10 Sunnah-Based Methods for Performing Ruqyah (Spiritual Healing) on Oneself

◈First: Blow into the palms:

Hazrat Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said:
“Every night, when the Prophet ﷺ came to his bed, he would join his two palms together and blow into them, and then recite:
[ قل هو الله أحد] and [قل أعوذ برب الفلق] and [قل أعوذ برب الناس]. Then he would blow again into his palms and pass both hands over his body as far as possible, starting from his head, face and the front part of his body. He would do this three (3) times.”

◈Second: Blow on the place of pain:

Place your right hand on the place of pain in your body and blow.
Hazrat Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said:
“Whenever any member of the household of Messenger of Allah ﷺ fell ill, he would recite the Mu’awwidhat and blow on them.”

It is also narrated from the Prophet ﷺ:
“Whenever he ﷺ felt any pain, he would recite the Mu’awwidhat and blow on himself.”

“The patient also has the choice to blow by reciting other surahs besides these. The entire Qur’an is something to blow with, and there is healing in the whole Qur’an.”
Allah the Exalted says:

قُلْ هُوَ لِلَّذِينَ آمَنُوا هُدًى وَشِفَاءٌ

“Say: It is, for those who believe, a guidance and a healing.”

And Allah, Glorified and Exalted, says:

(وَنُنَزِّلُ مِنَ الْقُرْآنِ مَا هُوَ شِفَاءٌ وَرَحْمَةٌ لِّلْمُؤْمِنِينَ)

“And We send down of the Qur’an that which is a healing and a mercy for the believers.”

◈Third: Blow over water and drink it and bathe with it:

Recite the supplications established in the verses and hadiths over water and blow on it; then the patient should be given some of it to drink and the rest should be poured over his body.
Just as the Messenger of Allah ﷺ blew over Hazrat Thabit bin Qays bin Shammas.

[Note: This hadith of Abu Dawud

]
If Zamzam water is available for blowing, it is more perfect. This is because the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said about Zamzam:

(إنها مباركة ، إنها طعام طعم ، وشفاء سقم ، و’’ماء زم زم لما شرب له‘‘ ۔۔۔۔۔’’ فإن شربته تستشفى به شفاك الله‘‘ )

“Indeed, Zamzam is a blessed water.”
“It is food for the one who eats it.”

“It is a cure for illness.”

“Zamzam fulfills the purpose for which it is drunk.”

“If you drink Zamzam seeking healing from your illness, Allah will heal you.”

And it is narrated from him ﷺ that:
“The Messenger of Allah ﷺ would fill containers and water-skins with Zamzam and take them with him; he would pour it over the sick and give it to them to drink.”

❀ Allama Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
“I and others besides me experienced remarkable things in seeking healing with Zamzam. Through it I received healing from several illnesses, and Allah the Exalted made me completely well.”

◈Fourth: Blow on olive oil and massage with it:

Blow over olive oil while reciting, and then massage with it.
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
“Eat olive oil and also massage with it, for indeed it is obtained from a blessed tree.”

“There is no harm in going to the toilet after massaging with this oil.”

◈Fifth: Place the hand on the place of pain and recite supplications:

It is narrated from Hazrat Uthman bin Abi al-As Thaqafi (may Allah be pleased with him):
He complained to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ about a pain which he had been feeling in his body since the time he embraced Islam. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said to him:
“Place your hand on the place where you feel pain in your body, say three times (باسم الله), and then recite this supplication seven times”:

(أَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ وَقُدْرَتِهِ مِنْ شَرِّ مَا أَجدُ وَ أَحَاذِرُ .)

“I seek refuge in Allah and His power from the evil of what I feel and what I fear.”

And it is narrated from Hazrat Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
“When you feel any pain, place your hand on the place of pain and say:”

(باسْمِ اللَّهِ) وَ (بِاللَّهِ) (أَعُوذُ بِعِزَّةِ اللَّهِ وَقُدْرَتِهِ مِنْ شَرِّ مَا أَجِدُ مِنْ وَجْعِي هَذَا)

“(In the name of Allah) and (trusting in Allah) I seek refuge in the might of Allah and His power from the evil of this pain of mine.”
“Then lift your hand, and do it again. This should be done an odd number of times (i.e., three times, five times or seven times).”

