Prayer When Leaving One ’s Home

“Once I saw Abu ‘Abdillah (a.s.) moving his lips when he wanted to go out of his house while standing at the door. I said, ‘I saw you at the door moving your lips when coming out, did you say something?’ The Imam said, ‘Yes, when a man is leaving his home he should say, “Allah is greater than can be described, [three times], by the help of Allah I come out and by the help of Allah I enter and in Allah I place my trust, [three times]. O Lord, open to me this with goodness and finish it with goodness, protect me against the evil of every moving thing on earth that You keep in Your control. My Lord is on the right path,” he will continue to be under the protection of Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, until He brings him back to the place where he was before.’” Muhammad ibn Yahya has narrated from Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn ‘Isa from Ali ibn al-Hakam from abu Ayyub from abu Hamza has narrated a similar Hadith.

“Once I went to see Ali ibn al-Husayn (a.s.) and met him at the door when he was coming out saying, ‘In the name of Allah, I believe in Allah, and I place my trust in Allah,’ he then said, ‘O abu Hamza, when a servant (of Allah) comes out of his door a Satan stands on his way, when he says, “In the name of Allah,” two angels will say, ‘That is enough for you,’ when he says, “I believe in Allah,” they will say, ‘You have found guidance,’ when he says, “I place my trust in Allah,” they will say, ‘You are protected.’ Satan then moves away and say to others, ‘What can we do to one who is guided, sufficed and protected?’ The narrator has said that then the Imam said, ‘O Lord, my dignity is in Your hand today,’ then he said, ‘O abu Hamza, if you leave the people alone they will not leave you alone, if you reject them they will not reject you.’ I then asked, ‘What should I do then?’ The Imam said, ‘Give them of your honor just to receive help on the day when you will need help very badly.’”

“Once I asked permission to see abu Ja’far (a.s.) and he came out while his lips were moving. I then asked him about it and he said, ‘Did you, O al-Thumali, notice it?’ I said, ‘Yes, may Allah keep my soul in service for your cause, I did.’ The Imam said, ‘By Allah, I spoke the words that no one before had ever spoken, but that Allah had sufficed him in things important to him of worldly matters or of hereafter.’ I (the narrator) then said, ‘Please tell me about it.’ The Imam said, ‘Whoever when coming out of his house says, “In the name of Allah, enough for me is Allah, I place my trust in Allah. O Lord, I ask You to grant me all good in my affairs. I seek protection with You against the humiliation in this world and of torment in the next life,” Allah will suffice him in all that is important to him of worldly or of hereafter.’”

“Whoever says, when coming out of his door, ‘I seek protection with that by which the angels of Allah seek protection, against the evil of this new day which when it is its sunset it will not come back, I seek protection against the evil of my soul and the evil of the others, I seek protection against Satan and those who are against the friends of Allah, I seek protection against the evil of Jinn, human beings, the beast and the reptiles and against the evil of involvement in all of the unlawful matters and I place myself under the protection of Allah against all evil,’ Allah will forgive him, accept his repentance, suffice him in what is important to him. He will be safeguarded against evil and protected from misfortunes.”

“When leaving out of your house say, ‘In the name of Allah, I place my trust in Allah, and there are no means and no power without Allah. O Lord, I beg You for the best of that for which I have come out and I seek protection against the evil of that for which I have come out. O Lord, expand for me from Your generosity, complete for me Your bounties, apply me in Your obedience, grant me interested in what is with You and cause me to die in Your religion and the religion of Your Messenger (a.s.).’”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.) when coming out of his house would say, ‘O Lord, with Your help I have come out, to You I am submitted, in You I believe, and in You I place my trust. O Lord, make this day a blessing for me, grant me success, victory, support, cleanliness, guidance, its blessings, and divert away from me its evil, and the evil of that which is in it. In the name of Allah, with the help of Allah, Allah is greater than can be described; all praise belongs to Allah, Lord of the worlds. O Lord, I have come out, make my exit a blessing and benefit me thereby. ’ The narrator has said that on entering his house also he would say this.”

“My father when coming out of his house would say, ‘(I begin) in the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful. I have come out by means and power of Allah and not by my own means and power, but, O Lord, by Your power and means, in search for sustenance from You, so grant me sustenance in good health.’”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.) has said, ‘If one recites Chapter 112 of the Holy Quran when coming out of his house, ten times, he will remain in the protection of Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, and in His custody until he returns home.’”

“Abu al-Hassan (a.s.) has said, ‘When you like to travel, stand at the door of your house and recite Chapter one of the Holy Quran to your front, right and left and Chapter 1 12 of the Holy Quran to your front, right and left. Chapter 114 of the Holy Quran and Chapter 113 to your front, right and left, then say, “O Lord, protect me and protect that which is with me, grant me safety and that which is with me, help me reach my destination and that which is with me in a good arrival.’” “The Imam then asked, ‘Have you ever thought that a man is protected but not that which is with him, a man is safe but not that which is with him and a man arrives his destination but not that which is with him?”’

“Abu Ja’far (a.s.) when coming out of the house would say, ‘In the name of Allah, I have come out, in Allah I have place my trust, and there are no means and no power without Allah.’”

“O Sabbah, if any of you likes to go on a journey he should stand at the door of his house facing the direction of his journey and recite Chapter one of the Holy Quran to his front, right and left. Chapters 114 and 113 to his front, right and left. Chapter 112 to his front, right and left, and verse 255 of Chapter two to his front, right and left, then say, ‘O Lord, protect me and that which is with me, keep me safe and that which is with me, help me and that which is with me arrive my destination in a good and beautiful manner.’ Allah will grant him protection, safety, good and beautiful arrival to him and that which is with him. Have you ever thought that a man is protected, is safe, arrives well but not that which is with him?”’

“When you come out of your house for a journey or arrive home say, ‘In the name of Allah, I believe in Allah, I place my trust in Allah, as Allah wills. There are no means and no power without Allah. Devils are on his way but they move away; the angels strike their faces and say, “You have no way to him. He has spoken of the name of Allah, has belief in Him, placed his trust in Him and has said, ‘What Allah wills happens. There are no means and no power without Allah.’”