Thursday 18 Ramadan 1445 - 28 March 2024
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Is There Any Du’a for Good Health?

Question

Is there any du`a, from the Quran or Sunnah, for protection against diseases and epidemics such as the swine flu?

Summary of answer

There are many sound hadiths which urge the Muslim to recite du`as for good health and protection from harms and ills such as “Allahumma inni a ‘udhu bika min al-barasi wa’l-jununi wa’l-judhami wa min sayyi’il-asqam.”

Praise be to Allah.

Hadiths about du`a for good health

There are many sound hadiths which urge the Muslim to recite du`as and adhkar for protection from harms and ills, the general meaning of which includes protection from being stricken by various diseases and epidemics . These du`as include the following:

  •  ‘Uthman ibn ‘Affan (may Allah be pleased with him) said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) say:

“Whoever says ‘Bismillah illadhi la yadurru ma‘a ismihi shay-un fi’l-ardi wa la fi’l-samai wa huwa al-sami‘ ul-‘alim (In the name of Allah with Whose name nothing can harm on earth or in heaven, and He is the All-Hearing, All-Knowing)’, three times, will not be stricken with a sudden affliction until morning comes, and whoever says them when morning comes will not be stricken with a sudden affliction until evening comes.” Narrated by Abu Dawud (5088). Also narrated by at-Tirmidhi, who classed it as sahih, as follows:

“There is no one who says in the morning of every day and the evening of every night ‘Bismillah illadhi la yadurru ma‘a ismihi shay-un fi’l-ardi wa la fi’l-samai wa huwa al-sami‘ ul-‘alim (In the name of Allah with Whose name nothing can harm on earth or in heaven, and He is the All-Hearing, All-Knowing)’, three times but nothing will harm him.”

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: A man came to the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and said: O Messenger of Allah, I was stung by a scorpion last night. He said: “If you had said, when evening came, ‘A’udhu bi kalimat Allah at-tammati min sharri ma khalaq (I seek refuge in the perfect words of Allah from the evil of that which He has created)’, it would not have harmed you.” (Narrated by Muslim, 2709)

  • ‘Abdullah ibn Khubayb (may Allah be pleased with him) said: We went out on a rainy and very dark night, looking for the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) to lead us in prayer. We found him and he said: “Did you pray?” But I did not say anything. He said: “Say,” but I did not say anything. Then he said: “Say,” but I did not say anything. Then he said: “Say,” and I said: What should I say, O Messenger of Allah? He said: “Say: Qul huwa Allahu Ahad and al-Mu’awwidhatayn, in the evening and in the morning, three times, and they will suffice you against all things.” (Narrated by at-Tirmidhi (3575) and Abu Dawud (5082)

Shaykh ‘Abd al-‘Aziz ibn Baz (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

“One of the means of attaining security, well-being, peace of mind and safety from all ills is to seek refuge in the perfect words of Allah from the evil of that which He has created, three times every morning and evening, by saying: “A‘udhu bi kalimat Allah at-tammati min sharri ma khalaq (I seek refuge in the perfect words of Allah from the evil of that which He has created).” There are hadiths which indicate that this is one of the means of attaining well-being. Similarly, one may say “Bismillah illadhi la yadurru ma‘a ismihi shay-un fi’l-ardi wa la fi’l-samai wa huwa al-sami‘ ul-‘alim (In the name of Allah with Whose name nothing can harm on earth or in heaven, and He is the All-Hearing, All-Knowing)’, three times every morning and evening, because the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) stated that whoever says it three times in the morning, nothing will harm him until evening comes, and whoever says it three times in the evening, nothing will harm him until morning comes.

All of these adhkar and prayers seeking refuge with Allah, that come from the Quran and Sunnah, are among the means of attaining protection, safety and security from all ills.

