Which Surah Is Recited for What – and How Many Times?

Within the Islamic tradition, each surah (chapter) of the Qur’an is believed to hold distinct spiritual benefits. Many classical scholars have shared various experiences and narrations indicating how specific surahs may be recited for particular needs or challenges. Below, you’ll find a summarized overview—derived from sources like Imam al-Ghazālī’s Iḥyā’ ‘Ulūm al-Dīn, Imam al-Nawawī’s al-Adhkār, and other classic Islamic references—on which surah to recite for certain purposes, along with suggested frequencies.

Important Note: The true efficacy of these practices lies in sincere intention, genuine faith, and maintaining a life aligned with Islamic principles. Ultimately, Allāh knows best.

1. The Spiritual Power of Qur’anic Recitations

• Intent and Sincerity: When reciting any surah, the key element is heartfelt devotion. This means turning to God (Allāh) with humility and trust, rather than reciting words merely for ritual’s sake.
• Importance of Action: While reciting surahs can bring spiritual relief or blessings, it is equally important to uphold ethical conduct, strive for lawful (halal) sustenance, and maintain regular worship (e.g., ṣalāh, fasting).

2. From Al-Fātiḥah to Sūrat al-Nūr

Al-Fātiḥah (1st Surah)

• Purpose: Increase in sustenance (rizq), love (muhabbah), and any legitimate need.
• How to Recite: Read Al-Fātiḥah for your specific request; then follow with a personal prayer (du‘ā’), sealing it with “Āmīn.” Many consider Al-Fātiḥah the essence of the entire Qur’an, used for both spiritual and physical healing.

Al-Baqarah (2nd Surah)

• Purpose: Protection from spiritual harm (evil influences, negative energies), and overall household blessing.
• How to Recite: Often recommended three times, or at least regularly. Some recite or post the final two verses (Āmāna’r-Rasūlu, 2:285–286) for protection. A popular tradition says that no evil will enter a home where Al-Baqarah is continually recited.

Āl ‘Imrān (3rd Surah)

• Purpose: Overcoming financial hardship, attaining wealth, or settling debts.
• How to Recite: Typically three times a day. Tradition holds that consistent recitation helps the reader avoid poverty.

Al-Mā’idah (5th Surah)

• Purpose: Relief from various types of hardship and dire necessity.
• How to Recite: Seven repetitions are suggested for pushing away serious difficulties or “tight spots.”

An-Nisā’ (4th Surah)

• Purpose: Resolving family or domestic problems (especially among relatives).
• How to Recite: Read with the intention of restoring harmony and warding off household disputes.

Al-An‘ām (6th Surah)

• Purpose: Fulfilling critical needs or significant requests (ḥājah).
• How to Recite: Four times.

Al-A‘rāf (7th Surah)

• Purpose: “Two-world happiness,” meaning well-being in both this life and the Hereafter.
• How to Recite: Often read for guidance, reflection on prophetic stories, and seeking blessings.

Al-Anfāl (8th Surah)

• Purpose: Liberation from imprisonment, protection from slander, and relief from calamities.
• How to Recite: Seven repetitions.

At-Tawbah (9th Surah)

• Purpose: Shield from all forms of evil.
• How to Recite: Seven times. It is also said that writing it and placing it in a home or business can ward off thieves.

Yūnus (10th Surah)

• Purpose: Gaining the upper hand over enemies; protection from harm.
• How to Recite: In some traditions, it is written (with permissible, clean ink) and used as an amulet or its water is consumed.

Hūd (11th Surah)

• Purpose: Seeking justice against oppressors.
• How to Recite: Three times.

Yūsuf (12th Surah)

• Purpose: Honor, dignity, and receiving favor from influential individuals (or authorities).
• How to Recite: Often read to inspire patience through adversity and foster moral integrity.

Ar-Ra‘d (13th Surah)

• Purpose: Confounding or overpowering one’s adversaries.

