Praise be to Allaah.

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) has taught us things in such cases in which there is healing and a lessening of sickness, as well as reward. That is part of Allaah’s mercy towards this blessed ummah and the Prophet’s care for it. He is the one whom Allaah described as (interpretation of the meaning):

“Verily, there has come unto you a Messenger (Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)) from amongst yourselves. It grieves him that you should receive any injury or difficulty. He (Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)) is anxious over you; for the believers (he is) full of pity, kind, and merciful” [al-Tawbah 9:128]

Among the things that he taught us are the following:

1 – Reciting al-Faatihah

It was narrated from Abu Sa’eed al-Khudri (may Allaah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) described Soorat al-Faatihah as a ruqyah, and he approved of the Sahaabi who recited it as a ruqyah for the one who had been stung by a scorpion. Al-Bukhaari (2156) and Muslim (2201).

Ibn al-Qayyim said:

There was a time when I fell sick in Makkah, and I could not find a doctor or any medicine, so I treated myself by reciting it. I would take some Zamzam water and recite it over it several times, then drink it. I recovered fully by these means, then I began to do that whenever I felt a lot of pain, and I benefited greatly from it. End quote. Zaad al-Ma’aad (4/164).

2 – It was narrated from ‘Aa’ishah (may Allaah be pleased with her) that when any of us fell sick, the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) would wipe him with his right hand then say: “Adhhib il-ba’s, Rabbi l-naas washfi anta al-Shaafi laa shifaa’a illa shifaa’uka shifaa’an laa yughaadir saqaman (Remove the harm, O Lord of mankind and heal him, for You are the Healer and there is no healing except Your healing, with a healing which does not leave any disease behind).” Narrated by al-Bukhaari (5675)and Muslim (2191).

3 – It was narrated that ‘Aa’ishah (may Allaah be pleased with her) said: If one of his family fell sick, the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) would blow over him and recite al-Mu’awwidhaat. When he fell sick with his final illness, I started to blow over him and wipe him with his own hand, because it was more blessed than my hand. Narrated by al-Bukhaari (5735) and Muslim (2192).

4 – It was narrated from ‘Uthmaan ibn Abi’l-‘Aas al-Thaqafi that he complained to the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) about some pain that he had felt in his body since he became Muslim. The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said to him: “Put your hand on the part of your body that hurts and say: ‘Bismillaah (in the name of Allaah)’ three times, then say seven times: ‘I seek refuge in Allaah and His Power from the evil of what I find and I fear.’” Narrated by Muslim (2202).

5 – It was narrated from Abu Sa’eed al-Khudri (may Allaah be pleased with him) that Jibreel (peace be upon him) came to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and said: O Muhammad, are you sick? He said: “Yes.” He said: In the name of Allaah I perform ruqyah for you, from everything that is harming you, from the evil of every soul or envious eye may Allaah heal you, in the name of Allaah I perform ruqyah for you. Narrated by Muslim (2186).

6 – It was narrated that Abu’l-Darda’ (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: I heard the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) say: “Whoever among you suffers some sickness, or his brother suffers some sickness, let him say: ‘Our Lord Allaah Who is in heaven, hallowed be Your name, You will is done in heaven and on earth; as Your mercy is in heaven, bestow it upon the earth. Forgive us our sins. You are the Lord of the good. Send down some Your mercy and healing upon this pain,’ and he will be healed.” Narrated by Abu Dawood (3892); classed as saheeh by al-Haakim in al-Mustadrak (4/243) and as hasan by Ibn Taymiyah in Majmoo’ al-Fataawa (3/139).

7 – It was narrated from Ibn ‘Abbaas (may Allaah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “The one who visits a sick person who is not dying, and says seven times in his presence, ‘I ask Allaah the Almighty, the Lord of the Mighty Throne, to heal you,’ Allaah will heal him from that sickness.” Narrated by Abu Dawood (3106); classed as saheeh by al-Nawawi in al-Adhkaar (p. 180) and by al-Albaani in Saheeh Abi Dawood.

Whilst reciting these ruqyahs over yourself you should wipe your hand over his face, chest and stomach, as the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) used to do, and you should sit near your child’s head so that you will be breathing over him as you recite the ruqyah. There is nothing wrong with blowing lightly onto his face with a little saliva whilst doing that.

Ibn al-Qayyim said:

The ruqyah comes from the heart and mouth of the one who is reciting ruqyah, so if it is accompanied with some of his saliva and breath, that will have a stronger effect. End quote. Zaad al-Ma’aad (4/164).

