Offering prayers (As-Salat) five times a day is obligatory for all adult male men and women in Islam. However, before offering the prayer, one must cleanse one's visible body parts for those may been polluted by dust or gone dirty while at work. This cleansing of one's body parts is called Wudu in Arabic and Ablution in English.
The Wudu includes the following steps:
Make the intention (niyyah) to perform wudu and center yourself and quiet your thoughts.
Wash your right hand thrice, followed by your left hand thrice.
Swish water in mouth at least once.
Lightly inhale water into your nose at least once.
Wash your face 3 times, from right to left, hairline to chin.
Wash your lower arms 3 times from wrist to elbows, right to left.
Clean your head from the forehead to the back of the head, then wipe your ears and the outer portion of the ear canal.
Wash both of your feet 3 times, right to left.
Recite the du’as after wudu.
However, if a person has had marital relations with one's spouse, then one has to take a complete bath. This would include first washing the genital area and then performing the entire wudu and then first washing one's right shoulder, the left shoulder and then flowing water all over the body starting from head to toe. Now watch the video below how to properly perform the Wudu (abolition) before offering the salah (prayer):
Note: This is the method mostly used by Muslims around the world. There may be slight variations in some methods as per the School of Thought one is following.
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Sūrat al-Masad is the 111th chapter of the Holy Quran and the only sūrah in which the name of the worst enemy of Islam and Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is taken openly: Abu Lahab. And because of this fact, this sūrah is commonly known as Sūrah Lahab. Abu Lahab was one of the four paternal uncles of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and was right from day one of his nephew's open call for Islam has been treacherously against Islam and his nephew. The sūrah was revealed soon after one day Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) gave a call to all tribes of the Makkah while standing on the top of Safa, a hill just on the outskirts of Makkah. Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is said to have called all tribes by name so that no one is missed out for he was about to proclaim Islam openly. When everyone had gathered, Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) asked them loudly:
"If I tell you that there is a huge enemy army camping at the foot of this mountain, on the other side, will you believe me?"
The whole assembly unanimously said: "Certainly we will believe, for thou hast never told a lie”.
“Then", Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) gave them an open invitation to join the religion of Islam, "I have come from Allah as a warner to preach the Unity of the Lord".
Hearing this, Abu Lahab is said to have exclaimed: "May you perish! Is it for this that you have gathered us?"
On this, Allah revealed this surah as reply to the disgraceful words uttered by Abu Lahab, with the warning, that later became true: May the hands of Abu Lahab perish, may he (himself) perish. Read the English translation of Sūrat al-Masad given herein under:
In The Name of Allah, The Beneficent, The Merciful
“May the hands of Abu Lahab perish, may he (himself) perish ".
“His wealth avails him not, neither what he had earned".
“Soon will he roast in a flaming fire",
“And his wife, the bearer of the firewood,”
“Upon her neck a rope of twisted palm-fiber.”
The disgraceful behaviour of Abu Lahab picked an impetus when Abu Talib, the aging uncle of the Prophet, who had all along his life been shielding his nephew against the machinations of the pagans of Makkah, breathed his last and Abu Lahab became the chief of the Bani Hashim tribe. Abu Lahab was so much obsessed by his position and wealth that he felt himself above all. The following narration by Ibn /jarir shows his disgust for Islam for Islam equates rich and poor equally and does not distinguish between the two except who holds a higher pedestal due to his devotion to Allah and taqwa (term used for being highly conscious and cognizant of Allah, of truth, of the rational reality, "piety, fear of God"):
One day Abu Lahab asked Muhammad: "If I were to accept your religion, what would I get?" Muhammad replied: "You would get what the other believers would get." He said: "Is there no preference or distinction for me?" Muhammad replied: "What else do you want?" Thereupon he said: "May this religion perish in which I and all other people should be equal and alike!".