And in another narration, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
“Place your right hand on the place of pain, and blow seven times while reciting this supplication, and pass your hand over that place seven times:

أعُوذُ بِعِزَّةِ اللَّهِ وَقُدْرَتِهِ مِنْ شَرِّ مَا أَجِدُ .

I seek refuge in the might of Allah and His power from the evil of this pain.”
With each passing of the right hand, this supplication should be recited.

Sayyida Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said:
Whenever any of us fell ill, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ would visit the members of the household, pass his right hand (over the place of pain of the patient) and recite this supplication:

اذْهِبَ الْبَاسَ رَب النَّاسِ وَاشْفِ انْتَ الشَّافِي لا شِفَاءَ إِلَّا شِفَاؤُكَ شِفَاء لَّا يُغَادِرُ سقما

“Remove the affliction, O Lord of mankind, and grant cure, for You are the Healer. There is no cure but Your cure, a cure that leaves no illness behind.”

[One may also perform ruqyah with other supplications that are established from the Prophet ﷺ.]

◈ Sixth: Supplications for reciting ruqyah over oneself:

When reciting ruqyah over oneself, recite these supplications:

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ أَرْقِيكَ مِنْ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ يُؤْذِيكَ مِنْ شرك كُلِّ نَفْسٍ أَوْ عَيْنِ حَاسِدٍ اللَّهُ يَشْفِيكَ بِسم الله أرقيك.

“In the name of Allah, I perform ruqyah on myself against everything that harms me, against the evil of every soul, or of an envious eye. Allah will cure me.”

أَسْأَلُ اللهَ الْعَظِيمَ رَبَّ الْعَرْشِ الْعَظِيمِ أَنْ يُشْفِينِي.

“I ask Allah, the Mighty, the Lord of the Mighty Throne, to grant you cure.”

;اللهم ربّ الناس، أذهب البأس، واشفِ أنت الشافي، لا شفاء إلا شفاؤك، شفاءً لا يُغادر سقمًا.

“O Allah, Lord of mankind, remove the affliction, grant cure, for You are the Healer; there is no healer but You. Grant a cure that leaves no illness behind.”
[One may also perform ruqyah with other supplications that are established from the Prophet ﷺ.]

◈ Seventh: Mixing earth with saliva:

The method is this: blow lightly onto the index finger with a little saliva on it. Then place the finger on the earth, lift it, and apply it to the place of pain while performing ruqyah on the patient. A narration in Bukhari indicates this method; Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said:
The Prophet ﷺ used to perform ruqyah on the patient reciting this supplication:

;بِسمِ اللهِ، تُرْبَةُ أرْضِنَا، بِرِيقَةِ بَعْضِنَا، يُشْفَى بِهِ سَقِيمُنَا، بإذْنِ رَبِّنَا

Translation:
“In the name of Allah. This is the earth of our land, with the saliva of some of us, by which our sick will be cured, by the permission of our Lord.”

In a narration in Sahih Muslim: when a person suffered a pain, a boil or a wound, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ would place his index finger on the ground in this way? Saying this, Sayyidina Sufyan (may Allah be pleased with him) placed his index finger on the ground; then he would lift it and say:

;بِسمِ اللهِ، تُرْبَةُ أرْضِنَا، بِرِيقَةِ بَعْضِنَا، يُشْفَى بِهِ سَقِيمُنَا، بإذْنِ رَبِّنَا

Translation:
“In the name of Allah. This is the earth of our land, with the saliva of some of us, by which our sick will be cured, by the permission of our Lord.”

❀Imam Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
Its meaning is that one takes a little saliva on one’s finger, then places it on the earth, and mixes in a small amount of earth with it. Then one applies it to the wound or the place of illness. While applying it to the wound, one recites the above-mentioned supplication with the tongue.

واللہ اعلم .

◈ Eighth: Permissibility of blowing before, during and after reciting:

Blowing should be done before reciting, while reciting, and after reciting. The evidence for this is found in the following texts:
1. Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) narrated that whenever the Messenger of Allah ﷺ went to his bed each night, he would join his two palms, blow into them, then recite the above-mentioned surahs into them and blow again.

