The Evidences on Why Ruqyah Must Be Done Consecutively

The Evidences on Why Ruqyah Must Be Done Consecutively and More Than Once

Ruqyah is not merely a type of treatment that relies on experience (tajribah), but it is also deeply rooted in evidences from the Quran, the Sunnah, and the practices of the companions of the Prophet. This article aims to answer the questions of some people who often ask, and are even somewhat surprised, when explained about the necessity of performing ruqyah more than once for several consecutive days. Of course, this is done while fully surrendering and believing that healing comes only from Allah, not from the raqi (the practitioner). This is because ruqyah is only a sharia-compliant effort (ikhtiar syar'i), just like medical treatment, which completely leaves the right of healing to Allah Ta’ala, without relying on any creation.

Why does ruqyah sometimes require treatment more than once or for several consecutive days? Aside from assessing the type and severity of the affliction, it is also done to follow the sunnah or the guidance of the Messenger of Allah. This practice of consecutive ruqyah was directly witnessed and approved by the Messenger of Allah. The Successor (tabi’in) Kharijah bin As-Shalt narrated a story from his paternal uncle (‘Alaqah bin Shihar):

عَنْ عَمِّهِ، أَنَّهُ مَرَّ بِقَوْمٍ فَأَتَوْهُ فَقَالُوا: "إِنَّكَ جِئْتَ مِنْ عِنْدِ هَذَا الرَّجُلِ بِخَيْرٍ, فَارْقِ لَنَا هَذَا الرَّجُلَ" فَأَتَوْهُ بِرَجُلٍ مَعْتُوهٍ فِي الْقُيُودِ, فَرَقَاهُ بِأُمِّ الْقُرْآنِ ثَلَاثَةَ أَيَّامٍ غُدْوَةً وَعَشِيَّةً, وَكُلَّمَا خَتَمَهَا جَمَعَ بُزَاقَهُ ثُمَّ تَفَلَ, فَكَأَنَّمَا أُنْشِطَ مِنْ عِقَالٍ فَأَعْطَوْهُ شَيْئًا, فَأَتَى النَّبِيَّ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فَذَكَرَهُ لَهُ, فَقَالَ النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: "كُلْ فَلَعَمْرِي لَمَنْ أَكَلَ بِرُقْيَةٍ بَاطِلٍ, لَقَدْ أَكَلْتَ بِرُقْيَةٍ حَقٍّ

“From his uncle (‘Alaqah bin Shihar), that he passed by a tribe. The people came to him and said, ‘You have come from this man (the Prophet) with good. So, perform ruqyah upon this man for us!’ They brought to him a mentally deranged man in shackles (iron chains). He then performed ruqyah upon him using Ummul Quran (Surah Al-Fatihah) for three days—morning and evening. Every time he finished reading it, he gathered his saliva and spat. The man then recovered as if he were released from a restraint. They subsequently gave him something (as a reward). He went to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and mentioned it to him. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) then said, ‘Eat (from it). By my life, whoever eats from a false ruqyah (has earned sinfully), but you have indeed eaten from a true ruqyah.’” (Narrated by Abu Dawud: 3420)

In another narration, the uncle of Kharijah bin As-Shalt (‘Alaqah bin As-Shalt) said:

فَرَقَيْتُهُ بِفَاتِحَةِ الْكِتَابِ فَبَرَأَ, فَأَعْطَوْنِي مِائَةَ شَاةٍ, فَأَتَيْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فَأَخْبَرْتُهُ, فَقَالَ: "هَلْ إِلَّا هَذَا؟" وَقَالَ مُسَدَّدٌ: فِي مَوْضِعٍ آخَرَ "هَلْ قُلْتَ غَيْرَ هَذَا؟" قُلْتُ: "لَا", قَالَ: "خُذْهَا فَلَعَمْرِي لَمَنْ أَكَلَ بِرُقْيَةِ بَاطِلٍ لَقَدْ أَكَلْتَ بِرُقْيَةِ حَقٍّ"

“I performed ruqyah upon him with Fatihatul Kitab (Surah Al-Fatihah), and he was cured. They gave me one hundred sheep. I went to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and informed him about it. He asked, ‘Was there anything else (recited)?’ Musaddad—one of the narrators—reported in another place, ‘Did you say anything other than this?’ I replied, ‘No.’ The Prophet said, ‘Take it. By my life, whoever eats from a false ruqyah (has earned sinfully), but you have indeed eaten from a true ruqyah.’” (Narrated by Abu Dawud: 3896)

