1. Seeking Refuge (Isti’adhah):
Isti’adhah means to seek refuge in Allah Almighty and to turn to His presence so that one can be protected from all kinds of evil, harm, deceit, and the tricks of jinn and devils.
Places for Seeking Refuge (Isti’adhah):
Firstly: Whenever you feel any satanic whisper or temptation in your heart, immediately seek refuge in Allah Almighty.
﴿وَإِمَّا يَنْزَغَنَّكَ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ نَزْغٌ فَاسْتَعِذْ بِاللَّهِ إِنَّهُ سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌ﴾
And if ever any incitement from Satan provokes you, seek refuge in Allah, surely He is the All-Hearing, All-Knowing.
Secondly: At the time of reciting the Holy Quran.
﴿فَإِذَا قَرَأْتَ الْقُرْآنَ فَاسْتَعِذْ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ﴾
And when you begin to recite the Quran, seek refuge from the rejected Satan.
Thirdly: When a person enters the restroom.
It is narrated from Hazrat Anas (RA):
When the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) used to enter the restroom, he would recite this supplication:
﴿اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنَ الْخُبُثِ وَالْخَبَائِثِ﴾
O Allah! I seek refuge in You from the evil jinn and the evil humans.
❀ Allama Ibn Kathir (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
In the explanation of this supplication, many scholars have written that it seeks refuge from male and female devils.
Fourthly: When entering the mosque:
When the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, would enter the mosque, he used to say this supplication:
﴿أَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ الْعَظِيمِ وَبِوَجْهِهِ الْكَرِيمِ وَسُلْطَانِهِ الْقَدِيمِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ﴾
I seek refuge in Allah, the Mighty, from the accursed Satan, from His beautiful face and His eternal authority.
Uqbah said: Is that all? I said: Yes.
Uqbah said: When someone says these words, Satan says that now he is safe from my evil for the whole day.
Fifth: At the beginning of the prayer:
﴿اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ مِنْ هَمْزِهِ وَنَفْخِهِ وَنَفْثِهِ﴾
O Allah! I seek refuge in You from the accursed Satan, from his whispers, his breath, and his spit.
Sixth: During the prayer:
Hazrat Usman bin Abu Al-As رضي الله عنه narrates that he came to the Prophet Muhammad صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم and said:
O Messenger of Allah! Satan comes between me and my prayer and recitation, and causes me to doubt my prayer.
The Messenger of Allah صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم said:
This Satan is called Khannas. When you feel such a thing, seek refuge in Allah from him and spit three times to your left side.
So I did that, and Satan went away from me.
Seventh: At the time of anxiety during sleep:
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
When any one of you sees a good dream, it is from Allah, so he should praise Allah for it and narrate it, and he should only narrate such a dream to someone he loves. And when he sees an unpleasant [or frightening] dream, it is from Satan, so he should seek refuge from Satan and his evil and not narrate that dream to anyone, for indeed it will not harm him.
Eighth: Two men were angry with each other in the presence of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him. One’s face was turning red and his veins were swelling. Then one of them said:
I know a phrase, if this man says that phrase, his anger and distress will go away. That phrase is:
﴿أَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ﴾
If he recites it, his anger will be relieved.
Ninth: When you hear the barking of a dog and the braying of a donkey:
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
When you hear the braying of a donkey, seek refuge from the devil, because the donkey brays upon seeing the devil.
❀ It is narrated from Hazrat Abu Huraira, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Prophet, peace be upon him, said:
At night, when you hear the barking of a dog or the braying of a donkey, seek Allah’s refuge from the devil, for indeed they see things that you do not see, meaning they see the devil.
The meaning is: ﴿أَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ﴾ read.
2. Recitation of Al-Mu’awwidhatayn (Surah Al-Falaq and Surah An-Nas):
﴿قُلْ أَعُوذُ بِرَبِّ الْفَلَقِ﴾
﴿قُلْ أَعُوذُ بِرَبِّ النَّاسِ﴾
It is narrated from Hazrat Abu Saeed Khudri, may Allah be pleased with him:
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, used to seek refuge from the evil eye and the devil, until the two Mu’awwidhatayn were revealed, then he, peace be upon him, abandoned other supplications and made them his regular practice.