The second verse of the surah: “His wealth avails him not, neither what he had earned". has a similar versein the Holy Qur'an (Surah Shu'ara, Chapter 29: 88-89), wherein Allah forewarns the pagans and non believers of Islam even of exalted position:
“The Day whereon neither wealth nor sons will avail,""But only he (will prosper) that brings to Allah a sound heart".
While Abu Lahab bitterly opposed Islam, his wife, Umm-i-Jamil; a sister of Abu Sufyan, whose mention is also made in Sūrat al-Masad was no less and was hand in glove with her husband and left no stone unturned to pain Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). The following reference narrated Jundub bin Sufyan shows how much she hated nephew of his husband:
Once Muhammad became sick and could not offer his night prayer (Tahajjud) for two or three nights. Then the wife of Abu Lahab came and said, "O Muhammad! I think that your Satan has forsaken you, for I have not seen him with you for two or three nights!" On that Allah revealed: 'By the fore-noon, and by the night when it darkens, your Lord (O Muhammad) has neither forsaken you, nor hated you.'
Thus this sūrah also makes a mention of twisted strands of Palm Fiber that in Hellfire shall be twisted around the neck of the wife of Abu Lahab, for the reason that she took great pride in wearing an ostentatious necklace she became known for and would slip by night to strew thorns and prickly plants in the Prophet’s path to injure his feet. As for the fate of Abu Lahab, it is said that "He died from a contagious disease and since his body gave off an unbearable, foul smell no one approached it. It was left for three days and at last, some slaves were hired to carry it out of Makkah. They watered it from a distance and then piled stones on top of it until it was buried." Photo | References: | 1 | 2 | 3 |
An effort has been made to gather explanation of the surahs of the Holy Qur'an from authentic souses and then present a least possible condensed explanation of the surah. However, those wanting detailed explanations and tafsir (exegesis), may refer to sites the references of which are given above.
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Those proceeding to Makkah, Saudi Arabia for Hajj, the annual pilgrimage, or Umra, their definite destination in Saudi Arabia is holy city of Medina Al Munawara, for this is the city which felt the footsteps of Prophet of Islam Muhammad (peace be upon him) and this is the city where the Prophet is buried in a specially enclosed chamber inside the Masjid Al Nabawi. Al-Masjid an-Nabawī has the honour of being constructed by Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) himself along with his companions soon after his migration from Makkah to Medina in 622. Al-Masjid an-Nabawī is the third masjid built in the history of Islam. Today, it is the second-holiest site in Islam, and most visited after al-Masjid al-Haram in Makkah. It is also one of the largest masjids in the world. As per experts' calculations, the area covered by the present day masjid is roughly 100 times bigger than its original size when it was built initially. Although the masjid was built with no roof, but today its architecture is one of the most absorbing and awe inspiring in the world. Al-Masjid an-Nabawi was built adjacent to the place of abode of the Prophet (ﷺ), The land on which the masjid was built belonged to two orphan brothers, Sahl and Suhail and contained a few date trees, graves of polytheists, a resting spot for herds of cattle. The Prophet purchased the land and some polytheists graves dug up and leveled which then formed the courtyard of the Prophet (ﷺ) 's masjid. Initially the masjid was constructed keeping its direction towards Masjid Al-Aqsa (Bait Al Muqqadas, Jerusalem), but later it was re-orientated to the south When the revelation came down to change the Qibla to Makkah in 624 CE. The masjid took seven months to complete and measured 30.5 m × 35.62 m (100.1 ft × 116.9 ft) upon completion. The roof at a a height of 3.60 m (11.8 ft) was supported by palm trunks was made of beaten clay and palm leaves. The three doors of the mosque were Bab-al-Rahmah to the south, Bab-al-Jibril to the west and Babal-Nisa to the east.