Ibrāhīm (14th Surah)

• Purpose: Cultivating beautiful character traits.
• How to Recite: Ten times.

Al-Ḥijr (15th Surah)

• Purpose: Prosperity in business endeavors.
• How to Recite: Three times.

An-Naḥl (16th Surah)

• Purpose: Dispelling turmoil and disruption.
• How to Recite: Ten times.

Al-Isrā’ (17th Surah)

• Purpose: Overcoming fear; remedy for speech difficulties.
• How to Recite: Some traditions recommend writing it with musk and saffron on a clean surface, dissolving it in water, and then drinking it.

Al-Kahf (18th Surah)

• Purpose: Protection from all kinds of misfortunes and tribulations.
• Notable Tradition: Reciting Sūrat al-Kahf on Fridays is widely practiced, referencing Hadiths that promise protection from the fitnah (trial) of the Dajjāl.

Maryam (19th Surah)

• Purpose: Safety from harm, adversity, or harmful environments.
• How to Recite: Forty-one times.

Ṭāhā (20th Surah)

• Purpose: Opening one’s destiny (kismet), especially related to marriage or overall success.
• How to Recite: Twenty-one times. Recited on Thursday or Friday nights for quick fulfillment of a wish, particularly for matrimonial matters.

Al-Anbiyā’ (21st Surah)

• Purpose: Ward off grief, sorrow, or distress.

Al-Ḥajj (22nd Surah)

• Purpose: Security from the terrors of Judgment Day (al-Maḥshar).

Al-Mu’minūn (23rd Surah)

• Purpose: Spiritual and moral reform, healing for specific illnesses (chest, spleen, abdominal).
• How to Recite: Seven times over water, then the water is consumed.

An-Nūr (24th Surah)

• Purpose: Relief from doubts, whispers (waswas), and strengthening faith (yāqīn).

3. From Al-Furqān to Al-Mulk

Al-Furqān (25th Surah)

• Purpose: Seeking victory or resolution in conflicts—overcoming enmity.

Al-Qaṣaṣ (28th Surah)

• Purpose: Protection from extreme hardship, captivity, or unjust subjugation.

Al-‘Ankabūt (29th Surah)

• Purpose: Helping those with impaired consciousness or lack of awareness.

Ar-Rūm (30th Surah)

• Purpose: Attaining success in battles or intense competition.

Luqmān (31st Surah)

• Purpose: Healing from internal ailments.
• How to Recite: Seven times.

As-Sajdah (32nd Surah)

• Purpose: Safeguarding one’s home from disasters.
• How to Recite: Sometimes written and placed in a container for household protection.

Ash-Shu‘arā’ (26th Surah)

• Purpose: Preserving oneself from various harms.

Al-Aḥzāb (33rd Surah)

• Purpose: Finding suitable opportunities (risk, marriage, business), and overall blessings.
• How to Recite: Seven times.

Yāsīn (36th Surah)

• Purpose: The “heart” of the Qur’an, recited for fulfilling significant needs, spiritual upliftment.
• How to Recite: Seventy times is referred to as “the supreme elixir” in some traditions.

Fāṭir (35th Surah)

• Purpose: Protection from afflictions caused by jinn or malevolent entities.

Aṣ-Ṣaffāt (37th Surah)

• Purpose: Seeking abundance (barakah) in livelihood; gaining respect in the community.

Ṣād (38th Surah)

• Purpose: Safety from harmful creatures (snakes, scorpions, etc.).

Al-Mu’min / Ghāfir (40th Surah)

• Purpose: Security from the injustices of powerful figures.
• How to Recite: Seven times.

Fuṣṣilat (41st Surah)

• Purpose: Protection from difficulties during travel.

Ash-Shūrā (42nd Surah)

• Purpose: Overcoming adversaries; resolving intense disputes.

4. From Az-Zukhruf to Adh-Dhāriyāt

Az-Zukhruf (43rd Surah)

• Purpose: Any legitimate desire or goal.
• How to Recite: Seven times.

