Is it true that every human has a jinn companion (qareen), and how can one control it to be good?

It is established in Islamic law that every human being has a companion from among the devils who seeks to lead him astray. A Muslim cannot control this companion or convert him to Islam.

Ahmad and Muslim narrated from ʿAbdullāh ibn Masʿūd (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: "There is none among you except that a companion from the jinn has been assigned to him." When asked, "Even you, O Messenger of Allah?" he replied: "Even me — except that Allah helped me against him, so he submitted, and now he only commands me with good."

The Prophet’s statement “so he submitted” has been narrated with two different vowelings:

With a ḍammah (raised ending), it means: “I am safe from his evil.”

With a fatḥah (open ending), it means: “He surrendered and yielded.” This second meaning is the more correct one — that the Prophet’s companion devil submitted and became subdued, not that he embraced Islam.

A Muslim must resist this devil by seeking refuge in Allah from his evil whispers, which may appear in the form of forgetfulness, false promises, vain hopes, or terrifying thoughts cast into the heart.