At a glance
The story
The Prophet says to Umar ibn al-Khattab (may God be pleased with him): 'by Him in Whose hand is my soul, Satan has never met you walking a path but he took another path than yours' Muslim 2396.
The meaning
The hadith praises Umar's uprightness and steadfastness on truth; Satan flees from the path of one whom God has established in right, as Umar was among the people of justice and piety 1. It is read in the books of asceticism and etiquette as among the clearest texts of the shaytan fleeing from the believer who stands firm 1.
Notes
The report is from Sahih Muslim, and has parallels in the Sunan books on the shaytan fleeing the believer's path; this browser shows it with the rest of the reports of jinn and devils dealing with human beings 1.
Connections
People and things also explored
Muslim 2396 — Satan never meets you on a path but takes another· Muhammad· Umar ibn al-Khattab· The good dream is from God and the bad dream is from the shaytan· The shaytan lays Bilal down in the Mecca journey· The shaytan at the well of the traveller· Disheveled hair and beard like a shaytan· The fitna rises where the shaytan horn rises
Sources
- Sahih Muslim
Cite this page
islam.museum contributors. “The shaytan never meets Umar on a path but takes another”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/event/umar-devil-avoids-his-path/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-11-10.
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