Is saying "Tabarak Allah" (Blessed be Allah) upon seeing something admirable legitimate, or is the correct phrase to say "Barak Allahu feek" (May Allah bless you)?
Ibn Battal mentioned that whoever sees something and it pleases him, and he says: "Blessed be Allah, the best of creators, and bless it," then it will not harm him with the evil eye. A group of commentators and exegetes, such as Al-Ayni, Al-Suyuti, Al-Qurtubi, Al-Shanqiti, Ibn Abidin, and Ibn Uthaymeen, followed him in this, and they hold that supplicating for blessings or saying: "Ma sha' Allah tabarak Allah" (What Allah wills, blessed be Allah) repels the evil eye.
The preponderant meaning of al-tabrik (seeking blessings) is to say: "Allahumma barik fihi" (O Allah, bless it), which means supplicating for blessings. This is what linguists such as Al-Jawhari and Al-Azhari mentioned. It is also mentioned in the story of Sahl ibn Hunayf: "If one of you sees something that pleases him in his brother, let him supplicate for him with blessings." This is the apparent meaning of the Hadith and the Sunnah.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
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