“قُلْ أَعُوذُ بِرَبِّ الْفَلَقِ ۞ مِن شَرِّ مَا خَلَقَ ۞ وَمِن شَرِّ غَاسِقٍ إِذَا وَقَبَ ۞ وَمِن شَرِّ النَّفّٰثَٰتِ فِي الْعُقَدِ ۞ وَمِن شَرِّ حَاسِدٍ إِذَا حَسَدَ”Say, I seek refuge with the Lord of daybreak against the harm in what He has created, the harm in the night when darkness gathers, the harm in witches who blow on knots, and the harm in the envier when he envies. [113]
To be recited 3 times
Brief Commentary
This surah is included in the morning and evening supplications as the Prophet (SallaAllahu ‘alayhi wasallam) said that reciting this surah along with surah Al-Ikhlas [112] and Al-Naas [114] three times every morning and evening will suffice a person for protection from everything [1]
The Prophet (SallaAllahu ‘alayhi wasallam) said about this surah and surah Al-Naas [114], “No one seeks refuge like the one who seeks it through these two surahs” [2]
The Prophet (SallaAllahu ‘alayhi wasallam) once said to a companion, “Have you seen the verses revealed tonight, those which no one has ever seen anything like them? Surah Al-Falaq [113], and Surah Al-Naas [114]” [3]
Imam Ibnul-Qayyim said, “The need of a person for these two surahs is greater than their need for air, food, drink, and clothing [4]
“Daybreak” is when darkness departs, and daylight overcomes. Hence, by reminding ourselves that Allah is the Lord of the daybreak, erasing darkness and replacing it with daylight, equally too He can erase the difficulties in our lives and bring instead a state of ease
We seek refuge in Allah from “the harm in which He has created”, so we remind ourselves that this harm is within the creation of Allah, and therefore we feel at peace knowing that Allah is able to protect us from it as it is under His authority
Nothing falls outside the creation of Allah, so we have sought refuge from all forms of evil
The night is the time when shayateen spread and are more active, hence it is incumbent upon us to be careful and to seek refuge in Allah from “the harm in the night when darkness gathers”
A lot of people complain from evil spirits and believe someone has cast a spell on them, but this surah gives protection from all of this as we seek refuge in Allah from those “who blow on knots”
The last thing we seek refuge in Allah from in this surah is the evil eye or the envy of others as this is something that can have an adverse effect on us
The reverse understanding of this is that a person shouldn’t be envious of others or wish evil for them
We notice in this last verse Allah has stipulated that we seek refuge in Him from the envious person “when he envies” as a person may naturally possess the ability to give others the evil eye (ayn) but they do not do so by suppressing the envy they have so we do not seek refuge in Allah from them, but only from those who actually intend harm and/or envy