The most notable feature of the masjid is its Green Dome in the south-east corner of the masjid. The dome is exactly atop the house of Ayesha, wife of Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ), which later converted into the tomb of the Prophet (ﷺ). Initially a wooden cupola was erected at the place of the present day dome, which was later built as green dome in 1818 by the Ottoman sultan Mahmud II. It was painted green in 1837. The original minbar (place from where the Imam of the masjid addresses the audience) used by the Prophet's (ﷺ) was a "wood block of date tree". In 629, a three staired ladder was added to it. The first two caliphs, Abu Bakr and Umar, did not use the third step "due to respect for the Prophet." The third caliph Uthman placed a fabric dome over it and the rest of the stairs were covered with ebony. The minbar had many changes but the present marble minbar was made in the late fifteenth century. There is something peculiar as for mihrabs of Prophet's (ﷺ) masjid is concerned. While all other masjid only have one mihrab, but the Prophet’s (peace and blessings of Allāh be upon him) masjid has three. The current mihrab is the one used nowadays for the imam to lead prayers. The next mihrab is set back and is called the Suleymaniye or Ahnaf mihrab. It was made on the orders of the Sultan Suleyman the magnificent for the Hanafi Imam to lead prayers whilst the Maliki Imam lead prayers from the Prophetic mihrab. The Prophetic mihrab completely covers the area that the Prophet (ﷺ) used to lead prayers from except where he placed his feet. The Rawḍah (Arabic of "Garden") is an area between the minbar and burial chamber of Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ). It is regarded as one of the Riyāḍ al-Jannah (Gardens of Paradise). A green carpet distinguishes the area from the rest of the mosque, which is covered in a red carpet. There is a tradition that supplications and prayers uttered here are never rejected, thus every devout vising the masjid attempts to pray here, though access into the area is generally not possible and one really has to wait to find a space for him. Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him), one of the most narrator of Hadihs attributed to the Prophet (ﷺ) has been quoted in Sahih Bukhari (the books on collection of Hadihs of the Prophet) that the Prophet (ﷺ) said:“One prayer offered in my masjid is superior to one thousand prayers offered in other masjids except Masjid al-Haram (Makkah al-Mukarramah).” There is a legend of an empty space or grave next to where the Prophet (ﷺ), Abu Bakr and Umar (may Allāh be pleased with them) are buried. This was confirmed, however, when the individuals who went in to change the coverings in the hujrah* in the 1970s noted the presence of an empty space. Some believe that this empty grave is meant for Prophet Eesa (Jesus, peace be upon him) when he returns to the earth and eventually dies his biological death. However this is just a speculation as there is no mention of this empty grave or what this space is meant for earlier in the history of Islam.
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The most revered and sacred holy place of Islam and Muslims is a cubical stone structure draped in black covering, called "Kiswah" with verses of Holy Qur'an inscribed on it with golden threads is the Ka'bah or the Bayṫ Allāh, the House of Allāh, situated right in the center of the courtyard of Masjid Al-Ḥarām (The Sacred Mosque). It is also called Al-Kaʿbah al-Musharrafah (the Holy Ka'bah). The word Ka'bah in Arabic means a cube, thus this stone structure which is 60 x 60 x 60 feet in length, width and height is known by this name all over the Muslim world.
Located in the city of Makkah and the Hijaz province of Saudi Arabia, it is the the "Qiblah" (direction of prayer) and Muslims from all over the world face toward the direction of Ka'bah while offering their five daily prayers. They also take seven rounds around it during Hajj and Umra, as was done by Prophet Abraham after he completed the construction of Ka'bah.
