sihr
Sihr — Signs, Verses of Sihr and Practices to Break It
What are the signs of sihr (magic), which verses are the verses of sihr, and what amal should you do yourself to remove magic — a guide based on the Qur'an and the authentic Sunnah.
In this article
Sihr, or magic, is a reality acknowledged in the Qur'an. However, treating sihr is not as difficult as it is often thought to be — in most cases, by Allah's will, the solution comes through regular amal done at home.
It is Allah who nullifies sihr
مَا جِئْتُم بِهِ ٱلسِّحْرُ ۖ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ سَيُبْطِلُهُۥ ۖ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ لَا يُصْلِحُ عَمَلَ ٱلْمُفْسِدِينَ
And when they had thrown, Moses said, "What you have brought is [only] magic. Indeed, Allāh will expose its worthlessness. Indeed, Allāh does not amend the work of corrupters. (Surah Yunus 10:81 — Saheeh International; meaning of the complete verse)
This very verse sets the believer's stance toward sihr — not fear, but reliance.
Signs of sihr
No single sign is a certain proof on its own. When many of them are present together for a long time, then one may suspect it:
- Sudden, strong reluctance toward worship, discomfort when reciting or listening to the Qur'an
- Causeless hatred between husband and wife, one finding the other unbearable
- Long-lasting physical suffering that medical treatment cannot detect
- Repeatedly seeing eating and drinking, snakes, graveyards, or falling from a height in dreams
- Unusual obstacles in work and in provision, and a lack of barakah (blessing) in the home
Each of these may have an ordinary physical or psychological cause. See a doctor first — not everything is sihr (magic), and a mistaken belief itself ends up becoming a great cause of hardship.
Verses of sihr
The verses that are usually recited in ruqyah:
- Surah Al-Fatihah — the whole surah
- Ayat al-Kursi — Surah Al-Baqarah, verse 255
- Surah Al-Baqarah — verse 102 (the story of Harut and Marut)
- Surah Al-A'raf — verses 117–122
- Surah Yunus — verses 79–82
- Surah Ta-Ha — verses 65–69
- Surah Al-Kafirun, Surah Al-Ikhlas, Surah Al-Falaq, Surah An-Nas
Practices to break sihr
- See a doctor first — rule out medical causes of the physical symptoms.
- Pray the five daily prayers on time, including Fajr; keep up the morning and evening adhkar.
- Recite Surah Al-Baqarah every day in the home, or play it to be heard — the strongest amal for protecting the home.
- Recited-over water — recite the verses above, blow into the water, then drink it and bathe with it.
- Consistency — at least one month, until the symptoms are completely gone.
What not to do
- Going to a magician or a fortune-teller — taking refuge in sihr to remove sihr is haram
- Using amulets with unclear writing, numbers or symbols
- Getting consumed with finding out who cast the magic — this ruins trust and relationships, and shifa does not come
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