This hadith is evidence for blowing before reciting the surahs.

2. In another narration: whenever the Messenger of Allah ﷺ went to his bed each night, he would join his two palms, blow into them, then recite [قل هو الله أحد] and the Mu’awwidhatain into them and blow again.

❀Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) writes:
“The meaning is that he would recite these surahs and blow while reciting.”

3. As also comes in the account of the madman upon whom a Companion performed ruqyah.
The narrator says:
“The Prophet ﷺ performed ruqyah on him morning and evening for three days, reciting Surah al-Fatiha. When he finished Surah al-Fatiha, he would gather his saliva and spit on him.”
This hadith is evidence for blowing after recitation.

◈ Ninth: Ruqyah without blowing:

It is permissible to perform ruqyah without blowing or applying saliva. This is established from the Prophet ﷺ, for when he visited a sick person he would supplicate in this way:

;اللهم رب الناس، أذهب البأس، واشف، أنت الشافي لا شفاء إلا شفاؤك، شفاءً لا يغادر سقماً

“O Allah, Lord of mankind, remove the affliction, grant cure, for You are the Healer; there is no healer but You. Grant a cure that leaves no illness behind.”

Similarly, when Jibril, peace be upon him, performed ruqyah over the Prophet ﷺ, there is no report that Jibril blew.

❀Hazrat Abu Sa’id al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) said:
Jibril, peace be upon him, came to the Prophet ﷺ and said: “O Muhammad ﷺ, are you feeling unwell?” He ﷺ said: “Yes.” So he said these words:

;باسم الله أرقيك من كل شيء يؤذيك، من شر كل نفس، أو عين حاسد، الله يشفيك باسم الله أرقيك

“In the name of Allah I perform ruqyah on you. Allah will cure you from everything that harms you, from the evil of every soul or of an envious eye. In the name of Allah I perform ruqyah on you.”

📗 (Sahih Muslim 2186)

These two blessed hadiths indicate performing ruqyah without saliva and without blowing.

🌿 Brief summary of the nine methods

1️⃣ Blowing into the palms: Reciting the Mu’awwidhat three times each night and passing them over one’s body. (Bukhari 5017)

2️⃣ Ruqyah on the place of pain: Placing the hand on the painful part of the body while reciting the Mu’awwidhat. (Muslim 1292)

3️⃣ Ruqyah on water: Reciting Quranic verses, blowing onto water, then drinking it and bathing with it. (Abu Dawud 3885)

4️⃣ Ruqyah on olive oil: Reciting over olive oil and massaging with it. (Tirmidhi 1851)

5️⃣ Placing the hand on the painful place and reciting supplications: saying “Bismillah” and “A’udhu bi-‘izzatillahi wa qudratihi”. (Muslim 2202)

6️⃣ Supplications for blowing on oneself: reciting “Bismillahi arqika…” and “As’alullaha al-‘Azeem…”. (Muslim, Abu Dawud)

7️⃣ Mixing earth with saliva: applying a little saliva and earth on the finger and reciting the supplication. (Bukhari 5742, Muslim 2194)

8️⃣ Blowing during the recitation: blowing before reciting, during the recitation, and after it. (Bukhari 5017, 5748)

9️⃣ Reciting without blowing: merely reciting the supplication is also sufficient and sunnah. (Bukhari 5675, Muslim 2186)

🔹 1️⃣ The three basic conditions of permissible (lawful) incantation (ruqyah):

Permissible incantation is that in which, by the consensus of the scholars, three conditions are found:
◈ It is the speech of Allah, or it consists of remembrances and supplications containing His names and attributes.
◈ It is in clear Arabic, and its meaning can be understood.
◈ One does not place complete reliance on the incantation, but believes that the incantation is not effective in itself; its effect is created by Allah.

🔹 2️⃣ Prohibited (haram) incantation:

Prohibited incantation is that which contains shirk. Such as calling upon other than Allah, seeking help from him, seeking help from jinn and devils, or counting unknown kinds of names

or reciting with words whose meaning cannot be understood.

