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Do devils enter mosques?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

The Sunnah confirms that devils enter mosques and disturb prayers. The devil enters through gaps in the rows, as narrated in the hadith of Anas ibn Malik: "(Straighten your rows... Indeed, I see the devil entering through the gaps in the rows)." The devil may also distract the worshiper until he becomes confused about his prayer and recitation, as happened to Uthman ibn Abi al-As with a devil named "Khanzab," whom the Prophet, peace be upon him, commanded him to seek refuge from and spit three times to his left. The devil may appear during prayer to divert the worshiper from it, as in the hadith of Abu Darda. Moreover, the devil turns away and breaks wind upon hearing the Adhan, then returns after it finishes to whisper to the worshiper and remind him of what distracts him from his prayer, as mentioned in the hadith of Abu Hurairah.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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