Salaam ‘Alaykum.Respected Mashaaykh, what should a muwaswis (person suffering from waswasah (devilish whispering)) do if whenever he tries to do an act of worship sincerely for Allaah, the Shaytaan comes to him and says that the ‘ibaadah (act of worship) is for the person/people or that the person/people are watching him or the Shaytaan always reminds him about the person/people during acts of worship, even if he is alone? This happens to me all the time and I try to repel it and say it is for Allaah, but the Shaytaan keeps coming in my way and reminds me about the people, so I hesitate to even start the act of worship (e.g. wudoo’, salaah, washing hands and nose thrice upon waking up from deep sleep, etc.) and I even restart ‘ibaadaat (acts of worship) due to this and therefore miss the congregational prayer(s). Does this change the fact that my ‘ibaadaat (acts of worship) are sincerely for Allaah and does this have an affect on the validity of my ‘ibaadaat?Even when I try to ignore it and continue with the ‘ibaadah, I get distracted with these whisperings, so I restart over and over again. Please advise me, may Allaah reward you with good.

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.

Our advice to you and to other worshippers who are afflicted with this disease is that it is necessary to ignore these whispers, and not pay any attention to them. You should know that there is no other treatment for these whispers but this, because giving in to whispers leads to a great evil.

Therefore, you should start your act of worship without paying any attention to these whispers, and you should continue performing it without any hesitation no matter how many times the devil whispers to you that you are showing off.

You should not abandon any act of worship in response to these whispers. Rather, you should continue your act of worship and repel these whispers as much as possible and not pay any attention to them.

Whispers do not affect the validity of your act of worship; rather, your act of worship is valid and acceptable, Allah willing, and you will be rewarded for endeavoring against these whispers and repelling them.

We ask Allah to cure and heal you, and we advise you to consult a trustworthy psychiatrist.

Allah knows best.