3. Reciting Ayat al-Kursi:
﴿أَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ﴾
﴿اللَّهُ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا هُوَ الْحَيُّ الْقَيُّومُ لَا تَأْخُذُهُ سِنَةٌ وَلَا نَوْمٌ لَهُ مَا فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَمَا فِي الْأَرْضِ مَنْ ذَا الَّذِي يَشْفَعُ عِنْدَهُ إِلَّا بِإِذْنِهِ يَعْلَمُ مَا بَيْنَ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَمَا خَلْفَهُمْ وَلَا يُحِيطُونَ بِشَيْءٍ مِنْ عِلْمِهِ إِلَّا بِمَا شَاءَ وَسِعَ كُرْسِيُّهُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ وَلَا يَئُودُهُ حِفْظُهُمَا وَهُوَ الْعَلِيُّ الْعَظِيمُ﴾
I seek refuge in Allah Almighty from the accursed Satan: There is no deity worthy of worship except Allah. He is Ever-Living and Sustainer of all existence. Neither drowsiness overtakes Him nor sleep. To Him belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth. Who is it that can intercede with Him except by His permission? He knows what is before them and what will be after them, and they encompass not a thing of His knowledge except for what He wills. His Kursi extends over the heavens and the earth, and their preservation tires Him not. And He is the Most High, the Most Great.
Whoever recites Ayat al-Kursi in the morning will be protected from jinn until the evening, and whoever recites it in the evening will be protected from them until the morning.
It has been attributed to An-Nasa’i and At-Tabarani, and it has been said that its chain of narration is sound.
4. Recitation of Surah Al-Baqarah:
The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said:
﴿لا تجعلوا بيوتكم مقابر إن الشيطان ينفر من البيت الذى يقرأ فيه سورة البقرة﴾
Do not make your houses graves; indeed, Satan flees from the house in which Surah Al-Baqarah is recited.
Sheikh Ibn Baz (may Allah have mercy on him) said: For this purpose, the recitation of Surah Al-Baqarah can also be played on tape recorders.
5. Recitation of the last two verses of Surah Al-Baqarah:
﴿آمَنَ الرَّسُولُ بِمَا أُنْزِلَ إِلَيْهِ مِنْ رَبِّهِ وَالْمُؤْمِنُونَ كُلٌّ آمَنَ بِاللَّهِ وَمَلَائِكَتِهِ وَكُتُبِهِ وَرُسُلِهِ لَا نُفَرِّقُ بَيْنَ أَحَدٍ مِنْ رُسُلِهِ وَقَالُوا سَمِعْنَا وَأَطَعْنَا غُفْرَانَكَ رَبَّنَا وَإِلَيْكَ الْمَصِيرُ لَا يُكَلِّفُ اللَّهُ نَفْسًا إِلَّا وُسْعَهَا لَهَا مَا كَسَبَتْ وَعَلَيْهَا مَا اكْتَسَبَتْ رَبَّنَا لَا تُؤَاخِذْنَا إِنْ نَسِينَا أَوْ أَخْطَأْنَا رَبَّنَا وَلَا تَحْمِلْ عَلَيْنَا إِصْرًا كَمَا حَمَلْتَهُ عَلَى الَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِنَا رَبَّنَا وَلَا تُحَمِّلْنَا مَا لَا طَاقَةَ لَنَا بِهِ وَاعْفُ عَنَّا وَاغْفِرْ لَنَا وَارْحَمْنَا أَنْتَ مَوْلَانَا فَانْصُرْنَا عَلَى الْقَوْمِ الْكَافِرِينَ﴾
The Messenger believed in what was revealed to him from his Lord, and so did the believers. They all believe in Allah, His angels, His books, and His messengers, and say, “We make no distinction between any of His messengers.” They also say, “We hear and obey. Our Lord! We seek Your forgiveness, and to You is the final return.” Allah does not burden any soul beyond its capacity. Whoever does good will have its reward, and whoever does evil will bear its burden. O believers! Pray to Allah like this: O our Lord! Do not punish us if we forget or make a mistake. O our Lord! Do not place on us a burden as You placed on those before us. O our Lord! Do not burden us with what we cannot bear. Pardon us, forgive us, and have mercy on us. You are our protector, so help us against the disbelieving people.
Whoever recites these last two verses of Surah Al-Baqarah at night will be protected from every evil until morning.
The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said:
Indeed, Allah wrote a book two thousand years before the creation of the heavens and the earth, and He revealed two verses from it which end Surah Al-Baqarah. If these two verses are recited in a house for three consecutive nights, Satan will not come near it.
6. Reciting the Kalima of Tawheed once or ten times:
﴿لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ، لَهُ الْمُلْكُ وَلَهُ الْحَمْدُ وَهُوَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ﴾
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
Whoever recites this Kalima in the morning:
﴿لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ، لَهُ الْمُلْكُ وَلَهُ الْحَمْدُ وَهُوَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ﴾
There is no deity worthy of worship except Allah, He is alone, He has no partner, His is the dominion, and all praise is for Him, He is capable of everything.
He remains safe from Satan until evening. And if he recites these words in the evening, he remains safe from Satan until morning.