The original foundations of the Hose of Allah are said to have been laid by Prophet Adam (peace be upon him) and it became the first ever place of worship of Allah. However the structure only comprised of four walls with no roof. It was The Prophet Ibrahim (the biblical Abraham) who was later instructed by Allah to build a house for Him at the exact location of the earlier structure erected by Prophet Adam. Prophet Ibrahim was assisted by his son Ismael (Ishmael)
It may be added for information that right directly above the Ka'bah in Makkah, there is a similar structure up in the heavens called Al-Bait-al-Ma’mur (i.e. Allah’s House). During the famous "ascent (Mairaj)" of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) to the heavens, he was shown the same by Angel Gabriel:
“Then I was shown Al-Bait-al-Ma’mur. I asked Gabriel about it and he said, This is Al Bait-ul-Ma’mur where 70,000 angels perform prayers daily and when they leave they never return to it (but always a fresh batch replaces them).”
Herein under are references from Holy Qur'an about Prophet Ibraheem (Abraham, peace be upon him) when ordered to build the Ka'bah:
2:124
And [mention, O Muhammad], when Abraham was tried by his Lord with commands and he fulfilled them. [ Allah ] said, "Indeed, I will make you a leader for the people." [Abraham] said, "And of my descendants?" [ Allah ] said, "My covenant does not include the wrongdoers."
2:125
And [mention] when We made the House a place of return for the people and [a place of] security. And take, [O believers], from the standing place of Abraham a place of prayer. And We charged Abraham and Ishmael, [saying], "Purify My House for those who perform Tawaf (circumambulation) and those who are staying [there] for worship and those who bow and prostrate [in prayer]."
2:126
And [mention] when Abraham said, "My Lord, make this a secure city and provide its people with fruits - whoever of them believes in Allah and the Last Day." [ Allah ] said. "And whoever disbelieves - I will grant him enjoyment for a little; then I will force him to the punishment of the Fire, and wretched is the destination."
2:127
And [mention] when Abraham was raising the foundations of the House and [with him] Ishmael, [saying], "Our Lord, accept [this] from us. Indeed You are the Hearing, the Knowing.
2:128
Our Lord, and make us Muslims [in submission] to You and from our descendants a Muslim nation [in submission] to You. And show us our rites and accept our repentance. Indeed, You are the Accepting of repentance, the Merciful.
And in Surah Ale Imran (3:96), Allah makes a direct reference to Ka'bah:
Indeed, the first House [of worship] established for mankind was that at Bakkah (Makkah) - blessed and a guidance for the worlds.
The four corners of Ka'bah roughly face the four points of the compass. At the East is the Black stone (Rukn el Aswad), at the North is el Ruken el Iraqi, at the west al Rukne el Shami and at the south al Rukne el Yamani. These directions point towards towards Syria, Jordan and Palestine from northern corner; the east corner (where the Hajar al-Aswad is) faces towards Oman, Pakistan and Malaysia; the south corner (Rukun Yamani) faces towards Yemen, Mauritius and Kenya; and the west corner faces towards Egypt, Morocco and Spain. Other countries in relation to Ka'bah are as under:
A door is fixed about 7 feet above ground level facing North East. In front of the building was Maqame Ibrahim (the place of Prophet Abraham where he stood and undertook Ka'bah's construction) , the arch shape gate known as that of Banu Shayba and the Zam Zam Well.
Hajar el Aswad (the Blackstone, a stone that was sent down from the Heavens above) is fixed on the Eastern corner about 5 feet above ground, with a diameter is around 12 inches.
At a distance of about 500 yards are located the famous twin hills called Safa and Marwa. These were the two hills tops between which Hajra, wife of Prophet Abraham ran for seven times to find water for his newly born son Ismael. It was on the seventh run that a stream erupted from the dry desert where little Ismael was kicking his feet out of extreme thirst. It is a miracle of Allah that since over four thousand years, the Zam Zam well produces thousands of gallons of water every day and has never since dried.
