Paraphrasing from works of other writers

13-9-2017 | IslamWeb

Question:

Assalaamu alaykum. I am going to write a scientific work. If I read articles on the internet or from books and then paraphrased several paragraphs (I read and understand the idea and then write it again in my own language/style), is this considered cheating and sinful? Please reply, and may Allaah bless you.

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Answer:

All perfect praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.

Benefiting from published articles or books and quoting them is permissible and there is no harm in it. However, if you take a benefit or idea, you should attribute it to its author and not attribute it to yourself, even if you paraphrase it in your own style.

Allah knows best.