Praise be to Allah the Lord of the Worlds. May His peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Mohammad and upon all his family and companions.

 

On experimental basis, some recite Ruqyia using water and salt, herbs and the like. Is it true that Ruqyia is Ijtihadi? 

According to Sharia, it is lawful to make use of medical treatment since the Messenger of Allah (Peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Make use of medical treatment, for Allah has not made a disease without appointing a remedy for it, with the exception of one disease, namely old age." {Abu Dawud}.

 Organic diseases are treated by lawful medications prescribed by specialized doctors. This is supported by many narrations: Ibn 'Abbas narrated that the Messenger of Allah (Peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Indeed the best of what you treat is As-Sa'ut, Al-Ladud, cupping and laxatives.' And the best of what you use for Kuhl is Ithmid, for it clears the vision and grows the hair (eye-lashes)." And he said: " The Messenger of Allah (Peace and blessings be upon him) had a Kuhl holder with which he would apply Kuhl before sleeping three in each eye." {Related by Tirmithi}. In addition, the Prophet (Peace and blessings be upon him) said, "Al-Kam'a is like the Mann (sweet resin or gum) (in that it grows naturally without human care) and its water is a cure for the eye diseases." {Bukhari & Muslim}. Narrated Abu Huraira: I heard Allah's Messenger (Peace and blessings be upon him) saying, "There is healing in black cumin for all diseases except death." {Bukhari & Muslim}.

As established in the authentic narrations reported on the authority of the Prophet (Peace and blessings be upon him), a person could be cursed by an evil eye or fall a victim of magic. Abu Huraira told that God’s messenger said, “The influence of the evil eye is true,” and forbade tattooing. (It would seem from this tradition that tattooing was used as a protection agains; the evil eye.) {Transmitted by Bukhari}. For more information, kindly check {Fateh Al-Bari, V.10: 210-215} by Ibn Hajar. In addition, Narrated `Aisha: The Prophet (Peace and blessings be upon him) ordered me or somebody else to do Ruqya (if there was danger) from an evil eye."{Transmitted by Bukhari}.

Ruqyia is done to treat a person cursed by magic or smitten by an evil eye. Abu Sa'id reported that Gabriel came to Allah's Messenger (Peace and blessings be upon him) and said:

Muhammad, have you fallen ill? Thereupon he said: Yes. He (Gabriel) said: "In the name of Allah I exorcise you from everything and safeguard you from every evil that may harm you and from the eye of a jealous one. Allah would cure you and I invoke the name of Allah for you." {Transmitted by Muslim}.

The Ruqyah that is acceptable in the Sharee'ah is that which fulfills three conditions:

1 - The Ruqyah must be done with the Quran, with the Names and Attributes of Allah the Almighty, or with a supplication reported on the authority of the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.

2 - The Ruqyah must be composed of comprehensive Arabic words because it is not appropriate to use a language other than Arabic in supplication. It is only permissible for those who are not fluent in Arabic. Using foreign words in Ruqyah is unacceptable. 

3 - It must be known that Ruqyah has no effect on its own, but it is effective only by the will of Allaah The Almighty.

Once these three conditions are fulfilled, it becomes a valid Ruqyah. For more details, kindly check {Al-Fatawa Al-Fiqhiyah Al-Kubra, V.1:37}.

It is valid to do Ruqyia with words of remembrance or lawful words proven to be effective, even if this wasn`t indicated by evidence from the Quran or the Prophetic Sunnah. This is because some of the Prophet`s companions resorted to Ijtihad (Independent reasoning) in this matter and the Prophet (Peace and blessings be upon him) made no objection to that. Abu Sa'id Khudri reported that some persons amongst the Companions of Allah's Messenger (Peace be upon him) set out on a journey and they happened to pass by a tribe from the tribes of Arabia. They demanded hospitality from the members of that tribe, but they did not extend any hospitality to them. They said to them:

Is there any incantator amongst you, at the chief of the tribe has bgen stung by a scorpion? A person amongst us said: 'Yes. So he came to him and he practised incan- tation with the help of Sura al-Fatiha and the person became all right. He was given a flock of sheep (as recompense), but he refused to accept that, saying: I shall make a mention of it to Allah's Apostle (Peace and blessings be upon him), and if he approves of it. then I shall accept it. So we came to Allah's Apostle (Peace and blessings be upon him) and made a mention of that to him and he (that person) said: Allah's Messenger by Allah, I did not practice incantation but with the help of Sura al-Fatiha of the Holy Book. He (the Holy Prophet) smiled and said: How did you come to know that it can be used (as incantation)? - and then said: Take out of that and allocate a share for me along with your share." {Bukhari & Muslim}.

Ibn Hajar said this Hadith indicates that it is permissible to do Ruqyia with the Holy Quran, so it is also permissible with words of remembrance and the supplications reported on the authority of the Prophet (Peace and blessings be upon him) or those not reported on His authority, but don`t contradict Sharia. As to doing Ruqyia using other than the aforementioned, this was neither confirmed nor negated in this Hadith." {Fateh Al-Barie, v.4:457}.

The most beneficial and effective Ruqyah is that which is recited by the afflicted person himself or seek the help of the people of knowledge and righteousness. 

A Muslim must avoid going to magicians to recite Ruqyah for him/her because this falls within the general prohibition reflected in the Hadith where Abu Huraira reported God’s messenger as saying: “If anyone resorts to a kahin and believes in what he says, or has intercourse with his wife when she is menstruating, or has intercourse with his wife through her anus, he has nothing to do with what has been sent down to Muhammad.” {Transmitted by Abu Dawud}. And Allah the Almighty knows best.