Ad-Dukhān (44th Surah)

• Purpose: Fulfillment of wishes.
• How to Recite: Three times. Recited thrice daily for consistent results.

Al-Jāthiyah (45th Surah)

• Purpose: Protection from slander, false accusations, and backbiting.

Al-Aḥqāf (46th Surah)

• Purpose: Safeguarding from jinn, evil spirits, or dark sorcery.

Muḥammad (47th Surah)

• Purpose: Removing affliction, attracting good fortune.

Al-Fatḥ (48th Surah)

• Purpose: For resolving important matters, achieving personal goals (marriage, livelihood, etc.).
• How to Recite: Seven times. A well-known practice involves reading Sūrat al-Fatḥ 41 times coupled with 1001 Al-Fātiḥah for 3, 7, or 21 days.

Al-Ḥujurāt (49th Surah)

• Purpose: Cure for illnesses.
• How to Recite: Seven times.

Qāf (50th Surah)

• Purpose: On Thursday or Friday nights for success in the Hereafter.

Al-Qamar (54th Surah)

• Purpose: Protection from the tyranny of oppressors.
• How to Recite: Seventy times.

Adh-Dhāriyāt (51st Surah)

• Purpose: Easing high prices or economic strain.
• How to Recite: Seventy times.

5. From Aṭ-Ṭūr to Al-Inshiqāq

Aṭ-Ṭūr (52nd Surah)

• Purpose: Protection from unusual or sudden calamities.

An-Najm (53rd Surah)

• Purpose: Achieving personal objectives (career, family, etc.).
• How to Recite: Twenty-one times.

Ar-Raḥmān (55th Surah)

• Purpose: Bringing goodness and opportunities into one’s life.
• How to Recite: Seventy times.

Al-Wāqi‘ah (56th Surah)

• Purpose: Sustenance, expanded provision.
• How to Recite: Forty-one times. Widely cited as the “Surah of Wealth,” recommended nightly to avoid poverty.

Al-Ḥadīd (57th Surah)

• Purpose: Freedom from sorrow and depression; finding joy.
• How to Recite: Seventy-five times.

Al-Mujādilah (58th Surah)

• Purpose: Victory against adversaries or aggression.
• Practice: Recited thrice over a handful of dust and sprinkled toward an enemy as a symbolic gesture in some traditions.

Al-Ḥashr (59th Surah)

• Purpose: If read 40 times daily for 40 days, it’s said to grant one’s heartfelt wishes.

Al-Mumtaḥinah (60th Surah)

• Purpose: Relief from debt, protection from unlawful means.

Aṣ-Ṣaf (61st Surah)

• Purpose: Harmonious family life, righteous spouses.
• How to Recite: Seventy times.

Al-Jumu‘ah (62nd Surah)

• Purpose: Hoping to marry a particular individual; seeking a blessed union.
• How to Recite: Eighteen times.

Al-Munāfiqūn (63rd Surah)

• Purpose: Shield from lies, hypocrisy, and social harm.
• How to Recite: Seven times.

Aṭ-Ṭalāq (65th Surah)

• Purpose: Peaceful marital life; resolving disputes between spouses.
• How to Recite: Three times.

At-Taḥrīm (66th Surah)

• Purpose: Turning hostility into friendship, reconciliation of broken relationships.
• How to Recite: Twenty-one times.

Al-Mulk (67th Surah)

• Purpose: Protection from all types of disaster and misfortune.
• How to Recite: Forty-one times. This surah is also recommended nightly to guard against torment in the grave.

6. From Al-Qalam (Nūn) to Al-Inshiqāq

Al-Qalam (Nūn) (68th Surah)

• Purpose: Seeking help for personal needs, defense from harm, and resilience amid trials.
• How to Recite: Seventy times.

Al-Ḥāqqah (69th Surah)

• Purpose: Well-being in the Hereafter; spiritual reassurance.
• How to Recite: Seventy-one times.

