Sleep, the Quran notes, is one of the signs of Allah:
وَهُوَ ٱلَّذِى يَتَوَفَّىٰكُم بِٱلَّيْلِ وَيَعْلَمُ مَا جَرَحْتُم بِٱلنَّهَارِ
He it is Who gathereth you at night and knoweth that which ye commit by day.
Quran, Al-Anam 6:60 (partial)
In Islamic understanding, sleep is a small death, and waking is a small resurrection. The bedtime sunnah carries that weight: thanks for the day, refuge for the night, trust if it is the final sleep.
The Short Bedtime Du'a
بِاسْمِكَ اللَّهُمَّ أَمُوتُ وَأَحْيَا
Bismika'llāhumma amūtu wa aḥyā
In Your name, O Allah, I die and I live.
Sahih Bukhari 6324, recited as the Prophet (peace be upon him) lay down to sleep.
When waking, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: 'Praise be to Allah, who gave us life after He had caused us to die, and to Him is the resurrection.' (Sahih Bukhari 6324).
The Three Protective Surahs
Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) reports that every night, the Prophet (peace be upon him) would cup his hands together, recite Surah Al-Ikhlas, Surah Al-Falaq, and Surah An-Nas, and then blow gently into them and wipe his hands over his body, beginning with the head and face. He repeated this three times. (Sahih Bukhari 5017).
Surah Al-Ikhlas (Sincerity)
قُلْ هُوَ ٱللَّهُ أَحَدٌ ﴿١﴾ ٱللَّهُ ٱلصَّمَدُ ﴿٢﴾ لَمْ يَلِدْ وَلَمْ يُولَدْ ﴿٣﴾ وَلَمْ يَكُن لَّهُۥ كُفُوًا أَحَدٌۢ ﴿٤﴾
Say: He is Allah, the One. Allah, the eternally Besought of all. He begetteth not nor was begotten. And there is none comparable unto Him.
Quran, Al-Ikhlas 112:1-4
Surah Al-Falaq (The Daybreak)
قُلْ أَعُوذُ بِرَبِّ ٱلْفَلَقِ ﴿١﴾ مِن شَرِّ مَا خَلَقَ ﴿٢﴾ وَمِن شَرِّ غَاسِقٍ إِذَا وَقَبَ ﴿٣﴾ وَمِن شَرِّ ٱلنَّفَّٰثَٰتِ فِى ٱلْعُقَدِ ﴿٤﴾ وَمِن شَرِّ حَاسِدٍ إِذَا حَسَدَ ﴿٥﴾
Say: I seek refuge in the Lord of the Daybreak. From the evil of that which He created. From the evil of the darkness when it is intense. And from the evil of malignant witchcraft. And from the evil of the envier when he envieth.
Quran, Al-Falaq 113:1-5
Surah An-Nas (Mankind)
قُلْ أَعُوذُ بِرَبِّ ٱلنَّاسِ ﴿١﴾ مَلِكِ ٱلنَّاسِ ﴿٢﴾ إِلَٰهِ ٱلنَّاسِ ﴿٣﴾ مِن شَرِّ ٱلْوَسْوَاسِ ٱلْخَنَّاسِ ﴿٤﴾ ٱلَّذِى يُوَسْوِسُ فِى صُدُورِ ٱلنَّاسِ ﴿٥﴾ مِنَ ٱلْجِنَّةِ وَٱلنَّاسِ ﴿٦﴾
Say: I seek refuge in the Lord of mankind. The King of mankind. The God of mankind. From the evil of the sneaking whisperer. Who whispereth in the hearts of mankind. Of the jinn and of mankind.
Quran, An-Nas 114:1-6
Ayat al-Kursi: A House Protected Through the Night
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "Whoever recites Ayat al-Kursi when he goes to bed, Allah appoints a guardian over him, and no devil approaches him until morning." (Sahih Bukhari 2311). The verse is the throne verse of Surah Al-Baqarah:
ٱللَّهُ لَآ إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ٱلْحَىُّ ٱلْقَيُّومُ ۚ لَا تَأْخُذُهُۥ سِنَةٌ وَلَا نَوْمٌ ۚ لَّهُۥ مَا فِى ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَمَا فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ ۗ مَن ذَا ٱلَّذِى يَشْفَعُ عِندَهُۥٓ إِلَّا بِإِذْنِهِۦ ۚ يَعْلَمُ مَا بَيْنَ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَمَا خَلْفَهُمْ ۖ وَلَا يُحِيطُونَ بِشَىْءٍ مِّنْ عِلْمِهِۦٓ إِلَّا بِمَا شَآءَ ۚ وَسِعَ كُرْسِيُّهُ ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضَ ۖ وَلَا يَـُٔودُهُۥ حِفْظُهُمَا ۚ وَهُوَ ٱلْعَلِىُّ ٱلْعَظِيمُ
Allah! There is no God save Him, the Alive, the Eternal. Neither slumber nor sleep overtaketh Him. Unto Him belongeth whatsoever is in the heavens and whatsoever is in the earth. Who is he that intercedeth with Him save by His leave? He knoweth that which is in front of them and that which is behind them, while they encompass nothing of His knowledge save what He will. His throne includeth the heavens and the earth, and He is never weary of preserving them. He is the Sublime, the Tremendous.
Quran, Al-Baqarah 2:255
A Trust Du'a
The Prophet (peace be upon him) taught Al-Bara ibn Azib (may Allah be pleased with him) that whoever says this and then dies in the night, dies upon the fitra (natural state of belief):
اللَّهُمَّ أَسْلَمْتُ نَفْسِى إِلَيْكَ، وَوَجَّهْتُ وَجْهِى إِلَيْكَ، وَفَوَّضْتُ أَمْرِى إِلَيْكَ، وَأَلْجَأْتُ ظَهْرِى إِلَيْكَ، رَغْبَةً وَرَهْبَةً إِلَيْكَ، لَا مَلْجَأَ وَلَا مَنْجَىٰ مِنْكَ إِلَّا إِلَيْكَ، آمَنْتُ بِكِتَابِكَ الَّذِى أَنْزَلْتَ، وَنَبِيِّكَ الَّذِى أَرْسَلْتَ
Allāhumma aslamtu nafsī ilayk, wa wajjahtu wajhī ilayk, wa fawwaḍtu amrī ilayk, wa aljaʾtu ẓahrī ilayk, raghbatan wa rahbatan ilayk, lā maljaʾa wa lā manjā minka illā ilayk, āmantu bi-kitābika'lladhī anzalt, wa nabiyyika'lladhī arsalt
O Allah, I submit myself to You, I turn my face to You, I entrust my affair to You, I commit my back to Your protection, in hope of You and in awe of You. There is no refuge or escape from You except to You. I believe in Your Book which You revealed, and Your Prophet whom You sent.
Sahih Bukhari 247.
You do not have to recite all of these every night. Even one small phrase before sleep, said honestly, closes the day in a way that nothing else can.
Tap-to-count interface for the bedtime collection.
Bedtime, waking, nightmares, and insomnia.