Ka'bah has been used as a House of Allah for quite a long time after Prophet Ismael, but slowly and gradually the pagans took control over it and made it a house of wordily idols where other tribes of Arabia came for annual pilgrimage. Ka'bah has undergone many reconstruction efforts and one important reconstruction is worth mentioning when Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was in his prime youth. The Blackstone which had been taken out to allow the construction work became a bone of contention among the pagan tribes as every tribe elder wanted to place the Blackstone by hand. It was thus decided by elders that anyone who enters Ka'bah the next morning will decide how to reinstall the Blackstone. And it so happened next morning that young Muhammad walked into Ka'bah courtyard and was chosen to give out the solution. He asked the Blackstone be placed in the center of a cloth and to be carried near the place of installation by all tribal chief holding the cloth from all sides. And then he picked up the stone and placed it at its designated place. Hence with the foresight of Muhammad, tension was defused and everyone accepted the arrangements so suggested. The Ka'bah continued to be used by the pagans of Makkah and Arabia as site of annual pilgrimage until 631 CE, when the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) destroyed all the idols, including the huge idol named Hubbal placed inside the Ka'bah and others outside of the Ka'bah after the fall of Makkah and brought it back to its original glory as House of Allah. And designated it for the annual pilgrimage of Muslims from all over the world, in step with Prophet Ibrahim's footsteps. While clocks and all motions are described in the world are Clockwise, the circumambulation around Ka'bah is anticlockwise. This may sound strange to many but if we study astronomy, movement of electrons and circulation of blood in human body, we would find that all movements and motions are anticlockwise. The circumambulation has been anticlockwise ever since even when no one knew the celestial and astronomical movements. It is only now we know that moon rotates around earth in anticlockwise motions, while earth rotates around its axis anticlockwise, and so do all planets of our solar system rotate around sun in anticlockwise direction. Even our blood inside our bodies circulates anticlockwise. So when we take circumambulation around Ka'bah anticlockwise, we in fact follow the same anticlockwise rotation of the entire universe - all following Allah's prescribed anticlockwise path.
Every year, millions of Muslims from all over the globe come to Makkah and perform the annual Hajj pilgrimage, the fifth pillar of Islam, beside performing voluntary Umra other than the Hajj season. Umra is performed exactly like Hajj excluding sacrificing the animals which is obligatory in Hajj only. Performance of these obligatory and voluntary rituals bring Muslims from all over the world where everyone perform the Hajj and Umra in uni-some without caring for one's colour or creed. This is what unity is and it is hoped one day all Muslims will join hands to be one as desired by Allah and which in fact is the essence of Islam.
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Propagating a new religion among the desert hardened pagans of Makkah was not an easy task for Prophet of Allah, Muhammad (peace be upon him). The rich and famous of Makkah took pride in their age old traditions and polytheism, the worship of far too many idols for each season and humanly desires. Since over 300 idols placed in and around of Ka'aba, provided a means of sustenance to them as people from all over Arabia came to Makkah to pay homage to their gods and thus brought trade and money. Therefore, an end to their beliefs as manifested by emergence of Islam was taken as a great threat and they did their best to persuade prophet of Allah from propagating the concept of monotheism.
When every effort failed to convince Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), the nobles among the Banu Quraysh started offering him different options, like entering into each others beliefs on yearly basis, or else offering him gifts, wine and women to stop talking of his new religion and faith. Then as a last resort they asked Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) to stop talking against their gods and idols and stop polluting the minds of the non believers.
This definitely has a a telling effect on the Prophet of Allah who was finding it difficult to make a headway or breakthrough. It was under such circumstances that Sūrat al-Kāfirūn was revealed by Allah, which provided a relief to the Prophet and a new course of action to keep the non believers at bay and to their beliefs.
Here is the English translation of Sūrat al-Kāfirūn:
In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful.
Say: Oh you who turn away
I do not worship what you worship,
nor do you worship what I worship.
And I will not worship what you worship,
Nor will you worship what I worship.
Your way is yours, and my way is mine.
The theme of this Surah is very simple and easy to understand: While it out rightly rejects polytheism, it gave a clear message to the pagans of Makkah that Islam was there to stay and that Muslims would never ever revert to idol worshiping, for it was against their very belief of monotheism, and that they would not tolerate sharing of wordily gods with one absolute Allah, the creator of the universe and mankind.