Al-Ma‘ārij (70th Surah)

• Purpose: Triumph, success, and overcoming significant challenges.
• How to Recite: One hundred eighty times.

Nūḥ (71st Surah)

• Purpose: Vanquishing oppressors or formidable enemies.
• How to Recite: One thousand and one (1001) times.

Al-Jinn (72nd Surah)

• Purpose: Relief from epilepsy, fever, anxiety, and phobias.
• How to Recite: Seven times.

Al-Muddaththir (74th Surah)

• Purpose: Unexpected provisions, increases in honor or status.
• How to Recite: Forty times.

Al-Qiyāmah (75th Surah)

• Purpose: Ease in the reckoning of the Hereafter.
• How to Recite: Often recited on Thursday/Friday nights.

Al-Insān (76th Surah)

• Purpose: Purification from lower desires, approaching saintly character.
• How to Recite: Seventy times for deeper spiritual elevation.

Al-Mursalāt (77th Surah)

• Purpose: Protection from eye-related ailments.
• How to Recite: Seven times to safeguard one’s eyesight.

An-Naba’ (78th Surah)

• Purpose: Attaining blessings in both worldly life and the Hereafter.
• How to Recite: Typically after ‘Asr (afternoon) prayers.

An-Nāzi‘āt (79th Surah)

• Purpose: A blessed end (ḥusn al-khātimah); a good and peaceful departure from this world.
• How to Recite: Read nightly.

‘Abasa (80th Surah)

• Purpose: Deepen conviction (yaqīn) regarding the Day of Resurrection.
• How to Recite: Seven times.

At-Takwīr (81st Surah)

• Purpose: Resolving challenging matters or complex problems.

Al-Infiṭār (82nd Surah)

• Purpose: Fulfilling various needs and hopes.

Al-Muṭaffifīn (83rd Surah)

• Purpose: Calming restless or crying children; warding off childhood illnesses.

Al-Inshiqāq (84th Surah)

• Purpose: Easing childbirth.

7. From Al-Burūj to Al-Ḍuḥā

Al-Burūj (85th Surah)

• Purpose: Protection from the harm of envious or malicious people (fitnah, ḥasad).
• How to Recite: Ten times.

Aṭ-Ṭāriq (86th Surah)

• Purpose: Safety from jinn or unseen disturbances.
• How to Recite: Three times.

Al-A‘lā (87th Surah)

• Purpose: Safe travel and return.

Al-Ghāshiyah (88th Surah)

• Purpose: Relief from bodily pains (muscular or nerve issues).
• How to Recite: Seven times daily for three consecutive days.

Al-Fajr (89th Surah)

• Purpose: Defense against calamities.
• How to Recite: Seven times.

Al-Balad (90th Surah)

• Purpose: Ease in the final Judgment.
• How to Recite: Seven times.

Ash-Shams (91st Surah)

• Purpose: Lifelong safety from major disasters if recited 41 times at sunrise.

Al-Layl (92nd Surah)

• Purpose: Seeking wealth or financial ease.
• How to Recite: 108 times.

Aḍ-Ḍuḥā (93rd Surah)

• Purpose: Emotional relief, overcoming stress, welcoming blessings.
• How to Recite: Recited regularly for hope and upliftment.

Al-Inshirāḥ (94th Surah)

• Purpose: Easing tightness of the chest and financial constraints.
• How to Recite: Daily recitation recommended.

8. From At-Tīn to At-Takāthur

At-Tīn (95th Surah)

• Purpose: Refinement of character, striving toward spiritual perfection.
• How to Recite: Seven times a day.

Al-Qadr (97th Surah)

• Purpose: Removing obstacles, bestowing ease.
• How to Recite: Twenty-one times.

Az-Zilzāl (99th Surah)

• Purpose: Neutralizing adversaries, securing safety from major threats.
• How to Recite: Reportedly, reciting it 40,000 times can lead to an enemy’s defeat (in a spiritual sense).

