the hadith that the Prophet—peace and blessings be upon him—said, “Satan lies in wait for the son of Adam along all his paths.”1 That is, on every path a person takes, whether it is a path of good or a path of evil. If it is a path of good, Satan lies in wait there to discourage him and turn him away from proceeding upon it. If it is otherwise, he lies in wait there to encourage him to proceed upon it and impel him to persist and continue. We ask Allah to protect us, you, and all Muslims from him.

His words, “I seek refuge in Allah the Magnificent, in His noble countenance, and in His eternal dominion from Satan, the accursed,” entail seeking refuge in Allah and in His names and attributes. Among His attributes—glorified is He—is His countenance, which is described as noble, meaning beautiful and resplendent. Another of His attributes is His dominion, which is described as eternal, meaning that nothing precedes it. This indicates Allah’s greatness, majesty, and perfection; the perfection of His power; and His complete sufficiency for the servant who seeks refuge in Him and turns to Him for protection—glorified is He.