The Status of the Hadith

This hadith was left uncommented upon by Abu Dawud in his Sunan, which indicates that the hadith is shalih (acceptable to be used as a textual proof/hujjah) according to him. (1) The hadith was graded authentic (shahih) by Ibn Hibban and Al-Hakim, and agreed upon by Ad-Dzahabi, An-Nawawi, As-Suyuthi, and Al-'Azizi (2). Its authenticity was also implied by Ibn Hazm and Ibn Rajab (3). It was graded good (hasan) by Al-'Aini and Ibn Hajar Al-Asqalani (4). Imam As-Syaukani stated:

وَسَكَتَ عَنْهُ أَبُو دَاوُد وَالْمُنْذِرِيُّ, وَرِجَالُ إسْنَادِهِ رِجَالُ الصَّحِيحِ إلَّا خَارِجَةَ الْمَذْكُورَ وَقَدْ وَثَّقَهُ ابْنُ حِبَّانَ وَأَخْرَجَهُ أَيْضًا ابْنُ حِبَّانَ وَالْحَاكِمُ وَصَحَّحَاهُ

“Abu Dawud and Al-Mundziri remained silent regarding it (as a form of authentication). The narrators of its chain of transmission are the narrators of the Sahih collections, except for the aforementioned Kharijah, but he was deemed trustworthy (tsiqah) by Ibn Hibban. Ibn Hibban and Al-Hakim also narrated this hadith while authenticating it.” (Nail Al-Authar, 5/41)

The evaluation from these classical scholars of hadith is sufficient evidence of the authenticity of this narration. This means that this hadith can be utilized as a valid textual proof and argument. Once its authenticity is established, this practice of ruqyah becomes a sunnah taqririyah (an approval-based sunnah), which is an action approved and supported by the Messenger of Allah.

The Lessons Contained in the Hadith

1. The hadith mentions that the man brought to Kharijah’s uncle (‘Alaqah bin Shihar) was a man who had "lost his mind," meaning insane. It is highly likely that this unconsciousness or mental loss he suffered was due to demonic possession, which required him to be shackled with iron chains. This indicates that the man was under ruqyah while being tied up or restrained, so that he would not harm himself or others. This falls into the category of severe spiritual afflictions. Restraining a ruqyah patient is recommended if the affliction is genuinely severe, based on this hadith.

2. The hadith notes that ‘Alaqah bin Shihar performed ruqyah upon the man for 3 days, morning and evening. Structurally, this implies it was done for 3 consecutive days. This serves as an evidence that the duration and consistency of ruqyah affect its efficacy in bringing about a cure. The longer and more intense the ruqyah sessions, the better the results will be. Of course, this applies after diagnosing that the affliction stems from metaphysical issues such as jinn possession, witchcraft (sihr), or the evil eye ('ayn).

3. This hadith acts as a proof for the recommendation of performing ruqyah for 3 days, specifically in the morning and evening. This means that if the affliction reaches the state of "losing one's mind," possession, or falls into a severe category, it is highly recommended to perform ruqyah for at least 3 consecutive days to achieve a total recovery through ruqyah.

4. This hadith serves as proof for the lawfulness of receiving payment or wages gained from the practice of ruqyah, as long as the ruqyah is performed in accordance with Islamic sharia laws. The Prophet referred to it as “a true ruqyah.” This term used by the Prophet hints at the blessings of the compensation received for ruqyah. In fact, wages from ruqyah are considered more indisputably lawful than the wages for teaching the Quran or cupping (hijama). This is because the lawfulness of wages for teaching the Quran is still debated among scholars, while the lawfulness of ruqyah wages is unanimously agreed upon by scholars. As for cupping wages, although permitted by the majority of scholars, it is deemed disliked (makruh) by some, whereas the lawfulness of ruqyah wages is universally accepted, to the point that the Prophet called it “a true ruqyah” and commanded him to eat from it. Furthermore, in another hadith, the Prophet even asked to be given a share of such ruqyah wages. This demonstrates the blessings of wages or gifts received due to ruqyah.

