Excerpt from Shaykh Shakhbūt bin Ṣāliḥ bin ʿAbd al-Hādī al-Marrī’s book: “How to Perform Ruqyah on Yourself (Protection and Cure from Evil Eye, Magic, and Possession)”
(Download the book in PDF form.)
Arabic:
يَا غُلَامُ! سَمِّ اللَّهَ، وَكُلْ بِيَمِينِكَ، وَكُلْ مِمَّا يَلِيكَ
Translation:
“O young boy! Say ‘In the Name of Allah’, eat with your right hand, and eat from what is in front of you.”
[al-Bukhārī: 5376; Muslim: 2022]
Arabic:
إِذَا أَكَلَ أَحَدُكُمْ طَعَامًا فَلْيَذْكُرِ اسْمَ اللَّهِ، فَإِنْ نَسِيَ أَنْ يَذْكُرَ اسْمَ اللَّهِ فِي أَوَّلِهِ فَلْيَقُلْ:
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ فِي أَوَّلِهِ وَآخِرِهِ
Translation:
“When one of you begins to eat, he should say ‘In the Name of Allah’. If he forgets to say it at the beginning, then he should say:
Bismillāh fī awwalihi wa ākhirihi — ‘In the Name of Allah at its beginning and its end.’”
[Ṣaḥīḥ al-Tirmidhī: 1858; Ṣaḥīḥ al-Jāmiʿ: 380]
Arabic:
سَتْرُ مَا بَيْنَ أَعْيُنِ الْجِنِّ وَعَوْرَاتِ بَنِي آدَمَ إِذَا دَخَلَ أَحَدُهُمُ الْخَلَاءَ أَنْ يَقُولَ: بِسْمِ اللَّهِ
Translation:
“The screen between the eyes of the jinn and the private parts of the children of Adam occurs when any of them says: ‘Bismillāh’ before removing clothes.”
[al-Ṭabarānī in al-Awsaṭ: 2504; Ṣaḥīḥ al-Jāmiʿ al-Ṣaghīr: 3610]
Explanation from the author:
Saying Bismillāh prevents the jinn from seeing a person’s private parts at the time of undressing. Through these words a person becomes protected from the harm of the jinn. Therefore, one must not neglect these words. According to the hadith, a person should say only these exact words, not the full Basmalah.
Arabic:
سَتْرُ مَا بَيْنَ أَعْيُنِ الْجِنِّ وَعَوْرَاتِ بَنِي آدَمَ إِذَا دَخَلَ الْخَلَاءَ أَنْ يَقُولَ: بِسْمِ اللَّهِ
ثُمَّ يَقُولُ:
اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنَ الْخُبُثِ وَالْخَبَائِثِ
Translation:
“The screen between the eyes of the jinn and the private parts of the children of Adam occurs when one says: ‘Bismillāh’ upon entering the toilet,
and then says:
O Allah! I seek refuge with You from the male and female devils.”
[al-Bukhārī: 142; Muslim: 375; Aḥmad; al-Tirmidhī; Ibn Mājah; Ṣaḥīḥ al-Jāmiʿ: 3611; others]
al-Khubuth — male devils
al-Khabā’ith — female devils
He said:
“Whenever I entered the toilet without saying Bismillāh, I encountered something unpleasant.”
[al-Mughnī 1/228]
Arabic:
لَا صَلَاةَ لِمَنْ لَا وُضُوءَ لَهُ، وَلَا وُضُوءَ لِمَنْ لَمْ يَذْكُرِ اسْمَ اللَّهِ عَلَيْهِ
Translation:
“The prayer of one who has no ablution is invalid, and the ablution of one who does not say Bismillāh at its beginning is invalid.”
[Aḥmad; Abū Dāwūd; Ṣaḥīḥ al-Jāmiʿ: 7514]
Arabic:
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ تَوَكَّلْتُ عَلَى اللَّهِ، لَا حَوْلَ وَلَا قُوَّةَ إِلَّا بِاللَّهِ
Translation:
“In the Name of Allah, I place my trust in Allah. There is no power and no might except with Allah.”
The Prophet ﷺ said:
When a person says these words, it is said to him:
“You are guided, you are sufficed, and you are protected.”
The devil withdraws from him, and another devil says to him:
“How can you overpower a man who has been guided, sufficed, and protected?”
