A man frightened at night: what supplication does he make?

Makhul said that when the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) entered Makkah, some jinn met him (peace and blessings be upon him) and threw embers at him (peace and blessings be upon him). Jibril said: "O Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), seek refuge." So he (peace and blessings be upon him) sought refuge with these words, and the jinn were driven away from him (peace and blessings be upon him): "I seek refuge in the perfect Words of Allah, which neither the righteous nor the wicked can go beyond, from the evil of everything that descends from the sky and everything that rises in it, from the evil of everything that spreads on the earth and comes out of it, from the evil of the day and the night, and from every night-comer except one who comes with good, O Most Merciful!"

Muhammad bin Yahya bin Habban said that Sayyiduna al-Walid bin al-Walid bin al-Mughirah al-Makhzumi (may Allah be pleased with him) complained to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) of thoughts occurring in his mind. He (peace and blessings be upon him) said to him: "When you come to your bed, recite these words: 'I seek refuge in the perfect Words of Allah from His anger and His punishment, from the evil of His servants, from the whisperings of the devils, and from their coming to me.' For by the One in whose Hand is my soul, nothing will harm you until morning comes."

Yahya bin Ja'dah said that Sayyiduna Khalid bin al-Walid (may Allah be pleased with him) used to be frightened at night, so much so that he would go out with his sword. Fear came over him that he might hurt someone, so he complained of this to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Jibril has said to me that a demon from among the jinn is plotting against you, so recite these words: 'I seek refuge in the perfect Words of Allah, which neither the righteous nor the wicked can go beyond, from the evil of everything that descends from the sky and everything that rises in it, from the evil of everything that is created on the earth and everything that comes out of it, from the evil of the trials of the day and the night, and from every night-comer except one who brings good, O Most Merciful.'" So Sayyiduna Khalid recited these words, and this condition of his went away.

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "When one of you is frightened in his sleep at night, let him recite these words: In the name of Allah, I seek refuge in the perfect words of Allah from His wrath, from His evil punishment, from the evil of His servants, from the evil of the devils, and from whatever they attend."

Abu al-Tayyah said that a man asked Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Khanbash (may Allah be pleased with him): "When the devils deceived the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), what did the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) do?" He said: "Once some devils came to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) from the valleys and came down from the mountain to him (peace and blessings be upon him), and among them was a devil who had an ember with which he intended to burn the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). Awe of them came over him (peace and blessings be upon him)." Ja'far said: I think the narrator said: "He (peace and blessings be upon him) began to move back." The narrator said: "Then Jibril came into his (peace and blessings be upon him) presence and said: 'O Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him)! Recite.' He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: 'What shall I recite?' Jibril said: 'Recite: I seek refuge in the perfect words of Allah, which no righteous person or wicked person can go beyond, from the evil of everything He has created, brought into being and made; from the evil of everything that descends from the sky; from the evil of everything that ascends in the sky; from the evil of what arises in the earth; from the evil of what comes out of the earth; from the evil of the trials of the day and the night; and from the evil of everything that appears at night, except that which brings good at night, O Most Merciful!'" The narrator said: "Then the fire of the devils was extinguished." He said: "And Allah defeated those devils."

Ibn Sabit said that Sayyiduna Khalid bin al-Walid (may Allah be pleased with him) could not sleep at night, so the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to him: "Shall I not teach you some words which, when you say them, will bring you sleep? Recite these words: O Allah, Lord of the seven heavens and all that they shade, Lord of the seven earths and all that they bear, and Lord of the devils and all whom they lead astray, be my protector from the evil of all Your creation, lest any of them should wrong me or transgress against me. Mighty is the one under Your protection, and there is no god but You."