Every believing man and woman should recite them at the appropriate times, and do so regularly, with certainty, trusting in their Lord, may He be glorified and exalted, Who is in control of all things, Who has knowledge of all things, Who is able to do all things; there is no god but He and no lord except He; in His Hand is the control of all things, the power to withhold, cause harm and bring benefit , and He is the Sovereign of all things, may He be glorified and exalted.” (Fatawa ash-Shaykh Ibn Baz (3/454, 455)

  • ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) never failed to say these supplications when evening came and when morning came: “Allahumma inni as-aluka al-‘afiyata fi’d-dunya wa’l-akhirah. Allahumma inni as-aluka al-‘afwa wa’l-‘afiyata fi dini wa dunyaya wa ahli wa mali. Allahummas-tur ‘awrati wa amin raw‘ati. Allahumma ihfazni min bayni yadayya wa min khalfi wa ‘an yamini wa ‘an shimali, wa min fawqi, wa a‘udhu bi ‘azamatika an ughtala min tahti (O Allah, I ask You for well-being in this world and in the Hereafter. O Allah, I ask You for pardon and well-being in my faith, my worldly affairs, my family and my wealth. O Allah, conceal my faults and protect me from that which causes me to worry. O Allah, protect me from before me and from behind me, from my right and from my left, and from above me, and I seek refuge in Your greatness lest I be destroyed from beneath me).” (Narrated by Abu Dawud (5074) and Ibn Majah (3871). Classed as sahih by Shaykh al-Albani in Sahih Abi Dawud)

Shaykh Abu’l-Hasan al-Mubarakfuri (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

“O Allah, I ask You for well-being” means: Safety from anything that could undermine my faith and from worldly hardships. It was also said that what is meant is safety from sicknesses and calamities; or not being tested by them, and being granted patience in bearing them and acceptance of the divine decree. The word ‘afiyah (well-being) refers to when Allah preserves a person and protects him from that which is disliked, and grants him well-being and protection from troubles and calamities.

“O Allah, I ask You for pardon” means: I ask You to erase my sins and overlook them.

“and well-being” means: being free from faults.

“in my faith and my worldly affairs” means” and everything that is connected to them. (Mirqat al-Mafatih Sharh Mishkat al-Masabih (8/139)

  • ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: One of the du`as of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) was: “Allahumma inni a‘udhu bika min zawali ni‘amatika wa tahawwuli ‘afiyatika wa fuja-ati niqmatika wa jami‘i sakhatika (O Allah, I seek refuge with You from the withdrawing of Your blessing, and the loss of the well-being that You granted me, and the sudden onset of Your wrath, and anything that may lead to Your displeasure).” (Narrated by Muslim (2739)

An-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said: “[The word translated here as] loss refers to a change in something and disconnection from something. It is as if he was asking for continual well-being, which is protection from pain and sickness .” (Fayd al-Qadir (2/140)

Al-‘Azimabadi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

“The loss of the well-being that You granted me” refers to health being replaced with sickness, and independence of means being replaced with poverty.” (‘Awn al-Ma‘bud Sharh Sunan Abi Dawud (4/283)

  • Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) used to say: “Allahumma inni a ‘udhu bika min al-barasi wa’l-jununi wa’l-judhami wa min sayyi’il-asqam (O Allah, I seek refuge with you from leprosy, and from insanity, and from paralysis, and from evil diseases).” (Narrated by Ahmad (12592), Abu Dawud (1554) and an-Nasai; classed as sahih by al-Albani)

At-Tibi said: “The reason why he did not seek refuge with Allah from sicknesses in general terms is that some illnesses may be easy to bear but bring a great deal of reward if one bears them with patience and they are not chronic, such as fevers, headaches and inflammations of the eye. Rather the hadith is seeking refuge with Allah from chronic sickness, which can lead a person into a situation where a close friend will flee from him and he will not have many people around him to comfort him and take care of him, and – moreover – may carry a great deal of stigma.” (Narrated by al-‘Azimabadi in ‘Awn al-Ma‘bud)

For more, please see these categories: 

Medicine and medical treatments

Supplication 

And Allah knows best.

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Source: Islam Q&A