[Ṣaḥīḥ Abī Dāwūd: 5094; Ṣaḥīḥ Sunan Ibn Mājah: 3884]
Reported by Umm Salamah رضي الله عنها:
She said that whenever the Messenger of Allah ﷺ would leave the house, he would look towards the sky.
Shaykh al-Albānī رحمه الله classified the wording about looking towards the sky as shādh (irregular).
[al-Ṣaḥīḥah: 3193]
The Prophet ﷺ would then recite:
Arabic:
اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ أَنْ أَضِلَّ أَوْ أُضَلَّ، أَوْ أَزِلَّ أَوْ أُزَلَّ، أَوْ أَظْلِمَ أَوْ أُظْلَمَ، أَوْ أَجْهَلَ أَوْ يُجْهَلَ عَلَيَّ
Translation:
“O Allah! I seek refuge with You lest I go astray or be led astray; lest I slip or be made to slip; lest I oppress or be oppressed; lest I behave ignorantly or ignorance be shown toward me.”
[Ṣaḥīḥ Abī Dāwūd: 5095; al-Tirmidhī (authenticated by al-Albānī: 3426); al-Ṣaḥīḥah: 3193]
Arabic:
مَا مِنْ ثَلَاثَةٍ فِي قَرْيَةٍ وَلَا بَدْوٍ لَا تُقَامُ فِيهِمُ الصَّلَاةُ إِلَّا قَدِ اسْتَحْوَذَ عَلَيْهِمُ الشَّيْطَانُ
Translation:
“There are no three people in a village or desert among whom the prayer in congregation is not established, except that the devil overcomes them.
Therefore, establish the congregation.
Surely the wolf devours the sheep that is isolated from the flock.”
[Ṣaḥīḥ Abī Dāwūd: 547]
Arabic:
اسْتَحْوَذَ عَلَيْهِمُ الشَّيْطَانُ فَأَنْسَاهُمْ ذِكْرَ اللَّهِ
Translation:
“Satan has overcome them, so he made them forget the remembrance of Allah.”
[al-Mujādilah: 19]
(Download the book in PDF form.)
✦ Before Eating
❀ Hadith 1
Arabic:يَا غُلَامُ! سَمِّ اللَّهَ، وَكُلْ بِيَمِينِكَ، وَكُلْ مِمَّا يَلِيكَ
Translation:
“O young boy! Say ‘In the Name of Allah’, eat with your right hand, and eat from what is in front of you.”
[al-Bukhārī: 5376; Muslim: 2022]❀ Hadith 2
Arabic:إِذَا أَكَلَ أَحَدُكُمْ طَعَامًا فَلْيَذْكُرِ اسْمَ اللَّهِ، فَإِنْ نَسِيَ أَنْ يَذْكُرَ اسْمَ اللَّهِ فِي أَوَّلِهِ فَلْيَقُلْ:
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ فِي أَوَّلِهِ وَآخِرِهِ
Translation:
“When one of you begins to eat, he should say ‘In the Name of Allah’. If he forgets to say it at the beginning, then he should say:
Bismillāh fī awwalihi wa ākhirihi — ‘In the Name of Allah at its beginning and its end.’”
[Ṣaḥīḥ al-Tirmidhī: 1858; Ṣaḥīḥ al-Jāmiʿ: 380]✦ Before Removing Clothes
❀ Hadith
Arabic:سَتْرُ مَا بَيْنَ أَعْيُنِ الْجِنِّ وَعَوْرَاتِ بَنِي آدَمَ إِذَا دَخَلَ أَحَدُهُمُ الْخَلَاءَ أَنْ يَقُولَ: بِسْمِ اللَّهِ
Translation:
“The screen between the eyes of the jinn and the private parts of the children of Adam occurs when any of them says: ‘Bismillāh’ before removing clothes.”
[al-Ṭabarānī in al-Awsaṭ: 2504; Ṣaḥīḥ al-Jāmiʿ al-Ṣaghīr: 3610]Explanation from the author:
Saying Bismillāh prevents the jinn from seeing a person’s private parts at the time of undressing. Through these words a person becomes protected from the harm of the jinn. Therefore, one must not neglect these words. According to the hadith, a person should say only these exact words, not the full Basmalah.