In a narration in Bukhari and Muslim: He recited these words one hundred times.
7. Performing ablution when angry:
When a person is angry, he should perform ablution.
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
Indeed, anger is from Satan, and Satan was created from fire. And indeed fire is extinguished by water. So when one of you becomes angry, he should perform ablution.
8. Protection of the gaze:
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said to Hazrat Ali, may Allah be pleased with him:
O Ali! Do not cast the evil eye behind your back; indeed, the first glance is forgiven for you, but the second glance is not forgiven.
Hazrat Abdullah bin Masood, may Allah be pleased with him, says:
No glance is raised except that Satan has a share in it.
9. Adhan:
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
Whenever the call to prayer (Adhan) is given, Satan turns his back and runs away while passing gas.
In a narration from Sahih Muslim:
When the Mu’adhdhin gives the Adhan, Satan turns his back and runs away, and he is passing wind.
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
When rebellious devils appear in different forms, give the Adhan to drive them away.
The mention of Ghilan, that is, sorcerer jinn, was made in front of Hazrat Umar, may Allah be pleased with him. The Prophet, peace be upon him, said:
None of them can change the form and shape in which Allah created them, but they are like the magicians of the children of Adam. When you see any one of them, start giving the Adhan.
Sheikh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
It is narrated from Zaid bin Aslam that he was appointed as the supervisor over Ma‘adin
The people complained about the abundance of jinn there. So he ordered that the Adhan be given there at all times, and it was done frequently. After that, they did not see anything like that again.
It is narrated from Hazrat Suhail that my father sent me towards Bani Haritha, and I had a companion with me. A caller called out to him by name, but when my companion looked at the wall, there was nothing there. I told this to my father, and he said: If I had known that this would happen to you, I would not have sent you. But when you hear such a voice, give the Adhan.
I heard from Hazrat Abu Hurairah, may Allah be pleased with him, who narrated from the Prophet, peace be upon him, that he said:
When the Adhan is given, Satan turns his back and runs away while passing gas.
10. Recitation of the Quran and Protection from Satan:
Absolutely, the recitation of the Holy Quran is a means of protection from the evil of Satan.
﴿وَإِذَا قَرَأْتَ الْقُرْآنَ جَعَلْنَا بَيْنَكَ وَبَيْنَ الَّذِينَ لَا يُؤْمِنُونَ بِالْآخِرَةِ حِجَابًا مَسْتُورًا﴾
When you recite the Quran, We place between you and those who do not believe in the Hereafter a concealed veil.
11. Frequent Remembrance of Allah:
﴿وَالذَّاكِرِينَ اللَّهَ كَثِيرًا وَالذَّاكِرَاتِ أَعَدَّ اللَّهُ لَهُمْ مَغْفِرَةً وَأَجْرًا عَظِيمًا﴾
Those who frequently remember Allah, both men and women, Allah has prepared vast forgiveness and great reward for all of them.
﴿وَاذْكُرْ رَبَّكَ كَثِيرًا وَسَبِّحْ بِالْعَشِيِّ وَالْإِبْكَارِ﴾
And remember your Lord frequently and glorify Him morning and evening.
Narrated from Hazrat Abu Huraira (RA):
The Messenger of Allah (PBUH) was walking on the road to Makkah. He passed by a mountain called Jamdan. The Prophet (PBUH) said:
Keep walking, this is Jamdan, the Mufridoon have gone ahead.
The Companions asked: O Messenger of Allah! Who are the Mufridoon?
The Prophet (PBUH) replied:
Men and women who frequently remember Allah.
The Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said:
Allah commanded Yahya bin Zakariya (AS) with five things to practice himself and to command the Children of Israel to follow. The Prophet (PBUH) enumerated those five things and then said:
I advise you to remember Allah. Its example is like a person whose enemies are pursuing him and he runs into a fortress and saves himself from them. Similarly, no one can protect himself from Satan except by remembering Allah.
The Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said:
﴿يعقد الشيطان على قافية رأس أحدكم إذا هو نام ثلاث عقد يضرب كل عقدة مكانها عليك ليل طويل فارقد فإن استيقظ فذكر الله انحلت عقدة فإن توضأ انحلت عقدة فإن صلى انحلت عقده كلها فأصبح نشيطا طيب النفس وإلا أصبح خبيث النفس كسلان﴾
Satan ties three knots on the back of each of you while you are asleep. On each knot, he blows and says, “The night is long, so sleep.” When the person wakes up and remembers Allah, one knot is undone. If he performs ablution, the second knot is undone, and if he prays, all knots are undone. His morning then appears cheerful, joyful, and happy, not gloomy or lazy.