🔹 3️⃣ Intention and belief:

The intention of the one who performs the incantation and of the one on whom it is performed must be sincere. And each of the two must believe that healing is from Allah, and that incantation and ruqyah are among the beneficial means, and that healing is by Allah’s command.

🔹 4️⃣ Going to sorcerers and soothsayers is haram:

It is in no way permissible for a Muslim to go to sorcerers and soothsayers, neither to ask them about anything nor to seek treatment from them. It is obligatory for a person not to confirm their claims, and not to go to them. This is because the Messenger of Allah ﷺ forbade going to sorcerers, soothsayers, and those who make predictions.
The Prophet ﷺ said:

;(من أتى عرافا فسأله عن شيء فصدقه لم تقبل له صلاة أربعين لیلۃ) .

“Whoever goes to a fortune-teller, asks him about something, and believes him, his prayer will not be accepted for forty nights.”

The Prophet ﷺ also said:

;من أتى كاهنا فصدقه بما يقول فقد كفر بما أنزل على محمد ﷺ .

“Whoever goes to an astrologer, soothsayer, or fortune-teller and confirms what he says has indeed disbelieved in what was revealed to Muhammad ﷺ [the Quran].”

🔹 5️⃣ Removing magic with magic (nashrah) is haram:

It is in no way permissible for a Muslim to have magic removed by means of magic. This is because magic cannot be performed without worshipping devils and seeking help from other than Allah. Through it, one seeks closeness to devils by worshipping them.

🔹 6️⃣ Seeking help from jinn is shirk:

It is also not permissible for any Muslim to seek help from jinn to gain knowledge of treatment, or to take any kind of service from them.
This is because seeking help from jinn is an act of shirk.

Just as seeking help from the unseen is not permissible, whether that unseen being is from the jinn or some other creation, and whether that being is a Muslim or a non-Muslim. Without doubt, help may only be sought from one who is present and able to provide it.

And a practitioner of incantation who seeks help from jinn, if he is accused (of not being sound in faith), then it is not permissible to seek treatment from him. Such a person is of the same kind as soothsayers and others like them.

🔹 7️⃣ Watching sorcerers’ TV channels is haram:

Watching satellite (TV) channels of sorcery is also not permissible. These are people who are trying to promote falsehood in society. As for calling these channels to ask a question and then confirming it, this too falls under the warning in which the Prophet ﷺ said:

;من أتى كاهنا فصدقه بما يقول فقد كفر بما أنزل على محمد ﷺ .

“Whoever goes to an astrologer, soothsayer, or fortune-teller and confirms what he says has indeed disbelieved in what was revealed to Muhammad ﷺ [the Quran].”

🔹 8️⃣ The incident of magic upon the Prophet ﷺ (an established fact):

In the Sahihayn it is established from Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) that she said:
“The Messenger of Allah ﷺ was affected by magic, so that he would imagine that he had done something when he had not done it.”
[This magic was performed by Labid ibn al-A’sam, a Jew.]

❀ Allama Qadi Iyad (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
Magic is also one of the illnesses, and an affliction that could befall the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, just as there are various other kinds of illnesses which cannot be denied. Nor does it cast any blemish upon the dignity of prophethood;

because this magic did not affect the matters of revelation or the matters of worship of the Prophet ﷺ.

Whoever denies its occurrence has indeed denied established evidence and the consensus of the Companions and the salaf of the Ummah, and is caught in some doubt and illusion that has no sound basis at all. Nor will his statement be given any attention.

🔹 9️⃣ Having ruqyah performed is not a problem:

Whenever the need for ruqyah arises, there is nothing wrong with it. Based on this, a person does not fall outside those seventy thousand; this is why the Prophet ﷺ instructed ʿĀʾishah (may Allah be pleased with her) that she should have ruqyah performed on her.
And he instructed the mother of the orphaned children of Jaʿfar bin Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him) that she should have them given ruqyah regularly. This is established in a Sahih hadith.

🔹 ⑩ The 70 thousand who enter Paradise

In the narration about the seventy thousand entering Paradise, the words “who do not perform ruqyah” are additional, and they are weak (da’if) and anomalous (shadh).
(This statement is by ʿAllamah Ibn Baz (may Allah have mercy on him), and it is present on a cassette.)

