Praise be to Allah.
Dhikr before sleeping
There are so many sound du‘as for sleeping that were narrated in the Prophet’s Sunnah that Imam an-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
“You should understand that the hadiths and reports concerning this matter are many; what we have mentioned is sufficient for the one who is enabled to act upon them. We refrain from quoting more for fear of tiring the student. Moreover, it is better for a person to do all that is mentioned concerning that, but if that is not possible, he should stick to what he is able to do of the most important thereof.” (Al-Adhkar, p.95)
Hadiths about du`a before sleeping
We will list here the sahih hadiths concerning this matter:
Blowing into the cupped palms
1– Blowing into the cupped palms and reciting the three mu‘awwidhat [surahs seeking refuge with Allah, the last three surahs of the Quran]:
It was narrated from ‘Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) that when the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) went to his bed every night, he would put his cupped hands together, then blow into them, then recite into them Qul Huwa Allahu ahad, Qul a'udhu bi Rabb il-Falaq and Qul a'udhu bi Rabb il-Nas [i.e., the last three surahs of the Quran), then he would wipe his hands over as much of his body as he could, starting with his head and face, and the front part of his body. He would do that three times.
The word translated here as blow refers to spitting lightly and drily. Narrated by al-Bukhari (5017).
Reciting Ayat al-Kursiy
2- Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said:
The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) put me in charge of guarding the collected zakah of Ramadan. Someone came and started to rummage in the food. I took hold of him and said, I will surely take you to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him).… He [the one who came and rummaged in the food] said, When you go to your bed, recite Ayat al-Kursiy and you will be protected by Allah, and no devil will come near you until morning. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, “He told you the truth even though he is a liar. That was a devil.” Narrated by al-Bukhari (2311).
Reciting the last two verses of Surah al-Baqarah
3– Abu Mas‘ud (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said:
“Whoever recites the last two verses of Surah al-Baqarah every night, they will suffice him.” Narrated by al-Bukhari (5009) and Muslim (808).
The scholars differed as to what is meant by “they will suffice him.” It was said that it means they will protect him from harm during the night; or they will take the place of praying qiyam on that night. It may be that both are meant. And Allah knows best.
Reciting Surah al-Kafirun
4– Nawfal al-Ashja‘i (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said to me: “Recite ‘Say: O disbelievers’ [al-Kafirun 109], then go to sleep at the end of it, for it is a disavowal of shirk.” Narrated by Abu Dawud (5055); classed as hasan by Ibn Hajar in Nataij al-Afkar (3/61).
Reciting Surah al-Isra
5– ‘Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) said: The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) would not sleep before he recited Bani Israil [al-Isra] and az-Zumar. Narrated by at-Tirmidhi (3402); he said: a hasan hadith. It was classed as hasan by al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar in Nataij al-Afkar (3/65).
Reciting Surah az-Zumar
6– The evidence for this is the hadith quoted above.
Saying ‘Bismika Allahumma amutu wa ahya’
7– Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman (may Allah be pleased with him) said:
When the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) wanted to sleep , he would say, “Bismika Allahumma amutu wa ahya (In your name, O Allah, I die and I live)”, and when he woke up he would say “Al-hamdu Lillah alladhi ahyana ba’da ma amatana wa ilayhi al-nushur (Praise be to Allah who has brought us back to life after causing us to die, and to Him is the resurrection).” Narrated by al-Bukhari (6324).
Saying ‘Allahumma aslamtu nafsi ilayk…’
8– Al-Bara ibn ‘Azib said: The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “When you go to bed, do wudu as if for prayer, then lie down on your right side, then say: ‘Allahumma aslamtu nafsi ilayk, wa wajjahtu wajhi ilayk, wa fawwadtu amri ilayk, wa aljatu zahri ilayk, raghbatan wa rahbatan ilayk, la malja wa la manja minka illa ilayk. Amantu bi kitabik alladhi anzalt, wa bi nabiyyik alladhi arsalt (O Allah, I submit myself to You, I turn my face to You, I delegate my affairs to You and I rely totally on You, out of fear and hope of You. There is no refuge or sanctuary from You except in You. I believe in Your Book which You have revealed and in Your Prophet whom You have sent).’ Then if you die, you will have died on the fitrah, (natural state), so make these the last words you speak.” I repeated [these words] to the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and when I reached the words “Amantu bi kitabik alladhi anzalt (I believe in Your Book which You have revealed)”, I said, “wa bi rasulika (and in Your Messenger).” He said: “No; ‘wa bi nabiyyika (and in Your Prophet)’.” Narrated by al-Bukhari (6311) and Muslim (2710).
Saying ‘Bismika Rabbi wada’tu janbi…’
9– Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said:
“When one of you goes to his bed, let him dust off his bed with the inside of his lower garment, for he does not know what came onto it after he left it. Then let him say: Bismika Rabbi wada’tu janbi wa bika arfa’uhu wa in amsakta nafsi farhamha wa in arsaltaha fahfazha bima tuhfaz bihi ‘ibadika al-saalihin (In Your name, my Lord, I lie down, and in Your name I rise. If You should take my soul then have mercy on it, and if You should return my soul then protect it as You protect Your righteous slaves).””. Narrated by al-Bukhari (6320) and Muslim (2714).