5. The hadith mentions that ‘Alaqah bin Shihar (Kharijah's uncle) was given 100 sheep by the tribe as an expression of gratitude. 100 sheep today is roughly equivalent to 80 million rupiahs (assuming the price of one sheep today is 800,000 rupiahs). This indicates that the cost of ruqyah during the time of the Prophet was considerably large, reaching tens of millions of rupiahs. It is almost equivalent to the cost of modern medical treatment today. People back then understood that expertise in performing ruqyah was no ordinary skill. It is a proficiency that requires knowledge, intuition, and experience. Not everyone in that era—nor even today—possesses the ability to perform ruqyah. Not only that, purely metaphysical afflictions cannot be handled by any medical treatment other than ruqyah. If a person is willing to spend tens of millions for medical healing, why should they be stingy when it comes to spending a few million for a cure from jinn possession, witchcraft, or the evil eye.

6. This hadith is an evidence for the permissibility of a ju'alah contract in medical treatment. Ju'alah is a reward-based contract or contest, such as offering a specific gift or wage if someone successfully accomplishes a task, such as the contract to give 100 sheep if the patient recovers completely through ruqyah. This applies whether there was a prior agreement or not. This is only valid for service contracts, not product contracts. This ju'alah contract is even clearly visible in the story of Abu Sa'id Al-Khudri and other companions of the Prophet who performed ruqyah on a tribal chief using Surah Al-Fatihah in exchange for 30 sheep if the tribal chief recovered successfully, as narrated by Imam Al-Bukhari in his Sahih (5). If 1 sheep costs roughly 2 million rupiahs, then that reward is equivalent to 60 million rupiahs today.

7. This hadith acts as proof for the permissibility of requesting ruqyah. When the tribe requested ruqyah from ‘Alaqah bin Shihar and he recounted this to the Prophet, the Prophet did not object to it at all. Instead, the Prophet told him to eat the earnings from his ruqyah. If requesting ruqyah were prohibited, the Prophet would have condemned the tribe's actions or at least explained that requesting ruqyah is not allowed. On the contrary, the Prophet did not forbid or condemn it in the slightest. This serves as a refutation against those groups who forbid asking for ruqyah.

8. This hadith serves as evidence for the need to remain vigilant and the necessity of questioning the recitations and practices used by a raqi if their background is unknown. This is because the Prophet questioned ‘Alaqah bin Shihar whether he recited anything else besides Surah Al-Fatihah when performing the ruqyah. During that era, most of the ruqyah used was not free from ignorance (jahiliyyah) and polytheism (shirk). The Prophet was concerned that the ruqyah might become a false ruqyah if it contained shirk or followed pre-Islamic incantations. This is identical to some modern-day ruqyah practices, which are also not free from elements of ignorance, polytheism, and sin. Therefore, this is why a raqi needs to explain to the Muslim community the difference between sharia-compliant ruqyah and ruqyah that contradicts sharia.

9. This hadith also acts as proof for the recommendation of performing ruqyah using Surah Al-Fatihah. It demonstrates the virtue or excellence of Surah Al-Fatihah as a means of healing. Naturally, this does not negate other verses of the Quran. The Quran as a whole is a syifa (healing), though certain chapters or verses hold specific virtues, particularly regarding ruqyah, such as Ayat Al-Kursi, the last two verses of Surah Al-Baqarah, Surah Al-Falaq, Surah An-Nas, and others.

10. This hadith is an evidence that the technicalities of ruqyah are a matter of ijtihadi (scholarly reasoning/judgment), not tauqifi (strictly restricted to explicit texts). This means ruqyah welcomes development and refinement. Since ruqyah is not a pure act of ritual worship like prayers (shalat), but rather a form of treatment that is empirical (tajribi) through Quranic verses and prayers. This is because ‘Alaqah bin Shihar performed ruqyah with Al-Fatihah out of his own initiative, not because he was previously taught by the Prophet that Al-Fatihah could be used for ruqyah. ‘Alaqah also used his judgment to perform it for 3 days, morning and evening. This shows that the technical execution of ruqyah, such as determining the timeframe and the choice of readings, is ijtihadi, while still adhering to the boundaries of sharia in its execution.

This article is expected to answer the questions of several people directed to us regarding the completion of ruqyah. Why ruqyah needs to be done consecutively or multiple times. Healing is the absolute prerogative right of Allah. Ruqyah is merely a sharia-compliant effort. The intensive 3-day consecutive ruqyah program that we have established is deeply rooted in the lessons of this hadith. The program is specifically designed only for severe or approaching-severe afflictions. Even then, it is only recommended if the person suffering from the affliction has been properly diagnosed through ruqyah beforehand. Wallahu a’lam (And Allah knows best).