Explanation of the author's statement: "It is recommended to say 'In the name of Allah, I seek refuge in Allah from the evil male and female jinn' when entering the place of relief"

The Shaykh : The author says: "It is recommended to say, upon entering the place of relief, 'In the name of Allah, I seek refuge in Allah from the male and female evil spirits.'" The author stated that it is recommended, and the jurists (may Allah have mercy on them) differed on whether "recommended" (mustahabb) is synonymous with "sunnah," or whether the "recommended" is what is established by reasoning and the "sunnah" is what is established by evidence. Do you understand this concept? That is, if I say "it is recommended," is it synonymous with saying "it is sunnah," or do I only say "it is sunnah" for what is established by evidence, while for what is established by reasoning and ijtihad, I say "it is recommended"? There is a disagreement among the scholars of usul al-fiqh (principles of jurisprudence). Some said that for a matter not established by evidence, you should not say "it is sunnah," because saying "it is sunnah" means you are establishing it as a Sunnah, and you do not have evidence for it. However, for a matter established by reasoning, consideration, and ijtihad, you say "it is recommended," because the recommendation is not like the Sunnah in its attribution to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). But most of them say there is no difference between "it is recommended" and "it is sunnah." For this reason, some express it as "it is sunnah" and others as "it is recommended." The first opinion is undoubtedly closer to precision, in that you do not describe something not established by evidence as "sunnah." But we say "it is recommended for him to do that," we see this as desirable, and so on. As for what the author mentioned here, the saying: "In the name of Allah, I seek refuge in Allah from the male and female evil spirits", this is a Sunnah. As for the phrase "In the name of Allah," this was narrated by 'Ali ibn Abi Talib from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he said: . And as for "I seek refuge in Allah from the male and female evil spirits," this was established in the two Sahihs from the hadith of Anas that the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) used to say when entering the place of relief: . The benefit of the Basmalah (invocation of the name of Allah) is that we know it is a barrier, a barrier of the private parts from the jinn. The benefit of this seeking refuge is turning to Allah (Mighty and Majestic) for protection from the male and female evil spirits. "Khabith" (with a kasrah on the ba) is evil, and "khaba'ith" are evil souls, meaning souls possessing evil. This is more general than "khabith" (with a dammah on the ba) and "khaba'ith," because the narration "khabith" is the plural of "khabith" (with a dammah) and refers to male shayatin, and "khaba'ith" is the plural of "khabithah" (with a dammah) and refers to female shayatin. This is according to the narration with the dammah. As for the narration with the kasrah, "khabith" is what? It is evil, and "khaba'ith" are evil souls. Which is more general? The second is more general: "khabith" and "khaba'ith." For this reason, it is the most common narration among the scholars. Al-Khattabi said that it is the most common narration among the scholars: "khabith" and "khaba'ith." The wisdom of seeking refuge from the male and female evil spirits is that this place is impure, and the impure is the abode of the impure ones, the shayatin. Where do they descend? The place they love most is the impure place. Therefore, since it is the abode of the shayatin, it is appropriate that when a person wants to enter, he should say "I seek refuge in Allah from the male and female evil spirits" so that the "khabith" (evil) does not befall him, nor the "khaba'ith" (those evil souls). Yes.

The questioner : Shaykh, is recommendation a legal ruling? Recommendation?

The Shaykh : Yes, recommendation is a legal ruling, according to the opinion that there is no difference between it and the sunnah.

The questioner : Okay, reasoning.

The Shaykh : Is reasoning by analogy (qiyas) a reasoning, or is reasoning a ruling by analogy? Analogy is one of the sources of Islamic law, but it is not like what is established by an explicit text, because there is no room for discussion in an explicit text, but there is discussion in ijtihad.

The questioner : And is this possible even in acts of worship, or do we say it is not?

The Shaykh : No, in prescribed acts of worship, meaning I cannot prescribe an act of worship from its origin, but I may analogize one act of worship to another and see that there is no difference between it and this one. He says: "I seek refuge in Allah from the evil male and female jinn". But the author says: "It is recommended when entering the place of relief". Is "when entering" here before or after? Before, but when you want to enter. Okay, if I do not want to go to the place of relief, is there a place prepared? If so, I say that when I want to sit. It may be in the open; if he wants to sit, he says these words. Okay, and the place of relief is originally the empty place, and its suitability here is apparent, because this place does not bring two people together. And the author's saying: "that he should say", with his tongue, not with his heart. With his tongue, so a gesture is not sufficient, except for a mute person, for whom a gesture with the intention of the heart may be sufficient. And his saying "I seek refuge in Allah," what does "I seek refuge" mean? It means I take hold and I take shelter in Allah (Mighty and Majestic) from the evil male and female jinn.