But over and above all that there must be sincerity towards Allaah in the du’aa’, and sincere turning to Him and humility before Him, and one should seek out the times when prayers are answered, for when a person raises his hand to Allaah in du’aa’, He is reluctant that the person should remain empty-handed. Do not be hasty in seeking a response, for Allaah may delay the answer for a reason that is known to Him, so you should be patient and have certain faith. Remember that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Call upon Allaah when you are certain of receiving a response, and remember that Allaah does not answer a du’aa’ that comes from a heedless heart.” Narrated by al-Tirmidhi (3479); classed as hasan by al-Shawkaani in Tuhfat al-Shaakireen (68) and by al-Albaani in al-Silsilah al-Saheehah (594).

Firstly:

With regard to the sickness that you have, if you bear it with patience and seek reward, Allaah will make your sickness an expiation for your sins.

It was narrated from Abu Sa’eed al-Khudri and Abu Hurayrah that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “No tiredness, exhaustion, worry, grief, distress or harm befalls a believer in this world, not even a thorn that pricks him, but Allaah expiates some of his sins thereby.” Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 5318 and Muslim, 2573.

Secondly:

We recommend to you some remedies and du’aa’s that are prescribed in sharee’ah. Remedies include the following:

1 – Honey. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Then, eat of all fruits, and follow the ways of your Lord made easy (for you).” There comes forth from their bellies, a drink of varying colour wherein is healing for men. Verily, in this is indeed a sign for people who think” [al-Nahl 16:69]

2 – Indian aloes wood (al-‘ood al-hindi).

It was narrated that Umm Qays bint Muhsin said: I heard the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) say: “You should use Indian aloes wood for in it are seven cures.” Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 5368; Muslim, 287.

3 – Cupping

It was narrated from Ibn ‘Abbaas that the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) was treated with cupping when he was in a state of ihraam on his head for a migraine that he was suffering. Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 5374; Muslim, 1202. Al-Bukhari included it in a chapter which he called: Chapter on cupping for migraines and headaches.

4 – Black seed

It was narrated from Abu Hurayrah that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “In the black seed is healing for every disease except death.” Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 5364; Muslim, 2215.

With regard to the du’aa’s which we recommend to you, we will mention some du’aa’s from the saheeh Sunnah:

1 – It was narrated from ‘Uthmaan ibn Abi’l-‘Aas that he complained to the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) about a pain in his body that he had suffered from the time he became Muslim. The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said to him: “Put your hand on the part of the body that hurts and say Bismillaah (in the name of Allaah) three times. And say seven times: A’oodhu Billaahi wa qudratihi min sharri ma ajid wa uhaadhir (I seek refuge in Allaah and His power from the evil of what I feel and worry about).” Narrated by Muslim, 2202.

2 – It was narrated from ‘Aa’ishah (may Allaah be pleased with her) that when the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) came to a sick person or a sick person was brought to him, he would say: “Adhhib al-ba’s Rabb an-naas, wa’shfi anta al-Shaafi, laa shifaa’a illa shifaa’uka shifaa’an laa yughaadir saqaman (Take away the pain, O Lord of mankind, and grant healing, for You are the Healer, and there is no healing but Your healing that leaves no trace of sickness).” Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 5351, Muslim, 2191.

You should also recite al-Faatihah and al-Mu’awwidhaat, and in the whole Qur’aan there is healing, as Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And We send down of the Qur’aan that which is a healing and a mercy to those who believe (in Islamic Monotheism and act on it), and it increases the Zaalimoon (polytheists and wrongdoers) nothing but loss” [al-Isra’ 17:82]

3 – It was narrated from Abu Sa’eed al-Khudri (may Allaah be pleased with him) that some of the companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) came to one of the Arab tribes. They asked them for hospitality but they refused to welcome them. Whilst they were like that, the chief of that tribe was stung. They said: ‘Do you have any remedy or someone who can recite ruqyah?’ They said: ‘You did not offer us hospitality, so we will not do anything until you give us something in return.’ Then they agreed upon a flock of sheep. Then he started to recite the Essence of the Qur’aan – i.e., Soorat al-Faatihah – and he collected his saliva and spat at him (at the site of the injury), and he recovered. The sheep were brought and they (the companions) said: We will not take them until we ask the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). So they asked him and he smiled and said: “How did you know that it is a ruqyah? Take them and give me a share of them.” Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 5404; Muslim, 2201.

4 – It was narrated from ‘Aa’ishah (may Allaah be pleased with her) that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) used to recite al-mu’aawidhaat and blow over himself during his final illness, and when he became too ill (to do that), I used to recite them and blow over him and wipe his hand on him for blessing.

Mu’ammar said: I asked al-Zuhri how he used to blow and he said: He used to blow on his hands then wipe his face with them. Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 5403; Muslim, 2192.

And Allaah knows best.