There are certain verses in the Quran that were revealed by Allah to help guide us. They are so powerful that by simply reciting them you, your home and your family would be protected from many evils and from the powers of Shaitan.

This verse is ayah 255 from Surah Baqarah commonly referred to as Ayatul Kursi (meaning “The Throne”). It is likely the most well known ayat across the entire Ummah, estimation is that hundreds of million of people know it by heart. It would more difficult to find a believing Muslim who doesn’t know Ayatul Kursi than one who does. This is something you really can’t say about many other verses from the Quran. 

Abdullah Ibn Masud (RA), A Companion of the Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) said, “Allah the lofty did not create anything in the skies or on earth, in Jannat or Jahannam, Loftier than Ayatul Kursi.”

Subhanallah!

There are many benefits to learning and memorizing Ayatul Kursi and we’ll discuss them in detail in this article. By the end of this post you’ll a have deeper appreciation for this ayah and it’s beauty. If you haven’t committed this prayer to memory then inshallah by the end we’ll help you with that as well.

Ayatul Kursi Meaning

Here’s audio version of Ayatul Kursi with English meaning.

Transliteration:

Allahu laaa ilaaha illaa huwal haiyul qai-yoom 
laa taakhuzuhoo sinatunw wa laa nawm; lahoo maa fissamaawaati wa maa fil ard 
man zallazee yashfa’u indahooo illaa be iznih
ya’lamu maa baina aideehim wa maa khalfahum
wa laa yuheetoona beshai ‘immin ‘ilmihee illa be maa shaaaa
wasi’a kursiyyuhus samaa waati wal arda wa la ya’ooduho hifzuhumaa
wa huwal aliyyul ‘azeem

English Translation:

Allah – there is no deity except Him, the Ever-Living, the Sustainer of [all] existence.
Neither drowsiness overtakes Him nor sleep.
To Him belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth.
Who is it that can intercede with Him except by His permission?
He knows what is [presently] before them and what will be after them, and they encompass not a thing of His knowledge except for what He wills.
His Kursi extends over the heavens and the earth, and their preservation tires Him not.
And He is the Most High, the Most Great.

In Arabic

اللَّهُ لاَ إِلَهَ إِلاَّ هُوَ الْحَيُّ الْقَيُّومُ لاَ تَأْخُذُهُ سِنَةٌ وَلاَ نَوْمٌ لَهُ مَا فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَمَا فِي الأَرْضِ مَنْ ذَا الَّذِي يَشْفَعُ عِنْدَهُ إِلاَّ بِإِذْنِهِ يَعْلَمُ مَا بَيْنَ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَمَا خَلْفَهُمْ وَلاَ يُحِيطُونَ بِشَيْءٍ مِنْ عِلْمِهِ إِلاَّ بِمَا شَاءَ وَسِعَ كُرْسِيُّهُ السَّمَاواتِ وَالأَرْضَ وَلاَ يَئُودُهُ حِفْظُهُمَا وَهُوَ الْعَلِيُّ الْعَظِيمُ

Did You Know?

In these short verse, it lists over 15 Attributes of Allah (swt) and directly uses 7 of the 99 names. Do you think you can identify the 7 names?

In another verse of Suratul Baqarah, Allah says, “Remember Me and I will Remember you”. We all know to have everything we want in this life and hereafter that we must constantly remember Allah. Nothing can happen without his decree. 

This Verse is the ultimate form or praise a believer can give.

Attributes of Allah Mentioned

Here’s a breakdown of some of the attributes listed in this Ayah and mentions from other verses.

There is no deity worthy of worship except Allah SWT:
There is only one God and it is Him. This verse embodies the concept of Tawhid (oneness of Allah).

You only worship, besides Allah, idols, and you produce a falsehood. Indeed, those you worship besides Allah do not possess for you [the power of] provision. So, seek from Allah provision and worship Him and be grateful to Him. To Him you will be returned.” (Quran 29:17)

The Ever Living
And rely upon the Ever-Living who does not die and exalt [Allah] with His praise. And sufficient is He to be, with the sins of His servants, Acquainted (Quran 25:58)

The Sustainer of (All) Existence
Allah – there is no deity except Him, the Ever-Living, the Sustainer of existence. (Quran 3:2)

The Rightful Owner Of Heaven and Earth
Do you not know that to Allah belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth and [that] you have not besides Allah any protector or any helper? (Quran 2:107)

Neither drowsiness overtakes Him nor sleep
They have not appraised Allah with true appraisal. Indeed, Allah is Powerful and Exalted in Might. (Quran 22:74)

Owner Of The Throne (Kursi)
Indeed, it is He who originates [creation] and repeats. And He is the Forgiving, the Affectionate, Glorious Owner of the Throne, Effecter of what He intends. (Quran 85:12-16)

Benefits of Ayatul Kursi

Here is a video about the importance of Ayatul Kursi in a talk by Mufti Menk. 

