Do Angels Refrain from Entering Certain Houses?

Answered by Shaykh Anas al-Musa

Question

Is it true that angels refrain from entering certain houses?

Answer

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

All praise is due to Allah, Lord of all worlds, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger sent as a mercy to the worlds, our Master and Prophet, Muhammad, and his Family and Companions.

Angels’ Duties and Presence

Yes, certain angels can indeed refrain from entering some houses for various reasons. However, this does not apply to all angels, but specifically to the angels of mercy and the angels who bring revelation.

The angels assigned to protect a person and record their deeds do not leave them in any circumstance, as they are tasked by Allah (Most High) with recording a person’s good and bad deeds. These angels do not disobey Allah in what He commands them and do what they are ordered. Allah (Most High) says:

“As the two recording-angels—(one) sitting to the right, and (the other to) the left—note (everything), not a word does a person utter without having a (vigilant) observer ready (to write it down).” [Quran, 50:17-18]

“Observer” is an angel who observes and records the speech and actions of a person. “Ready” means he is present and ready to write down good and evil deeds. The angel on the right writes down good deeds and is the leader over the one who writes down sins, while the angel on the left writes down bad deeds. [Zuhayli, al-Tafsir al-Munir]

Allah (Most High) also says:

“While you are certainly observed by vigilant, honorable angels, recording (everything). They know whatever you do.” [Quran, 82:10-12]

Scriptural Evidence and Hadiths on Angels Refraining

The Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) explained the reason why angels refrain from entering a Muslim’s house. Narrated by Abu Talha (Allah be pleased with him), he said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) say:

“The angels do not enter a house in which there is a dog or images (statues).” [Bukhari]

This refers to statues that have a soul.

Abdullah Ibn ‘Umar reported that the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) said:

“Jibril (Gabriel) promised to visit the Prophet but delayed, which distressed the Prophet. Then Jibril said: ‘We do not enter a house in which there are images or a dog.’” [Bukhari; Muslim]

Ibn Battal commented: The angels mentioned in this hadith are the angels of revelation, such as Jibril and Israfil. As for the guardian angels, they enter every house and do not leave a person under any circumstance. [Ibn Battal, Sharh Bukhari]

Reasons for Angels Avoiding Certain Houses

The reason for the angels’ refusal to enter a house with images is that images and statues are a grievous sin and mimic the creation of Allah (Most High). Some of these images may also resemble idols worshiped instead of Allah.

The reason for their refusal to enter a house with a dog is due to the dog’s frequent consumption of impurities and because some dogs are called devils, as mentioned in the hadith. Angels are opposed to devils, and they also dislike the foul smell of dogs.

Additionally, keeping dogs is prohibited, and thus, the owner is punished by being deprived of the angels entering his house, their prayers for him, their seeking forgiveness for him, blessings upon him and his house, and protection from harm by devils.

Imam Nawawi said: The angels who do not enter a house with a dog or an image are those who bring mercy and blessings and seek forgiveness. The guardian angels and the angels of death enter every house and do not leave humans in any state, as they are commanded to record their deeds and write them down. [Nawawi, Sharh Muslim]

Scholarly Views on Images and Dogs

• The images that cause angels to refrain from entering a house are those of beings with souls that are not degraded. Images of trees or natural scenery do not cause angels to refrain. Some scholars say that if an image of a human or animal is degraded, such as on a rug, there is no issue with it.
• Some scholars have specified that angels do not enter a place with a dog, except for hunting dogs, shepherd dogs, and farming dogs, due to the permission granted by the Sacred Law.
• Others say that the prohibition is general for all dogs and all images and that angels refrain from all of them due to the generality of the hadiths. The puppy that was in the house of the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) under the bed had a clear excuse as he was unaware of its presence, yet Jibril still refrained from entering and cited the presence of the puppy as the reason. If there was an excuse for the presence of the image or dog, it would not prevent Jibril from entering. [Mubarakpuri, Tuhfat al-Ahwadhi Sharh Sunan al-Tirmidhi]
• Busar (one of the narrators of Abu Talha’s hadith) said: Zayd Ibn Khalid fell ill, and we visited him and found a curtain with images in his house. I asked Ubaydullah Khawlani, “Didn’t he narrate to us about images?” He replied: “He said: Except for images on a cloth, didn’t you hear that?” I said: “No.” He said: “Yes, he mentioned that.” Meaning if the images are on a cloth, there is no issue. However, some scholars say that all images of beings with souls are prohibited, whether on cloth or not. Some even prohibited praying in clothes with images of beings with souls, stating that while the prayer is valid, it is sinful.

Summary

The matter of angels refraining from entering a house is a matter of the unseen that we cannot see with our eyes, but we must believe in it because it is reported by the truthful one (Allah bless him and give him peace).

May Allah bless the Prophet Muhammad and give him peace, and his Family and Companions.

And Allah knows best.
[Shaykh] Anas al-Musa

Shaykh Anas al-Musa, born in Hama, Syria, in 1974, is an erudite scholar of notable repute. He graduated from the Engineering Institute in Damascus, where he specialized in General Construction, and Al-Azhar University, Faculty of Usul al-Din, where he specialized in Hadith.

He studied under prominent scholars in Damascus, including Shaykh Abdul Rahman al-Shaghouri and Shaykh Adib al-Kallas, among others. Shaykh Anas has memorized the Quran and is proficient in the ten Mutawatir recitations, having studied under Shaykh Bakri al-Tarabishi and Shaykh Mowfaq ‘Ayun. He also graduated from the Iraqi Hadith School.

He has taught numerous Islamic subjects at Shari‘a institutes in Syria and Turkey. Shaykh Anas has served as an Imam and preacher for over 15 years and is a teacher of the Quran in its various readings and narrations.

Currently, he works as a teacher at SeekersGuidance and is responsible for academic guidance there. He has completed his Master’s degree in Hadith and is now pursuing his Ph.D. in the same field. Shaykh Anas al-Musa is married and resides in Istanbul.