And this was not the only place where Allah has directed his Prophet to tell the non believers in very clear words that Muslims shall never follow the wordily gods ever again:
"And if they reject you, then say: 'To me my deeds and to you your deeds and you are innocent of my accounts and I am innocent of yours,' " [Al-Qur'an 10:41]
"For us our deeds and for you your deeds." [Al-Qur'an 28:55]
This surah, like many others, also leave a clear message that Muslims believe in one Allah as was believed by Prophet Ibraheem (Abraham, peace be upon him) and all prophets and messengers who came thereafter. Thus anyone who digresses from the concept of monotheism, and shares others with Allah, is not whom we follow or support. This clearly emphasizes that Islam is free from idol worshiping and concept of God sharing or the concept of Trinity. And those who have beliefs and faith tangent to the faith and belief of Muslims and this can be summed up in one sentence: "To you your religion and to me mine."
The Prophet of Allah liked this surah so much which strengthened his faith that by Abdullah ibn Umar. son of second caliph Umer bin Khatab and a prominent authority on hadiths, has quoted that on many an occasion he heard Muhammad recite Sūrat al-Kāfirūn and Sūra al-Iklas in the two Rakats before the Pre-Dawn (Fajr) obligatory Prayer and in the two rakats after the Sunset (Maghrib) obligatory Prayer. He would also recommended reciting all four surahs starting with "Qul" before going to bed and before getting up from the bed in the morning.
Now you may like to listen to recitation of Sūrat al-Kāfirūn:
Calligraphy by Shahid Rana | References: | 1 | 2 | 3 | If you like Islam: My Ultimate Decision, and to keep yourself updated on all our latest posts to know more about Islam, follow us on Facebook Follow @IslamUltimate
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Every personal account of someone embracing Islam is unique and special. I have shared many such accounts previously but this account is somewhat different from the rest. While others had found something peculiar in Islam and embraced it, here is an account of a young Australian Christian who embraced Islam because she loved Prophet Eesa (Jesus, peace be upon him) and found Islam closer to Christianity barring a major difference about Jesus. She had no idea about Islam except a vague and faint image of Muslim women cloaked in heavy black covering from head to feet somewhere in the Middle East. She thought Muslim world was far from civilization where women rotted in the confines of their houses and had no rights and no careers. In fact she had not met a Muslim while in Australia and had no idea about another religion other than Christianity. All she read about Muslims was from the headlines showing Muslim terrorist and IS men beheading their captives and that they were responsible for 9/11. And then she went to Malaysia for a University programme and her entire perception about status of women in Islam changed. "My eyes and mind were opened, when, as a journalism student, I did an article about Muslim women’s rights. That was the beginning of everything." She came across women of all ages wearing Hijab with mostly face open, while few had their face covered but still going about the business of life, working in offices and feeling happy about what they wore. The more she interacted with fellow Muslim students, the more she knew of her ignorance about Islam. While doing an article on Rights of Muslim Women, she was amazed to find that, "Women have many rights in Islam! Muslim women are legally given rights (including divorce, land rights, monetary rights, the right to choose who to marry, etc) in the Qur’an and Hadiths hundreds of years before Western women won the same rights." One day she went to a mosque and felt an immediate sense of calm and peace inside her. The call for prayer invoked feelings that she had never felt before. She confides that: "When I first bowed my head toward the Ka’aba, I felt home in my heart. I didn't convert to Islam in Malaysia – I did that over a year later – but it introduced me in a beautiful way to Islam and to the Oneness of God."