Transcription of the Video Above:

My beloved brother and sisters in Islam
We have spoken about saving ourselves from Shaitan
and we have made mention of how important it is to protect ourselves
And Allah SWT has revealed verses in the quran that are so powerful that we would be protected from the devil
Allah swt has revealed the verse which a lot of us would know of by heart
It is verse number 255 of suratul Baqarah
That is known as ayatul kursi
Im sure many of us would know it by heart
(Recites beginning of Ayatul Kursi)
That is how it starts.
It mentions the greatness of Allah. The fact that he is in absolute control, he is the protector, he is the one who protects every single one.
He has knowledge of absolutely everything
So, this verse we are taught that if we were to repeat it we would be protected from shaitan.
There is a narration making mention Abu Hurairah (RA)
Where in he had actually caught the devil on one occasion and what happened is the devil then taught him something.
The third time this happened, which means we caught the third time, the devil says, I will teach you something that will protect you from myself and my progeny. Or the rest of the Shayatin
And so he taught him Ayatul Kursi. So Abu Hurairah released him and he went to Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) asking him. Or telling him what had happened and Muhammad (ﷺ) said
[Arabic]
He has told you the truth on this occasion. But remember he is a liar, he tells a lot of lies. So we ask Allah (swt) to grant us protection from shaitan.
My brother and sister read Ayatul kursi in the morning thrice. Read Ayatul kursi in the evening after salatul Magahrib thrice.
Try to read it once after every salat.
It is important because we would all like to be protected from the devil.
From the evil eye.
From Shaitan.
From so many other things that affect mankind we can not see. In fact to add to that.
The last two surahs of the Quran known as Falaq and Nas.
(Reading Of Surah Falaq)
I’m sure we would know the surah of by heart. If we don’t, we should do something about it.
Learn it’s meaning and read it and repeat it. At least thrice in the morning and thrice in the evening
The same applies to next surah (Reading of Surah Nas)
Seeking protection from Allah (SWT) or in Allah (SWT) from Shaitan
The devil
And from various other aspects of evil.
This is Allah (SWT) guiding us.
He tells us.
My brothers and sisters it’s important for us to realize the gift of Allah in order to save yourself from calamity from disaster.
From that which the devil whispers into your ears.
From the evil eye, from magic, from so many other superstitious items.
Read Ayatul Kursi.
It is definitely a gift of Allah (SWT).

Here’s list of benefits according to Hadith and Scholars.

  • One who recites ayatul kursi every morning will be in the protection, safety of Allah until the night.
  • It also said that “Whoever recites ayatul kursi immediately after each prescribed prayer (salah), there will be nothing stranding between him and his entering paradise except death.” The prophet (ﷺ) Sahih Al Jami, (NO. 6464).
  • Recitation of ayatul kursi on behalf of those who have passed away gives light (noor) in their graves.
  • Learn Ayatul Kursi so that you can say it before leaving your home.  Recite it once before leaving,  The Almighty will send down a group of Angels to protect you. Reciting it two times,  2 groups of angels are sent down. Say it a total of  3 times no angels will come down because Allah himself will take care of you.
  •  Saying this ayat to one’s wealth or to his children, they will be protected from the Shaitan
  • When one is alone in the house, recitation of Ayatul Kursi and asking Allah for help will make you remain calm and you will not fear.
  • Whoever recites the first four ayats of Surah Al Baqarah followed by Ayatul Kursi and then the last 3 ayats of Surah Baqarah, will not be inflicted with any kind of difficulty in his wealth or himself, Shaitaan will not come near him and he will not forget the Quran
    (According to Abu Masood Al Ansaari and narrated by Al-Bukhaari, 4723; Mulsim, 807)
  • Hadhrat Hassan bin Ali (ra) says: “A person once asked: “Oh Rasulallaah (ﷺ) what does that person receive who recites Ayatul Kursi after every Fard Salaat ? Nabi (ﷺ) said: “That person remains under the protection of Allah until the next Salaat.”
  • Hadhrat Abu Qatada (RA) narrates that Nabi (ﷺ) said.“Whoever reads Ayatul Kursi and the last Ayat of Surah Baqarah when in difficulty, then Allah listens to that plea.”

Tips For Memorization

There is no substitute for doing the work and practicing over and over again. Let me ask you a question, what is 6×6?

I’m sure you all answered 36 and took no longer than a second. You’re unconscious with ease spoke and gave you the answer, but just go back to when you were younger, it wasn’t always like that. There was a time where memorizing the multiplication table seemed intimidating. But just look at you now, years of practice and you don’t even think about it. Your practically a multiplication wizard, wired to shout the right answer of the times tables. That is up to 12. We weren’t required to practice our 13, 14 and 15 multiplication table.

Realize there’s no substitute for work and practice. It’s not that you’re dumb, or have a slower brain, or that you’re memory just isn’t that great. It’s all comes down to practice. Scroll up to the audio version from YouTube and just play the video repeatedly. Learning the ayah is simple, but it’s not easy. All you would need to do is just listen with focus and attention to Ayatul Kursi 100 times and you would have committed it to memory. There’s no hack.

There are some helpful tips that will the journey easier:

  1. Listen to the Audio provided above and follow along with the English transliteration (especially if English is your primary language). This way you can hear and associate with the words. This will make much easier. Also, by listening to recitation you’ll avoid making pronunciation errors.
  2. Before starting to memorize just listen. Play through the ayah and get familiar and comfortable.
  3. When you’re ready to start memorization process breakup the Ayat into many pieces. You would never eat your steak full, you break it up into tiny digestible pieces and eat it one bite at a time. Only once you’ve ate the current piece in your mouth then you’re ready to move on.
  4. Practice reciting the piece you’ve broken the ayah into with your eyes shut. D
  5. Once you got your tiny piece memorized throw in another piece and add them together and try reciting the whole two pieces without looking.
  6.  Practice, practice, practice. Recite before going to sleep, before leaving the home, entering you car, or going to the gym. Whenever you get the chance say what you have learned and in just few days you’ll have it ingrained in your head and will never forget.
  7. It will be difficult but really rewarding. Don’t quit and keep trying. This is the key to success to get anything you want in life. The benefits of this Ayat is well worth learning.

Let us continue to ask for Allah’s protection. Inshallah with his help we will be strong enough to overcome any obstacles in our life. Depression, anxiety, or financial troubles, we all could use a little help at times. Who better to ask then the creator.