What is ruqyah, and how is it done?

What ruqyah actually is

Shaykh Ibn Baz defined it simply: it is recitation with Qur'anic verses and good supplications — the Fatihah, Ayat al-Kursi, al-Ikhlas and al-Mu'awwidhatayn (the two chapters of seeking refuge), or a du'a asking Allah for healing. The whole Qur'an is healing, as Allah says:

"Say, it is for those who believe a guidance and healing."— Qur'an 41:44

The scholars divide ruqyah into categories by what it is performed with. Shaykh Ibn Uthaymeen set out four:

On the last two he was emphatic: ruqyah by shirk or innovation is forbidden and only increases a person in harm, and if he appears to be cured by it, the cure came at that moment, not through it — a test from Allah. The Prophet ﷺ said:

"There is no harm in ruqyah so long as it is not shirk."— Sahih Muslim, from 'Awf ibn Malik

The three conditions

IslamWeb (fatwa 4310) gathers the conditions that make a ruqyah shar'i, and all three must be present:

1. It is with Allah's words, His names and attributes, or what is narrated from the Prophet ﷺ. Anything else is not ruqyah in the religious sense.
2. It is in clear Arabic, or in words whose meaning is known. Ibn Taymiyyah added this condition. An unknown name or an unintelligible foreign formula may not be used to recite over anyone, let alone to call upon Allah with — because supplication in a language other than Arabic is disliked, and only concession is given to one who cannot manage Arabic. Making foreign formulas a slogan is not part of Islam.
3. The reciter believes the ruqyah does not act by itself, but only by Allah's decree.

How it is done

Shaykh Ibn Baz described the practice in order. The reciter:

1. Breathes lightly (nafth) over the place of pain — the chest, head, hand or leg, according to where the complaint is.
2. Recites the Fatihah, and repeats it. He may repeat it seven times. The Companions recited it over a man who had been stung, and he was cured.
3. Recites Ayat al-Kursi, then whatever is easy of the Qur'an.
4. Recites al-Ikhlas and al-Mu'awwidhatayn, repeating them three times.
5. Supplicates with what the Prophet ﷺ used.

The two supplications the scholars cite most are:

"O Allah, Lord of mankind, remove the harm. Heal, for You are the Healer. There is no healing except Your healing — a healing that leaves no illness behind."— Reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim

"In the name of Allah I recite over you, from everything that harms you, and from the evil of every soul or the eye of an envier — may Allah heal you. In the name of Allah I recite over you."— Sahih Muslim

Jibril recited the second over the Prophet ﷺ, as the Prophet ﷺ himself informed us.

If the pain is in the body, IslamWeb notes the practice from Sahih Muslim: place the hand on the site of the pain, say Bismillah three times, then say seven times, "I seek refuge in the might of Allah and His power from the evil of what I find and fear."

Reciting over yourself, and over several people

The scholars hold that the most beneficial ruqyah is a person's own recitation over himself — contrary to what has become widespread, of hunting for a reciter even if he is ignorant or a charlatan. The Fatihah is among the most effective things read over a sick person, because of the pure worship of Allah, praise of Him, entrusting of all affairs to Him and seeking His help that it contains.

Shaykh Ibn Baz was asked whether one reciter may treat several people at once. He permitted it: two or three may sit before him, and he breathes over each — on their chests, hands or heads, as the illness requires. There is no condition that it be one person only.

Reciting over water or oil

This is established. Shaykh Ibn Baz described reciting Ayat al-Kursi, al-Kafirun, al-Ikhlas and al-Mu'awwidhatayn into water, along with the well-known verses concerning magic in al-A'raf, Yunus and Taha; the patient drinks some and washes with the rest. This is among the means of the magic being lifted. He also mentioned seven lote-tree leaves ground into the water.

What ruqyah does not require

The Permanent Committee was asked about assigning a fixed number of recitations to each condition — "recite this verse two thousand times," and the like. Their answer: specifying a number needs evidence, and we know of none — except that the Prophet ﷺ would sometimes repeat a supplication three times. The one clear example is 'A'ishah's رضي الله عنها report that he ﷺ would cup his hands at night, breathe into them, recite al-Ikhlas and the two chapters of refuge, wipe over his head, face and the front of his body, and do that three times.

IslamWeb (fatwa 27039) adds a related point: ruqyah is not achieved by playing a recording. Hearing Qur'an from a tape is good, but the ruqyah requires a living reciter, because its three pillars are the reciter, what he recites, and the one recited over. The more righteous and God-fearing the reciter, the more his ruqyah takes effect — and that cannot come from a recording, whether over a person, water or oil.

Key takeaways

• Ruqyah is Qur'an and sound supplication, recited over the sick or afflicted, seeking Allah's healing — not a technique or a formula with power of its own.
• Three conditions make it valid: Allah's words or the Prophet's ﷺ words; intelligible language; and the belief that only Allah heals.
• Reciting over yourself is the most effective form, and the Fatihah is among the strongest things recited.
• No fixed counts are prescribed beyond what the Sunnah shows, such as repeating three times.
• A recording does not perform ruqyah — a living reciter is required.

Further reading

• Shaykh Ibn Baz, Fatawa Nur 'ala al-Darb
• Shaykh Ibn Uthaymeen, Fatawa Nur 'ala al-Darb
• IslamWeb fatwas 4310 and 27039

And Allah knows best.