Dua for Healing: 5 Authentic Duas for the Sick and for Pain

When someone we love falls ill, or pain keeps us awake at night, the first thing many of us look for is a dua for healing. The Prophet ﷺ left us more than one, and each fits a different moment: sitting with a sick person, a pain in your own body, a short visit, a word of comfort. Here are five authentic duas, with the Arabic, the meaning and when to say them.

1. Dua for healing the sick

‘Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) reported that whenever the Prophet ﷺ visited a sick person, or a sick person was brought to him, he would say:

In another narration, ‘Aishah describes the Prophet ﷺ passing his right hand over the place of the illness while saying a very similar dua, beginning with “Allahumma”:

The dua puts healing where it belongs. As the HadeethEnc explanation notes, Allah alone is the true Healer; doctors and medicine are means that help only by His permission. Asking for a cure that “leaves no disease behind” asks for full recovery, not just a pause.

Try this: next time you sit with someone who is ill, say this dua for them, and if it is appropriate, rest your right hand on them as you say it.

2. Dua for pain in the body

‘Uthman ibn Abi al-‘As (may Allah be pleased with him) told the Prophet ﷺ about a pain he had felt in his body since he became Muslim. The Prophet ﷺ said:

This is the dua for pain that many people search for as the “7 times” dua. The HadeethEnc explanation points out that it covers both the pain you feel now and the fear that it will spread or return, and that telling someone about your pain is not a lack of patience. It also says to keep the exact wording and the numbers the Prophet ﷺ gave.

Try this: place your hand on the spot, say “Bismillah” three times, then “A’udhu billahi wa qudratihi min sharri ma ajidu wa uhadhir” seven times.

3. Seven times when you visit the sick

Ibn ‘Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet ﷺ said:

The words to say are: As’alullahal-‘Azim, Rabbal-‘Arshil-‘Azim, an yashfiyak. The same hadith is in Jami’ at-Tirmidhi 2083 (Sahih, Darussalam). The HadeethEnc entry grades it authentic. Note the condition in the hadith: “whose time has not come”. When Allah has written that an illness is the last one, no dua changes that, and the visit and the dua are still a reward for the one who made them.

Try this: learn this one by heart before your next hospital visit; it is short enough to say quietly seven times at the bedside.

4. What to say to a sick person

Ibn ‘Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that whenever the Prophet ﷺ visited a sick person, he would say:

In the same report, the Prophet ﷺ said this to a sick bedouin, who answered that it was rather a fever boiling in an old man that would take him to the grave. The Prophet ﷺ replied, “Then let it be so.” The HadeethEnc explanation says the words reassure the patient that the illness can wipe away sins and raise their rank, if Allah wills. The bedouin’s answer is a reminder to receive comfort with hope, not despair.

Try this: open your next visit or message to a sick friend with “La ba’s, tahurun in sha’ Allah” before anything else.

5. The ruqyah Jibril made for the Prophet ﷺ

Abu Sa’id al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that Jibril came to the Prophet ﷺ and asked, “O Muhammad, are you ill?” He said, “Yes.” Jibril said:

The HadeethEnc explanation draws two lessons: it is fine to mention that you are ill without complaining, and ruqyah is valid when its words are permissible and understood, with the cure coming from Allah alone.

Try this: say this over a sick family member, changing nothing in the words.

Bringing it together

Every one of these duas begins and ends with Allah. Prophet Ibrahim said it in the Quran:

And for the days when healing is slow, the Prophet ﷺ gave this hope, narrated by Abu Sa’id al-Khudri and Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with them):

Reflection: these duas do not replace the doctor, and they were never meant to. They change how we carry an illness: we take the medicine, we ask the One who makes it work, and we know that even the pain itself is not wasted.

Questions people ask

Key lessons

• Allah alone is the Healer; doctors and medicine are means.
• For pain, put your hand on it: Bismillah three times, then the refuge words seven times.
• When you visit the sick, ask Allah the Mighty seven times to cure them.
• Comfort the sick with “La ba’s, tahurun in sha’ Allah”.
• Illness, even a thorn’s prick, wipes away sins for the patient believer.

Part of our Dua series: see all our dua articles in one place.

May Allah grant complete healing to everyone reading this who is unwell, and to those they are caring for.

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