Advice for one afflicted with a mental illness
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
This is a young man who sent this question, saying: “Your Eminence, I am a young man of twenty-eight years of age, suffering from a mental illness, which is constant thinking; anxiety, tension, fear of the future, insomnia, and inability to sleep. What do you advise from the Book and the Sunnah for a cure from this illness? May you be rewarded. Are there any books you would advise us to read?”
Answer:
I advise him to seek refuge in Allah with the perfect words of Allah from the evil of what He has created, and to repeat this, and to seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Shaytan, and to repeat that, and to cast aside doubts, and to ask his Lord for well-being from that, and to be hopeful of good. He should increase seeking refuge in Allah with the perfect words of Allah from the evil of what He has created, and seeking refuge in Allah from the accursed Shaytan; because this is from Shaytan. He should be content with this, and praise be to Allah, and he should fight the doubts and illusions that keep him down from the enemy of Allah, Shaytan. If he strives in that, and increases seeking refuge in Allah from the accursed Shaytan, and seeking refuge in Allah with the perfect words of Allah from the evil of what He has created, then he will be safe by the success of Allah.
When the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was told by some of the Companions, “O Messenger of Allah! One of us finds in his prayer what he would rather fall from the sky than speak of,” he said: Then he said: If it is ... related to Allah, let him say: And if it is related to other things, let him seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Shaytan, and stop, and praise be to Allah, and be safe. He should increase seeking refuge in Allah from Shaytan. Yes.
The presenter: May Allah reward you, Your Eminence! In our time, truly, many people suffer from these various illnesses. In your view, what are the causes of that?
Answer: The closest explanation—and Allah knows best—is the multitude of preoccupations that occupy the hearts, which cause whispers. Some people, due to their desire for religion and their eagerness for religion, and their lack of knowledge, have Shaytan coming to them from the direction of religion, and he increases the whispers upon them from the direction of religion. And some have whispers coming to them from the direction of the many problems in their home, or with people. The treatment for this is that he should seek refuge in Allah from Shaytan frequently, ask his Lord for well-being from that, and seek refuge in Allah with the perfect words of Allah from the evil of what He has created, and by the permission of Allah he will be safe from these matters. Yes.
The presenter: Is not being distant from dhikr and reading the Qur'an a cause, Your Eminence?
The Shaykh: Likewise, heedlessness is a cause of that, and increasing in reading the Qur'an and in the remembrance of Allah is a cause of success, and a cause of safety. If he increases in the remembrance of Allah and in reading the Qur'an, this is a cause of safety and well-being from Shaytan and his whispers.
The presenter: May Allah reward you with good.
This is a young man who sent this question, saying: “Your Eminence, I am a young man of twenty-eight years of age, suffering from a mental illness, which is constant thinking; anxiety, tension, fear of the future, insomnia, and inability to sleep. What do you advise from the Book and the Sunnah for a cure from this illness? May you be rewarded. Are there any books you would advise us to read?”
Answer:
I advise him to seek refuge in Allah with the perfect words of Allah from the evil of what He has created, and to repeat this, and to seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Shaytan, and to repeat that, and to cast aside doubts, and to ask his Lord for well-being from that, and to be hopeful of good. He should increase seeking refuge in Allah with the perfect words of Allah from the evil of what He has created, and seeking refuge in Allah from the accursed Shaytan; because this is from Shaytan. He should be content with this, and praise be to Allah, and he should fight the doubts and illusions that keep him down from the enemy of Allah, Shaytan. If he strives in that, and increases seeking refuge in Allah from the accursed Shaytan, and seeking refuge in Allah with the perfect words of Allah from the evil of what He has created, then he will be safe by the success of Allah.
When the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was told by some of the Companions, “O Messenger of Allah! One of us finds in his prayer what he would rather fall from the sky than speak of,” he said:
That is the whispering
تلك الوسوسةIf one of you finds that, let him say: I believe in Allah and His messengers
إذا وجد أحدكم ذلك؛ فليقل: آمنت بالله ورسلهI believe in Allah and His messengers, then let him seek refuge in Allah and let him stop
آمنت بالله ورسله، ثم ليستعذ بالله ولينتهThe presenter: May Allah reward you, Your Eminence! In our time, truly, many people suffer from these various illnesses. In your view, what are the causes of that?
Answer: The closest explanation—and Allah knows best—is the multitude of preoccupations that occupy the hearts, which cause whispers. Some people, due to their desire for religion and their eagerness for religion, and their lack of knowledge, have Shaytan coming to them from the direction of religion, and he increases the whispers upon them from the direction of religion. And some have whispers coming to them from the direction of the many problems in their home, or with people. The treatment for this is that he should seek refuge in Allah from Shaytan frequently, ask his Lord for well-being from that, and seek refuge in Allah with the perfect words of Allah from the evil of what He has created, and by the permission of Allah he will be safe from these matters. Yes.
The presenter: Is not being distant from dhikr and reading the Qur'an a cause, Your Eminence?
The Shaykh: Likewise, heedlessness is a cause of that, and increasing in reading the Qur'an and in the remembrance of Allah is a cause of success, and a cause of safety. If he increases in the remembrance of Allah and in reading the Qur'an, this is a cause of safety and well-being from Shaytan and his whispers.
The presenter: May Allah reward you with good.
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.