And that made things moving for her and she accepted Islam, though a year later and more and more readings about Islam and interacting with Muslims. She then realized that Christianity was much closer to Islam, not only theologically but also historically. She came to know about many misconceptions about Islam but when she read about a letter written by Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) as to how Muslims should treat Christians with respect. It even said that if a Muslim man is married to a Christian woman, she cannot be stopped from praying in her place of worship. She found out that Islam considers Jews and Christians as People of the Book for all three religions share the same Abrahamic roots. She was surprised to find mention of Jesus more than the mention of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). And then she came to know the major difference about the status of Jesus in Islam: "Take Jesus to be a prophet and not to be worshiped alongside God. Islam teaches the Oneness of God, and to worship Allah alone and we believe that Jesus taught this himself. The term ‘Allah’, by the way, is the Arabic word for ‘God’ and is not just an Islamic term. Arab Christians also call God ‘Allah’." Muslims consider all previous prophets as prophets of Allah and regard and revere them with respect. Even they believe in the three earlier scriptures (Psalms, Torah and Bible) as the divine scriptures. Only if Christians realize the difference of Jesus being a prophet and not a God, Islam and Christians can become one.
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Sūrah Al Falak and Sūrah An Nas (the last Sūrah of the Holy Qur'an) have the same subject in common: The Evil. However the distinct difference being the form of evil from which refuge is being sought in both the sūrahs: Evil within in Sūrah An Nas while Sūrah Al Falak speaks of evil without. Read the English translation below and you would come to know of the type of evil referred to in this sūrah:
In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful.
Say: I seek refuge with the Lord of the Dawn,
from anything harmful in Creation,
from the evil of darkness as it spreads,
from the evil of knotted spells,
from the evil of the envier when he envies.
The word Falak means “to split.” Here the word split refers to the break of dawn because it splits the night and darkness. The daybreak is a relief for the man for all evils, both from men and jinn, are spread in the cover of darkness, that is the time between the sunset and sunrise. It has been quoted in the hadith reference book of Sahih Bukhari that Prophet of Allah has encouraged to bring children inside when the sun begins to set. "When the night falls, keep your children indoors, for the devils are out and about at this time. When an hour of the night goes by, you can let them go." In this surah while refuges is sought from Allah, who is the lord of the dawn and dusk, it is specified that refuge is being sought from the evil of what created. And then refuge of Allah is being sought from the evil that creeps out in the darkness of night, the evil of magic and the last of all the evil oozing out of someone who envies one's blessing.
And we all know that the three forms of evils talked about in this surah are the one that are very common in our daily lives, specially that of evil of "Naffaathaat (women) who blow in Uqad (knots)" - like the soothsayer techniques to partially tie a knot, utter a curse and spit into the knot and pull it tight. In the pre-Islamic period, soothsayers claimed the power to cause various illnesses. According to soothsayers the knot had to be found and untied before the curse could be lifted. Such women (and men too) were very common in the times when this surah was revealed and once Prophet of Allah, peace be upon him, too was victim of such sorcerers and it is believed this surah was revealed then to be recited to ward of the ill effects so desired. The last of the evils from which refuge is sought is that of envious men who envy others for the favours and blessings or better position or wealth. Remember the story of two sons of Prophet Adam when Allah accepted the devotion of Able and Cane became envious of his own brother and killed him. Thus one seeks refuge from the evil eye of an envious man for it can be harmful. Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, is often quoted to have been saying to recite both Sūrah Al Falak and Sūrah An Nas at sunset and daybreak time to ward off evils of darkness and day. Both these sūrahs are easy to remember and should be recited as often as one can to be in Allah's refuge from all evils that reside within and without. May Allah protect us all against all evils. You many now listen to recitation of Sūrah Al Falak;
An effort has been made to gather explanation of the surahs of the Holy Qur'an from authentic souses and then present a least possible condensed explanation of the surah. However, those wanting detailed explanations and tafsir (exegesis), may refer to sites the references of which are given above.
If you like Islam: My Ultimate Decision, and to keep yourself updated on all our latest posts to know more about Islam, follow us on Facebook Follow @IslamUltimate
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