Surah al-Falaq was revealed in Madinah. (1)

In the name of Allah, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful.

“Say, ‘I seek refuge with the Lord of daybreak.’” (1)

Regarding “Say, ‘I seek refuge with the Lord of daybreak,’” Ibn Abbas and Aishah, may Allah be pleased with them, said: A Jewish boy used to serve the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him. The Jews gradually worked upon him (2) until he took some hair from the Prophet’s head, peace and blessings be upon him, along with several teeth from his comb. He gave them to the Jews, who cast a spell using them. Labid ibn al-Asam, a Jewish man, undertook this; and the two surahs were revealed concerning him. (3)

Abu Hamid Ahmad ibn Abd Allah al-Salihi informed us; Abu Said Muhammad ibn Musa al-Sayrafi informed us; Abu al-Abbas Muhammad ibn Yaqub al-Asamm narrated to us; Muhammad ibn Abd Allah ibn [Abd al-Hakam] (4) narrated to us; Anas ibn Iyad informed us from [Hisham], (5) from his father, from Aishah, that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, was afflicted by magic, to the point that he would imagine he had done something when he had not done it. He supplicated his Lord, then said: “Have you realized that Allah Most High has given me an answer regarding the matter about which I sought His guidance?”

Aishah said: “What was that, O Messenger of Allah?”

He said: “Two men came to me. One of them sat by my head and the other by my feet. One said to his companion, ‘What ails this man?’ The other replied, ‘He is under a spell.’ He asked, ‘Who cast the spell upon him?’ He replied, ‘Labid ibn al-Asam.’ He asked, ‘In what was it placed?’ He replied, ‘In a comb, hair caught in it, and the spathe of a male date palm.’ He asked, ‘And where is it?’ He replied, ‘In Dharwan—a well among the Banu Zurayq.’”

Aishah said: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, went to it, then returned to Aishah and said: “By Allah, its water is as though”