the devils, who in every circumstance strive to undermine a Muslim’s religion and acts of worship.
If the Prophet ﷺ—though surrounded by divine protection—feared evil and its agents, then we are even more in need of fear, and must take every precaution to safeguard our religion from the enemy.
Points derived from the ḥadīth
- It is recommended to recite this supplication when one intends to enter the lavatory, so as to be safe from the devils who try to corrupt his prayer.
- Among the devils’ harms is that they cause ritual impurity, thereby invalidating a person’s prayer; one therefore seeks refuge with Allah to ward off their evil.
- Avoiding impurities is obligatory, and one must adopt the means that protect against them, for it is authentically reported that failure to guard oneself from urine is a cause of torment in the grave.
Second ḥadīth
Abū Ayyūb al-Anṣārī (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “When you go to relieve yourselves, do not face the qiblah with defecation or with urine, nor turn your backs to it. Instead, face east or west.” Abū Ayyūb added, “When we arrived in Syria we found privies built facing the Kaʿbah, so we would turn aside from them and ask Allah’s forgiveness.”
Unfamiliar vocabulary
- “al-ghāʾiṭ”: a low, sunken place in the ground to which people would go to relieve themselves; the term later became a euphemism for the act itself.
- “al-marāḥīḍ”: plural of mirḥāḍ, originally meaning a place for washing; it likewise came to be used for the place where one relieves oneself.
- “But face east or west”: that is, turn toward the east or the west.
This ruling applies to the people of Madinah and anyone on the same geographical line as they are, for when they face east or west they neither face the qiblah nor turn their backs to it.