✦ Before Entering the Toilet
❀ Hadith
Arabic:سَتْرُ مَا بَيْنَ أَعْيُنِ الْجِنِّ وَعَوْرَاتِ بَنِي آدَمَ إِذَا دَخَلَ الْخَلَاءَ أَنْ يَقُولَ: بِسْمِ اللَّهِ
ثُمَّ يَقُولُ:
اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنَ الْخُبُثِ وَالْخَبَائِثِ
Translation:
“The screen between the eyes of the jinn and the private parts of the children of Adam occurs when one says: ‘Bismillāh’ upon entering the toilet,
and then says:
O Allah! I seek refuge with You from the male and female devils.”
[al-Bukhārī: 142; Muslim: 375; Aḥmad; al-Tirmidhī; Ibn Mājah; Ṣaḥīḥ al-Jāmiʿ: 3611; others]Meaning:
al-Khubuth — male devils
al-Khabā’ith — female devils
❀ Statement of Imām Aḥmad رحمه الله
He said:
“Whenever I entered the toilet without saying Bismillāh, I encountered something unpleasant.”
[al-Mughnī 1/228]✦ Before Making Wuḍū (Ablution)
❀ Hadith
Arabic:لَا صَلَاةَ لِمَنْ لَا وُضُوءَ لَهُ، وَلَا وُضُوءَ لِمَنْ لَمْ يَذْكُرِ اسْمَ اللَّهِ عَلَيْهِ
Translation:
“The prayer of one who has no ablution is invalid, and the ablution of one who does not say Bismillāh at its beginning is invalid.”
[Aḥmad; Abū Dāwūd; Ṣaḥīḥ al-Jāmiʿ: 7514]✦ When Leaving the House
❀ Hadith 1
Arabic:بِسْمِ اللَّهِ تَوَكَّلْتُ عَلَى اللَّهِ، لَا حَوْلَ وَلَا قُوَّةَ إِلَّا بِاللَّهِ
Translation:
“In the Name of Allah, I place my trust in Allah. There is no power and no might except with Allah.”
The Prophet ﷺ said:
When a person says these words, it is said to him:
“You are guided, you are sufficed, and you are protected.”
The devil withdraws from him, and another devil says to him:
“How can you overpower a man who has been guided, sufficed, and protected?”
[Ṣaḥīḥ Abī Dāwūd: 5094; Ṣaḥīḥ Sunan Ibn Mājah: 3884]❀ Hadith 2
Reported by Umm Salamah رضي الله عنها:
She said that whenever the Messenger of Allah ﷺ would leave the house, he would look towards the sky.
Shaykh al-Albānī رحمه الله classified the wording about looking towards the sky as shādh (irregular).
[al-Ṣaḥīḥah: 3193]The Prophet ﷺ would then recite:
Arabic:اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ أَنْ أَضِلَّ أَوْ أُضَلَّ، أَوْ أَزِلَّ أَوْ أُزَلَّ، أَوْ أَظْلِمَ أَوْ أُظْلَمَ، أَوْ أَجْهَلَ أَوْ يُجْهَلَ عَلَيَّ
Translation:
“O Allah! I seek refuge with You lest I go astray or be led astray; lest I slip or be made to slip; lest I oppress or be oppressed; lest I behave ignorantly or ignorance be shown toward me.”
[Ṣaḥīḥ Abī Dāwūd: 5095; al-Tirmidhī (authenticated by al-Albānī: 3426); al-Ṣaḥīḥah: 3193]✦ Maintaining Congregational Prayer
❀ Hadith
Arabic:مَا مِنْ ثَلَاثَةٍ فِي قَرْيَةٍ وَلَا بَدْوٍ لَا تُقَامُ فِيهِمُ الصَّلَاةُ إِلَّا قَدِ اسْتَحْوَذَ عَلَيْهِمُ الشَّيْطَانُ
Translation:
“There are no three people in a village or desert among whom the prayer in congregation is not established, except that the devil overcomes them.
Therefore, establish the congregation.
Surely the wolf devours the sheep that is isolated from the flock.”
[Ṣaḥīḥ Abī Dāwūd: 547]✦ Quranic Evidence
Arabic:اسْتَحْوَذَ عَلَيْهِمُ الشَّيْطَانُ فَأَنْسَاهُمْ ذِكْرَ اللَّهِ
Translation:
“Satan has overcome them, so he made them forget the remembrance of Allah.”
[al-Mujādilah: 19]
