The Undesirable Case of One’s Sleeping Alone and the Characteristics Prohibited because of its Frightfulness

“I once visited abu Ja‘far (a.s.), and he asked saying, ‘O Maymun, who sleeps near you in the night, is there a slave with you?’ I replied, ‘No, no one sleeps near me.’ He (the Imam) said, ‘Do not sleep alone; Satan becomes more daring against man when he finds him alone.’”

“Abu Ja‘far (a.s.), has stated this Hadith. ‘Unless Allah wills otherwise, something from Satan reaches very fast to one who defecates on a grave or urinates standing or urinates in stagnant water or walks in one shoe or drinks water standing, or stays in a house alone or sleeps overnight with his hands greasy with animal fat. The Messenger of Allah, O Allah (saww) once travelled in a group of people during an armed expedition and reached in the valley where Jinns lived. He (the Messenger of Allah) called his companions saying, ‘Every one of you must hold the hand of another one and no one must enter alone and no one must walk ahead.’ One man moved forward alone, he completed the area of the valley but he became epileptic. The Messenger of Allah was informed about it and he (the Messenger of Allah) pressed his finger against him and touched, then said, ‘In the name of Allah, O filthy (Jinn) move out, I am the Messenger of Allah.’ He then stood up.’”

“Abu Ja‘far (a.s.), has said that Satan is the strongest against man when he is alone without anything and I say that he must not sleep alone.’”

“I once asked abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), about the case of a man who sleeps in a house alone. He (the Imam) said, ‘I dislike it but if it is an emergency, then it is not harmful, however, he must speak of Allah a great deal and as much as he can, when he goes to sleep.’”

“Abu Ja‘far (a.s.), once asked Muhammad ibn Sulayman, ‘Where have you found lodging?’ He replied, ‘It is in so and so place.’ He (the Imam) asked, ‘Is there anyone else with you?’ he replied, ‘No, there is no one with me.’ He (the Imam) said, ‘Move from there, O Maymun and do not stay there alone; Satan is most daring against man when he is alone.’”

“One of the two Imam, (abu Ja‘far or abu ‘Abd Allah), ‘Alayhim al-Salam, has stated this Hadith. ‘You must not drink water when you are standing, must not urinate in stagnant water, must not spit on a grave, must not stay in a house alone, you must not walk in one shoe; Satan is the fastest against a servant when he is in one of such conditions.’ He (the Imam) said, ‘If one becomes affected in any one of such conditions, it will not leave him unless Allah, most Majestic, most Glorious, wants otherwise.’”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), has said, ‘Satan is the strongest against man when he is alone, thus one must not sleep alone or travel alone.’”

“Abu al-Hassan, Musa (a.s.), has said, ‘Three things are feared for causing insanity: defecating among the gravesites, walking in one shoe and a man’s sleeping alone.’ Such things are disliked because of such reasons but they are not unlawful.” (The last sentence apparently is the words of the compiler).