and others, by transgressing against them, unlawfully interfering with their property, or inflicting harm or evil upon them.

His words, “or be wronged,” mean: lest someone wrong me with respect to my person, wealth, or honor.

His words, “or act foolishly or be treated foolishly,” derive from ignorance, which is the opposite of knowledge.

His words, “act foolishly,” mean: lest I behave as foolish people do, involve myself in something that does not concern me, or remain ignorant of a right incumbent upon me.

His words, “or be treated foolishly,” mean: lest someone else behave foolishly toward me, treating me as foolish people do—with insolence, impudence, insults, and the like.

Whoever is kept safe from committing any of these errors in dealing with others, and from others committing any of them against him, has been granted well-being, and people have been kept safe from him. Thus, the hadith contains a seeking of refuge from these matters on both sides: from the person seeking refuge himself and from the people he meets and interacts with. Some of the early Muslims used to say in their supplications, “O Allah, keep me safe and keep others safe from me.”1 Whoever is safe from people’s evil, while people are safe from his evil, possesses tremendous good.

This is therefore a magnificent supplication that a Muslim should observe whenever he leaves his home, so that he may seek shelter in Allah and hold fast to Him—Glorified is He—lest any of these things befall him. Along with seeking this refuge, however, he must take the proper means and exercise the utmost caution against misguidance, error, wrongdoing, and ignorance. In this way, he combines taking the necessary means with seeking Allah’s aid in doing so—Exalted is He.