Saying Subhan Allah, al-hamdulillah, Allahu akbar
10– It was narrated from ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib that Fatimah (may Allah be pleased with her) went to the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and asked him for a servant. He said:
“Shall I not tell you of something that is better for you than that? When you go to sleep, glorify Allah (by saying Subhan Allah) thirty-three times, praise Allah (by saying Al-hamdu Lillah) thirty-three times, and magnify Him (by saying Allahu akbar) thirty-four times.” And I have never abandoned [that practice] since then. It was said: Not even on the night of Siffin? He said: Not even on the night of Siffin. Narrated by al-Bukhari (5362) and Muslim (2727).
Saying ‘Allahumma qini ‘adhabaka yawma tab’ath ‘ibadaka’
11– It was narrated from Hafsah (may Allah be pleased with her) that when the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) wanted to sleep, he would put his right hand under his right cheek, then he would say: “Allahumma qini ‘adhabaka yawma tab’ath ‘ibadaka (O Allah, protect me from Your punishment on the Day You resurrect Your slaves)” three times. Narrated by Abu Dawud (5045); classed as sahih by al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar in Fath al-Bari (11/119).
Saying ‘Al-hamdu Lillah alladhi at’amana wa saqana…’
12– Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that when the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) went to his bed, he said: “Al-hamdu Lillah alladhi at’amana wa saqana wa kafana wa awana fakam mimman la kafi lahu wa la muwi (Praise be to Allah, Who fed us and gave us to drink, and Who is sufficient for us and has sheltered us, for how many have none to suffice them or shelter them).” Narrated by Muslim (2715).
Saying ‘Allahumma khalaqta nafsi wa anta tawaffaha…’
13- ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar narrated that he instructed a man, when he went to his bed, to say:
“Allahumma khalaqta nafsi wa anta tawaffaha, laka mamatuha wa mahyaya. In ahyaytaha fahfazha wa in amattaha faghfir laha. Allahumma inni asaluka al-‘afiyah (O Allah, You have created my soul and it is for You to take it in death. Its death and its life are in Your hand. If You cause it to live then protect it and if You cause it to die then forgive it. O Allah, I ask You to keep me safe and sound).”
A man said to him: Did you hear that from ‘Umar? He said: From one who is better than ‘Umar, from the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him). Narrated by Muslim (2712).
Saying ‘Allahumma Rabb as-samawati wa Rabb al-ard…’
14– Suhayl said: Abu Salih used to tell us, if one of us wanted to sleep, to lie down on his right side and say:
“Allahumma Rabb as-samawati wa Rabb al-ard wa Rabb al-‘arsh il-‘azim, Rabbana wa Rabba kulli shayin, Faliq al-habb wa’l-nawa wa munzil at-Tawrati wa’l-Injili wa’l-Furqan, a‘udhu bika min sharri kulli shayin anta akhidhun bi nasiyatihi. Allahumma anta al-awwalu fa laysa qablaka shayun, wa anta al-akhiru fa laysa ba’daka shayun, wa anta az-zahiru fa laysa fawqaka shayun wa anta al-batin fa laysa dunaka shayun. Iqdi ‘anna al-dayna wa aghnina min al-faqri (O Allah, Lord of the heavens, Lord of the earth and Lord of the mighty Throne, our Lord and Lord of all things, Splitter of the seed and the date stone, Revealer of the Tawrat (Torah), the Injil (Gospel) and the Furqan (Quran), I seek refuge in You from the evil of every creature that You seize by the forelock [i.e., have full control over them]. O Allah, You are the First and there is nothing before You; You are the Last and there is nothing after You. You are the Manifest (al-Zahir) and there is nothing above You; You are the Hidden (al-Batin) and there is nothing beyond You. Settle our debt and spare us from poverty).” He narrated that from Abu Hurayrah, from the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him). Narrated by Muslim (2713).
Saying ‘Allahumma inni a‘udhu bi wajhika al-karimi…’
15– It was narrated from ‘Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) from the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) that he used to say when going to his bed: “Allahumma inni a‘udhu bi wajhika al-karimi wa kalimatik at-tammati min sharri ma anta akhidhun bi nasiyatihi; Allahumma anta takshif al-maghram wa’l-matham; Allahumma la yuhzamu junduka wa la yukhlafu wa‘duka wa la yanfa‘u dha’l-jaddi minka al-jadd. Subhanaka wa bihamdika (O Allah, I seek refuge in Your noble countenance and Your perfect words from the evil of all things that You seize by the forelock [i.e., have full control over them]. O Allah, You remove debt and sin. O Allah, Your troops will not be defeated, Your promise will not be broken, nor can the richness of a rich man avail him anything before You, glory and praise be to You).” Narrated by Abu Dawud (5052); classed as sahih by an-Nawawi in al-Adhkar (p. 111) and by Ibn Hajar in Nataij al-Afkar (2/384).
Saying ‘Bismillahi wada‘tu janbi…’
16– It was narrated from Abu’l-Azhar al-Anmari that when the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) went to his bed at night, he said:
“Bismillahi wada‘tu janbi, Allahumma ighfir li dhanbi wa akhsi shaytani wa fukka rihani waj‘alni fi’n-nadi al-a‘la (In the name of Allah I lie down. O Allah, forgive me my sins, suppress my shaytan, ransom me and join me with the highest assembly [meaning the angels on high]). Narrated by Abu Dawud (5054); classed as hasan by an-Nawawi in al-Adhkar (p. 125) and by al-Haafiz in Nataij al-Afkar (3/60).
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