Protection from Satanic Tricks and Deceptions
1. Do not travel alone
Travel in a group, which should consist of at least three people. The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
One person is one devil, two persons are two devils, and three persons form a caravan.
2. Do not sit between shade and sunlight
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said: No person should sit between shade and sunlight.
In another narration:
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, forbade anyone from sitting between shade and sunlight and said: Such a gathering is a gathering of Satan, where a person is half in shade and half in sunlight.
3. Do not walk wearing a shoe on only one foot
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
Indeed, Satan walks wearing a shoe on one foot.
Also, the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said: None of you should walk wearing a shoe on only one foot; he should either wear shoes on both feet or remove both shoes.
4. Do not eat or drink with the left hand
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said: When any one of you eats, he should eat with his right hand, and when he drinks, he should drink with his right hand. Indeed, Satan eats and drinks with his left hand.
5. Conduct transactions only with the right hand
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said: Indeed, Satan takes and gives with his left hand.
6. Satan places some wood or similar things on the bed
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
Indeed, Satan comes to the bed of one of you when his family has laid the bed and prepared it for sleeping, and he places some wood, stone, or something else on the bed to make him angry with his family. When any of you finds such a thing, he should not show anger, for this is the work of Satan.
7. Avoiding seclusion with a strange woman
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said: When a person is alone with a strange woman, there is a third one with them, who is Satan.
8. When you are riding, engage in the remembrance of Allah in seclusion
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
When any one of you is riding and continues to mention the name of Allah while riding, an angel sits behind him on the mount [who keeps protecting him]. And if a person sits on a mount and keeps humming poetry or the like, then Satan sits behind him.
9. When yawning comes, cover your mouth with your hand
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
When any one of you yawns, he should cover his mouth with his hand, because [if the mouth remains open] Satan enters.
10. When riding a camel, say Bismillah
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
There is a devil on the back of every camel. So when you mount the camel, say Bismillah, then you will not be left behind in your needs.
11. The relations between husband and wife should not be disclosed in front of people
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
It is near that a man will disclose what happens between him and his wife, or a woman will disclose what happens between her and her husband [in front of other friends]. Beware! Never do this, indeed the example of such a person is like that of a devil who meets a devil woman on the way and commits an act upon her, while people are watching him.
12. Do not leave space for Satan in the rows during congregational prayer
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
Straighten your rows, indeed Satan stands in the empty spaces.
13. If you see a good dream, say Alhamdulillah
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 say الحمد لله and narrate it, and he should only narrate such a dream to someone he loves. And when he sees an unpleasant dream, it is from Satan, so he should seek refuge from it and not narrate that dream to anyone, for indeed it will not harm him. If he sees a good dream, he should take glad tidings from it and only inform those who love him.
In one narration: He should only inform his beloved or the one who is knowledgeable [to interpret].
14. Be farsighted, avoid haste
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
Indeed, farsightedness is from Allah, and haste is from Satan.
15. Saying the name of Allah before eating
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
Indeed, Satan makes lawful for himself the food over which the name of Allah is not mentioned.
16. Keep your tongue moist with the remembrance of Allah and repentance and seeking forgiveness
It is narrated from Hazrat Abu Saeed, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
Undoubtedly, Satan said: O Lord! By Your Honor, I will continue to mislead Your servants as long as their souls remain in their bodies. Upon this, Allah, Glorified and Exalted, said:
By My Honor, Majesty, and High Status! I will forgive them as long as they keep seeking forgiveness from Me.
17. Protecting the tongue from whispering
﴿إِنَّمَا النَّجْوَى مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ لِيَحْزُنَ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَلَيْسَ بِضَارِّهِمْ شَيْئًا إِلَّا بِإِذْنِ اللَّهِ وَعَلَى اللَّهِ فَلْيَتَوَكَّلِ الْمُؤْمِنُونَ﴾
Indeed, whispering is a satanic act meant to harm the believers, but without Allah’s permission, it cannot harm them, and the believers should trust in Allah.
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
When you are three, do not whisper between two, leaving the third out, until you mingle among the people, because whispering between two causes distress and despair to the third.
In one narration, it is said: Doing so causes the third to become hopeless.
18. Go to the market only for your necessity
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
If you have the ability, do not be among those who go to the market first, nor among those who leave the market last. Because the market is the battlefield of Satan, and it is where Satan has planted his flag.
19. Avoid extravagance
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
One bed is for the man, one bed is for the woman, the third bed is for the guest, and the fourth is for the devil.
20. Blowing the nose three times upon waking from sleep
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
When any one of you wakes up from sleep, he should blow his nose three times, because Satan spends the night in the nostrils.
These words are from Sahih Muslim. Blowing the nose means first putting water into the nose and then drawing it out and blowing the nose. The “nostril bone” refers to its highest part. It is also said that the part of the nose with soft bone is called the nostril bone. There is a difference of opinion among scholars regarding its exact meaning and limits.
