الاستعاذة

Isti’atha

اعوذ بالله من الشيطان الرجيم

I seek help in Allah from the casted Shaytan/Devil.

Translation:

1.      I seek refuge/Help.

2.      By/in Allah.

3.      From.

4.      Shaytan/Devil.

5.      Casted.

Meaning/Use:

1.      Before we read or recite any Surah (Chapter) or Ayah (Verse) from the Quran.

2.      When we catch ourselves doing bad things like:

a.      Angering our parents when told to do things.

b.      Not doing good in schools.

c.      Looking or saying bad things.

d.      Feeling unstable or unsafe.

(A^udhu billahi minash-shaytanir-rajim)

(I seek Allah’s protection from the harm of the deprived and expelled Devil.)

The meaning of the isti^adhah is: I seek the protection of Allah to preserve me against the harm of Satan, who is a deviant and transgressing blasphemer among the jinn.

By scholarly consensus, the isti^adhah, or seeking Allah’s protection from the devil, is not a part of the Qur’an. However, the saying of most of the scholars (jumhur) is that it is liked for one to begin with the isti^adhah before starting to recite the Qur’an. It was mentioned by some that one says the isti^adhah after finishing reciting the Qur’an relying on the saying of Allah in Surah an-Nahl, 98:

{فَإِذَا قَرَأْتَ الْقُرْءَانَ فَاسْتَعِذْ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ}

However, the jumhur said that the meaning of this ayah is: [If you want to recite the Qur’an start with the isti^adhah]. The same technique is used in the hadith of the Prophet , sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam, narrated by al-Humaydiyy and at-Tabaraniyy: 

<< إذا أكلت فسم الله >> which means: <<If you want to eat, start by mentioning the name of Allah.>>