❀ Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
These additional words in the hadith are a mistake of the narrator (wahm).

11. Sending a shirt or any other cloth to those who claim to know the unseen is not permissible. Likewise, affirming their statements is also forbidden, because the authentic hadiths established from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ contain a prohibition against doing so.

12. Some sorcerers and charlatans recite some Qur’an and other supplications, but then mix shirkī speech into them, and seek help from jinn and devils. This is a deception; it is necessary to be alert to it and to stay away from it.

13. Treatment with disbelievers is permissible only in medical matters, such as surgery, or the diagnosis of permissible medicines, etc. Whereas treatment through supplication and ruqyah can only be obtained from a Muslim doctor or hakim of sound creed.

14. It is permissible for a Muslim to treat a non-Muslim by reciting the Qur’an and blowing over him, on condition that this disbeliever is not a combatant. This is because treating someone is an act of ihsan, which Allah Ta’ala loves. The command of Allah is:

وَأَحْسِنُوا ۛ إِنَّ اللَّهَ يُحِبُّ الْمُحْسِنِينَ

“And do good; indeed, Allah loves those who do good.”
It is also possible that his being cured through your ruqyah becomes a cause for his accepting Islam.

15. It is permissible for a woman to perform ruqyah on her husband, son, brother, or any other mahram relative. This is established by the practice of ʿĀʾishah (may Allah be pleased with her), who used to perform ruqyah on the Messenger of Allah ﷺ during his final illness.

16. It is permissible for a woman, when necessity requires, to perform ruqyah on a non-mahram man and blow over him. This necessity will be determined in light of the Shari’ah rules.

17. It is not permissible for a male who performs ruqyah to touch any part of the body of the woman he is performing ruqyah on, as this carries a risk of fitnah. However, he may recite over her and blow without touching her.

However, if the woman is among his mahram relatives, then there is nothing wrong with touching her.

18. If a man has several women present who are receiving ruqyah and all of them are being given ruqyah, then this will not be considered seclusion (khalwah). This is because khalwah is prohibited and forbidden, and it occurs when a lone woman is with a non-mahram man.
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “When a man is alone with a woman, the third of them is Satan.”

◈ In the presence of a group of women, whether two women or more, who are sitting with a trustworthy person who treats possession, the evil eye, epilepsy, etc., then in this case sitting there is not prohibited.

The prohibition of seclusion applies only to travel.

19. There is nothing wrong with a woman in menstruation or post-natal bleeding reciting these supplications.

20. According to the most correct view of the scholars, a woman in menstruation or post-natal bleeding may recite the Qur’an without touching the Qur’an.

21. For a man in a state of janabah, reciting the Qur’an is not permissible in any way until he performs ghusl.

22. There is nothing wrong with women in menstruation or post-natal bleeding performing ruqyah on themselves,

or performing ruqyah on someone else, or using water over which ruqyah has been performed.

23. It is absolutely not permissible for a person in janabah to recite the Qur’an and perform ruqyah on anyone until he performs ghusl.

24. There is nothing wrong with a “ruqyah performer” performing ruqyah on a woman who is observing the waiting period of widowhood, or who is in menstruation or post-natal bleeding, or who is in a state of janabah. If she performs ghusl from janabah, it is better for her.

.

25. The “ruqyah performer” should recite the verses and supplications he is reciting for ruqyah audibly to the patient, so that the patient may learn something from them, and so that the patient’s heart is also reassured that what is being performed is in fact lawful ruqyah.

26. Some practitioners specifically designate certain surahs and tasbihat to be recited after offering two rak’ahs of prayer, so that the person affected by sorcery may see something in a dream. This is an innovation (bid’ah); it has no basis. Nor is there any evidence for it from the Book of Allah or the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.

27. It is not permissible for any Muslim to write the Ayat al-Kursi, other Quranic verses, or lawful supplications found in the hadith, and hang them around his neck, in order to be protected from the devils or to seek cure from some illness. This is the most correct opinion among the scholars.

28. Going to people of superstition and charlatans, taking papers or the like from them to burn in order to seek cure, and smelling them, and doing similar things, is not permissible. These are superstitious practices for which Allah has sent down no evidence.