Al-‘Ādiyāt (100th Surah)

• Purpose: Protection against the evil eye.
• How to Recite: Three times.

Al-Qāri‘ah (101st Surah)

• Purpose: Blessings in daily affairs, consistency in one’s tasks.
• How to Recite: One hundred times.

At-Takāthur (102nd Surah)

• Purpose: Shield from worldly and otherworldly misfortunes.
• How to Recite: Three times daily.

9. From Al-‘Asr to Al-Kāfirūn

Al-‘Aṣr (103rd Surah)

• Purpose: Recovery from internal (physical or psychological) illnesses.
• Practice: Written, dissolved in water, and drunk. Also read 70 times for enhanced effect.

Al-Humazah (104th Surah)

• Purpose: Liberation from slander and negative speech.
• How to Recite: Twenty-one times.

Al-Fīl (105th Surah)

• Purpose: Achieving major personal or communal goals.
• How to Recite: One thousand times between sunset and nightfall (Maghrib and ‘Ishā’).

Quraysh (106th Surah)

• Purpose: Gaining wealth, good character, and protection from harm.
• How to Recite: Seven times.

Al-Mā‘ūn (107th Surah)

• Purpose: Vision of the Prophet Muḥammad (peace be upon him) in dreams, divine grace.
• How to Recite: Forty-one times to attain such blessings.

Al-Kawthar (108th Surah)

• Purpose: Fulfilling crucial wishes, dreaming of the Prophet (peace be upon him).
• How to Recite: One thousand times.

Al-Kāfirūn (109th Surah)

• Purpose: Affirming sincerity of faith, especially recommended during morning prayers.
• Practice: Reading Al-Kāfirūn in one rak‘ah and Al-Ikhlāṣ in the other fosters a heightened spiritual state.

10. From An-Naṣr to Al-Ikhlāṣ, Al-Falaq, and An-Nās

An-Naṣr (110th Surah)

• Purpose: Realizing major aspirations or goals.
• How to Recite: One thousand times.

Al-Masad / TabbaT (111th Surah)

• Purpose: Neutralizing harmful enemies.
• How to Recite: One thousand times.

Al-Ikhlāṣ (112th Surah)

• Purpose: Perfecting one’s faith, avoiding sin, attracting blessings.
• How to Recite:
  • One hundred times daily for significant spiritual advancement.
  • Ten times after Fajr for daily sin protection.
  • Repeated 10,000 times for major urgent requests.
  • A well-known practice for increasing rizq: 66 times Al-Ikhlāṣ, 134 “Yā Ṣamad,” 101 “Yā Wāḥid.”

Al-Falaq (113th Surah) & An-Nās (114th Surah)

• Purpose: Breaking spells, dispelling evil influences, warding off envy, fear, and anxiety.
• How to Recite:
  • Seven times for general protection.
  • Some tie 100 knots on a string, reciting each surah per knot, then blow on it to symbolically invalidate sorcery.
  • Reciting each thrice morning and evening wards off daily harm.

References

1. Imam al-Ghazālī, Iḥyā’ ‘Ulūm al-Dīn
2. Imam al-Nawawī, al-Adhkār
3. Traditional Supplication Compilations (e.g., “Büyük Dualar Kitabı”)
4. Classic Exegesis and Hadith Collections (commentaries by al-Ṭabarī, al-Qurṭubī, and others)

Key Reminders

• Faith and Etiquette: Surah recitations are most beneficial when coupled with sincere faith, humility, and ethical conduct.
• Comprehensive Devotion: Maintaining obligatory prayers, giving charity, avoiding sinful behaviors, and living a morally upright life amplify the spiritual fruits of Qur’anic recitations.
• Trust in God: The outcome always rests with Allāh. One’s efforts and recitations are ways to seek closeness to Him and to request His help.

May these insights serve as a spiritual guide, offering comfort and hope through the words of the Qur’an. Ultimately, all power and knowledge belong to Allāh (God), and He alone grants what is best for His servants.

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