقَرَةِ الدَّجَاجِ فَيَخْلِطُونَ مَعَهَا أَكْثَرَ مِنْ مِايَةِ كَذْبَة
That is a word of truth which the Jinn snatches, then he gabbles it like the clucking of a chicken into the ear of his friend, but he mixes it with more than one hundred lies.
Al-Bukhari also recorded that Abu Hurayrah said,
"The Prophet said;
إِذَا قَضَى اللهُ الاَْمْرَ فِي السَّمَاءِ ضَرَبَتِ الْمَلَيِكَةُ بِأَجْنِحَتِهَا خُضْعَانًا لِقَوْلِهِ كَأَنَّهَا سِلْسِلَةٌ عَلَى صَفْوَانٍ فَإِذَا فُزِّعَ عَنْ قُلُوبِهِمْ قَالُوا مَاذَا قَالَ رَبُّكُمْ قَالُوا لِلَّذِي قَالَ الْحَقَّ وَهُوَ الْعَلِيُّ الْكَبِيرُ فَيَسْمَعُهَا مُسْتَرِقُو السَّمْعِ وَمُسْتَرِقُو السَّمْعِ هَكَذَا بَعْضُهُمْ فَوْقَ بَعْضٍ وَصَفَ سُفْيَانُ بِيَدِهِ فَحَرَّفَهَا وَبَدَّدَ بَيْنَ أَصَابِعِهِ فَيَسْمَعُ الْكَلِمَةَ فَيُلْقِيهَا إِلَى مَنْ تَحْتَهُ ثُمَّ يُلْقِيهَا الاْخَرُ إِلَى مَنْ تَحْتَهُ حَتَّى يُلْقِيَهَا عَلَى لِسَانِ السَّاحِرِ أَوِ الْكَاهِنِ فَرُبَّمَا أَدْرَكَهُ الشِّهَابُ قَبْلَ أَنْ يُلْقِيَهَا وَرُبَّمَا أَلْقَاهَا قَبْلَ أَنْ يُدْرِكَهُ فَيَكْذِبُ مَعَهَا مِايَةَ كَذْبَةٍ فَيُقَالُ أَلَيْسَ قَدْ قَالَ لَنَا يَوْمَ كَذَا وَكَذَا كَذَا وَكَذَا فَيُصَدَّقُ بِتِلْكَ الْكَلِمَةِ الَّتِي سُمِعَتْ مِنَ السَّمَاء
When Allah decrees a matter in heaven, the angels beat their wings in submission to His decree, a chain beating on a rock. And when the fear in their hearts subsides, they say;"What is it that your Lord has said"
They say;"The truth. And He is the Most High, the Most Great."
Then when the Jinn who are listening out, one above the other
(-- and Sufyan illustrated this with a gesture, holding his hand vertically with his fingers outspread --)
when they hear this, they throw it down from one to another, until it is passed to the fortune-teller or soothsayer. The shooting star may strike the Jinn before he passes it on, or he may pass it on before he is struck, and he adds to it one hundred lies, thus it is said;
"Did he not tell us that on such and such a day, such and such would happen"
So they believe him because of that one thing which was heard from the heavens.
This was recorded by Al-Bukhari.
Al-Bukhari recorded from A'ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, that the Prophet said;
إِنَّ الْمَلَيِكَةَ تَحَدَّثُ فِي الْعَنَانِ وَالْعَنَانُ الْغَمَامُ بِالاَْمْرِ يَكُونُ فِي الاَْرْضِ فَتَسْمَعُ الشَّيَاطِينُ الْكَلِمَةَ فَتَقُرُّهَا فِي أُذُنِ الْكَاهِنِ كَمَا تُقَرُّ الْقَارُورَةُ فَيَزِيدُونَ مَعَهَا مِايَةَ كَذْبَة
The angels speak in the clouds about some matter on earth, and the Shayatin overhear what they say, so they tell it to the fortune-teller, gurgling into his ear like (a liquid poured) from a glass bottle, and he adds to it one hundred lies.
Refutation of the Claim that the Prophet was a Poet
Allah tells;
وَالشُّعَرَاء يَتَّبِعُهُمُ الْغَاوُونَ