29. It is not permissible to place the Quran on the face of a patient in order to drive away the devil. Doing so involves disrespect to the Quran and pleasing the devil.

30. A woman who, when she leaves a child alone, places the Quran on the child’s chest or near it to protect it from the devil and similar things, and herself gets busy with household work. This act is also not permissible, because it risks disrespect to the Quran, and the act itself is non-Islamic.

31. Likewise, blowing over wet or dry earth to seek cure, then applying saliva to it and mixing it with water and drinking it: there is no evidence for this either.

32. Writing verses and lawful supplications on rings by a practitioner of ruqyah or taweez, dipping them in saffron water, then placing these rings on paper so that the impression stands in place of writing, and then washing those papers and drinking them: all these acts are impermissible. This is because one of the conditions of lawful ruqyah is that the one performing it and the one having it performed must intend seeking cure through the verses of the Quran being written.

33. There is no established mantra for poisonous creatures either. This is the mantra called the “scorpion mantra.” It is a mantra which is recited and blown over water, then they drink that water, and then they say: after reciting this mantra, one should not kill snakes and scorpions;
The Prophet ﷺ said: ’’ قتلوا الحية والعقرب، وان كنتم فی الصلاة‘‘
“Kill the snake and the scorpion, even if you are in prayer.”

Nor should one inform anyone about the place where snakes and scorpions live.
The Prophet ﷺ said: ’’ قتلوا الحيات كلهن ، فمن خاف تار من فليس ما ‘‘ “Kill all kinds of snakes; whoever fears their harm is not one of us.”

And that self-made supplication is:

’’اللهم إنها عزيمة العقرب مرت على اليهود والنصارى ومرت على سليمان بن داؤد وقالت: وما يبكيك يا نبي الله؟ قال: دابة من دواب النار صفراء كالزهر، سوداء كالدهر أم صديد كالدينار أم ذنيب كالمنشار نزل جبريل على دمها وإسرافيل على سمها شهق الله ثلاث شهقات قال اسكني في عزة الله وكتبك في لوح محفوظ .‘‘

“O Allah, this is the scorpion’s mantra, which came to the Jews and Christians and to Sulayman bin Dawud, and asked: O Prophet of Allah, what has made you weep? He replied: a creature of the fire, yellow like a flower, black like time, pus like a dinar, and a tail like a saw. Jibril descended upon its blood and Israfil upon its poison; Allah let out three cries. And He said: Be still by the might of Allah, and your writing is in the Preserved Tablet.”
Many forms of this mantra exist, and none of them is free of shirk.

To my knowledge there is no evidence for this supplication

and it is not permissible to use it; rather, avoiding it and abandoning it is obligatory.

34. Some practitioners believe that when the verse below is recited over a person afflicted by jinn while in a state of unconsciousness, for the purpose of summoning the jinn, the jinn will appear. The verse is:

وَجَعَلُوا بَيْنَهُ وَبَيْنَ الْجِنَّةِ نَسَبًا ۚ وَلَقَدْ عَلِمَتِ الْجِنَّةُ إِنَّهُمْ لَمُحْضَرُونَ

“And they have made between Him and the jinn a lineage. But the jinn know that they will be brought forth (before Allah).”
This interpretation is based on extreme error. The scholars of the Ummah oppose this interpretation of the verse, as Ibn Kathir and other scholars have written.

❀ Ibn Kathir said:
“It means that they said the jinn will be brought forth on the Day of Judgement to be punished, and therefore they used to deny that day. And they used to fabricate statements about it on their own; and they used to make baseless rulings without knowledge.”

35. Likewise, reading cups, reading palms, and seeking help from the science of the zodiac (ilm al-buruj) and similar things, as magazines and newspapers present these days, are all kinds of sorcery, claims of knowledge of the unseen, and forms of soothsaying. Soothsaying is a type of sorcery, and all these practices are invalid.

36. If a person has jinn with him, burning those jinn with fire is absolutely forbidden.

This is because the authority to punish with fire belongs only to the Lord of the fire, Allah Most High. However, regarding the use of electric shock for treating a person afflicted by jinn, we know of no basis for it.

