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اَلنَّاسِ
Humankind

بِسْمِ اللّٰهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّحِيْمِ۔

قُلْ اَعُوْذُ بِرَبِّ النَّاسِ۔ مَلِكِ النَّاسِ۔ اِلٰهِ النَّاسِ۔ مِنْ شَرِّ الْوَسْوَاسِ الْخَنَّاسِ۔ الَّذِيْ يُوَسْوِسُ فِيْ صُدُوْرِ النَّاسِ۔ مِنَ الْجِنَّةِ وَ النَّاسِ۔

In the name of God—the most compassionate, the most merciful.

Say: “I take refuge with the Lord of Humankind, the King of humankind, the God of humankind, from the evil of the stealthy whisperer who whispers in the breasts of humankind, whether among sprites or humankind.”

This chapter forms a prayer for times of anxiety, bringing God’s presence to us in our trials. Note the haunting rhyme in the Arabic, contrasted with the assonance in –a– in the previous chapter; the gossiping sound of the recurring “–as” rhyme here is not easily reproduced in English.

This chapter counsels the believers to ‘seek refuge with the Lord of mankind.’ It is a prayer to the Almighty to grant refuge from the mischief of evil-doers, both human and occult. In this case, protection is sought especially from the evil in man’s own heart and in the hearts of other men.

This and the previous chapter are prayers for protection. The two chapters are known as al-Muawwadhatayn, two entreaties for refuge and protection. The previous chapter points to the necessity of seeking God’s protection against such external factors as might affect an individual. Here the need of protection from internal factors, that is, the evil inclinations within man’s own self is pointed out. So long as we put ourselves under God’s protection, and trust in Him, evil cannot touch us in our inner life.

Man is a humble creature. He essentially needs protection. But this cannot be given to him by anybody except the one and only God. It is God who is the Lord and Sustainer of all human beings. It is He who is their King. It is He alone who is worth worshipping. Indeed, who except God can become the support of believers in their trials and tribulations?

The most dangerous mischief against which man should seek God’s refuge is that of Satan. He is most dangerous because he always hides his real position. He misleads people by his deceitful ways. So, only one who is extremely alert; one to whom God has given the capacity to distinguish between Truth and Untruth; one who can understand what is reality and what is falsity can save himself from the machinations of Satan. Evil-inspirers are not only the known Satans, even among human beings there are certain Satan-like people who present themselves in artificial guises and, by means of deceitful words, brainwash others and put them on the path of misguidance.

Seeking refuge in God from mischief is a two-sided action. On the one hand, it entails obtaining God’s grace. On the other hand, its purpose is to awaken one’s awareness of mischief so that one may become capable of countering it more consciously.