37. Fumigation with incense or burning other substances such as frankincense, so that the smoke will drive away Satan. We have not been able to find any Shariah evidence for this. Abandoning it is obligatory, because it is among those superstitions for which there is no evidence. Satans can be driven away by abundant remembrance of Allah, by reciting the Noble Qur’an, and by seeking refuge in Allah’s words. It is also possible that the purpose of this fumigation is to please Satans and jinn, or to seek their help in obtaining cure from illness.

38. The use by the one performing ruqyah of a wolf’s skin, and making the patient smell it, so that it can be known whether the patient has madness or some other illness. This is an impermissible act. Likewise, keeping this skin, or a piece of it, in the house or shop so that Satans will flee is a completely baseless matter. Doing so is not permissible. The saying of people that jinn fear wolves is a superstition and fabricated story with no reality.

39. Likewise, pouring lead over the head of the patient to break sorcery is not permissible, because doing so is also a type of kahanah (soothsaying). And the patient’s contentment with it is seeking help from jinn and assisting them in this satanic act.

40. Treating through magnetic practice is also one of the practices of kahanah. Adopting it as a method to obtain information about the place of stolen property, or a lost item, or the treatment of a patient, or any other matter, is impermissible, rather it is shirk.

41. Writing some Qur’anic verses in the form of an amulet, or having them engraved on certain vessels in order to treat through them, is also haram. There is no doubt about this. Whoever has such vessels is obliged to erase those verses. And if he cannot do so, then he should dig a pit in a clean place and bury those vessels.

42. Reciting over a water tank and then distributing the water among people is a baseless practice. The prescribed method is: either ruqyah is performed over the patient, or ruqyah is performed over only as much water as is given to the patient (or made to drink).

43. Seeking blessing from the saliva of the one performing ruqyah is haram; it is counted among the means to shirk. This is because human saliva is not a source of blessing or cure, and blessing cannot be sought from the saliva of anyone other than the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. However, there is no harm in a drop of saliva going out with blowing while reciting the Qur’an or permissible supplications.

44. Selling water that has been blown over to people is also a baseless thing (and a business enterprise).

45. Yes, if the pain is in the patient’s hand or head, then while performing ruqyah, blowing may be done on the place of pain, as the Messenger of Allah ﷺ did ruqyah on Muhammad bin Hatib (may Allah be pleased with him). When a cooking pot was handed to him, it fell onto his hand and burned it, so he came to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, and the Messenger of Allah ﷺ applied saliva to his hand and recited this supplication:

أَذْهِبِ الْبَاسَ رَبَّ النَّاسِ وَاشْفِ أَنْتَ الشَّافِي لَا شِفَاءَ إِلَّا شِفَاؤُكَ شِفَاءٌ لَا يُغَادِرُ سَقَمًا

“Remove the affliction, O Lord of mankind; and heal, You are the Healer. There is no cure but Your cure, a cure that leaves no illness behind.”

Then his hand became completely well.

46. If the pain is throughout the body, or the place of the pain is not apparent, as occurs in madness, epilepsy, constriction of the heart and the evil eye, then in such a state the patient should be seated in front and ruqyah performed over him. The evidence for this is the incident in which the Messenger of Allah ﷺ performed ruqyah on a person afflicted by a jinn.

47. Performing ruqyah through a tape recorder, loudspeaker, or telephone: this is a matter that arises in the modern age. Legally, doing so is not permissible. Ruqyah is performed directly, face to face, on the patient. Either Qur’anic verses are recited and blown over him, or other supplications are recited and blown.

48. Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah would beat jinn, press their throats, and also converse with them so that the jinn would leave. However, the exaggeration seen and heard today has no evidence.

49. Using water left over from washing the Ka’bah, with the intention of seeking blessing and cure, is not permissible. Rather, what is prescribed regarding the Ka’bah is to pray facing it, to circumambulate it, and to honour it in every way without exaggeration or inventing innovations.

50. At the time of marriage, the husband and wife recite the Qur’an over water and blow on it, out of fear of the evil eye, envy and sorcery, and then they also put some fragrance or camphor etc. on it and then bathe with that water. There is no evidence for this. Rather, doing so is an innovation.

51. Blowing (dam) over honey, milk or similar things, rubbing the body with musk, and blowing Quranic verses over rose water and then using it: there is nothing wrong with this. It is established from the Salaf al-Salih.

52. There is no evidence for fixing the time for bathing a few minutes before sunset.

53. “Filling water into an injection, blowing over it, and then injecting it into the veins of one who is afflicted by a jinn; and presenting as evidence the statement of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ: ‘Shaytan runs through the children of Adam as blood runs through them.'”

This is a method not sanctioned by the Shariah. It is also possible that injecting water into a patient’s veins may cause him pain.

54. It is not permissible to keep the books “al-Hisn al-Hasin”, “Hirz al-Jawshan” and “Sab’a Uqud” on one’s person as a protective charm (hirz-e-jaan, for one’s own protection).

55. If the one blowing (over water) recites while intending to blow over all the patients present with him, and then blows over the water, there is nothing wrong with this.

56. If the need arises, blown-over water or oil may be heated.

57. What people have made up about Surah al-Zalzalah, that through it either the patient gains cure or else death comes, and that through it a child falls (miscarries): this is among the superstitions of the common people, and there is no evidence for it.

58. An animal or vehicle that has been struck by the evil eye may be blown over, and likewise it is permissible to blow over water and sprinkle that water on these things. And if it becomes known whose eye caused it, the person who gave the evil eye is to be instructed to perform wudu or bathe, or else to wash one of his limbs. Then this water is to be sprinkled on the thing struck by the evil eye, whether it is a vehicle or any other thing.

59. It is not permissible for the one who gave the evil eye to refuse when he is asked to perform wudu or bathe, whether he is suspected of having given the evil eye because of something he said, or it is certain that his eye has struck.

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
“When you are asked to bathe, then bathe.”

60. The evil eye may also strike without intention. Its cause may be his children, his wife, or his livestock and property. Its remedy is that when a person finds something pleasing, he should invoke blessing for it and say:

مَا شَاءَ اللهُ لَا قُوَّةَ إِلَّا بِاللهِ.

And a person should wash one of his body parts and pour this water over that thing.

61. It is well known among the common people that when it becomes known that a person gives the evil eye, they perform the funeral prayer over him with four takbirs, whether or not he is willing or he is asleep, and they pray this over him, and then they hold the belief that by doing so the effect of the evil eye is removed, whether it occurred in the past or will occur in the future. But there is no Shariah evidence for this, and I do not think it benefits anything.

This is established by the experience of some scholars, but for the person whose eye strikes (the one over whom this prayer is read) it is a very harmful act, and it may even lead to death. Therefore, do not make yourselves responsible for someone’s killing by doing such a thing.

62. Placing a piece of bread on the ground to see who is looking at it out of fear of the evil eye: this is a corrupt belief and an act contrary to the hadith of the Prophet ﷺ. He ﷺ said: “When a morsel falls from a person’s hand, he should clean off whatever has touched it and eat the morsel.”

63. Slaughtering an animal at a new vehicle or new house so as to be protected from the evil eye and envy: such an act falls under associating partners with Allah, because the one who slaughters believes that through this act he wants to please and draw close to jinn and Shaytan so that they will not overpower him.

64. Digging a grave for a person afflicted by the evil eye, or digging a grave to seek cure from illness: there is no evidence for this in the pure Shariah. Rather, these are superstitions which must be abandoned, and it is obligatory to warn people against them.

65. Some practitioners blow over patients afflicted by the evil eye while reciting these words:

( حبس حابس ، حجر يابس، وشهاب قابس ، وردت عين الحاسد إليه وعلى أحب الناس الیہ)

The above statement is not established from the Prophet ﷺ, and none of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) said anything like it. Nor does it have any basis. Its wording is also strange, and it contains unjust arrogance towards people. The remedy for the evil eye can be done through Quranic verses, the prescribed supplications, and the bathing method established from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.

66. Treating the evil eye and envy by holding a piece of wood is not established either by Shariah evidence or by experience. Because there is no Shariah evidence, it is not permissible to rely on it.