Dua, - To Expel the devil from the house (or preventing him from entering)

Translation
The messenger of Allah (may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon
him) said: "The devil flees from the house where suratAl-Baqarais
recited".
Surah Al-Baqarah Chapter 2
Note: Some scholars had mentioned that there is no problem in playing
it from a recorder or the likes, but overall its better to recite it.
(To be recited in Arabic)
Sources: Muslim No# 780 At-Tirmidhi No# 2877

Dua to ward off the deception of obstinate devils

أَعُوذُ بِكَلِمَاتِ اللهِ التَّامَّاتِ الَّتِي لَا يُجَاوِزُهُنَّ
بَرٌّ وَلَا فَاجِرٌ مِنْ شَرِّ مَا خَلَقَ ، وَبَرَأَ ، وَذَرَأَ ،
وَمِنْ شَرِّ مَا يَنْزِلُ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ وَمِنْ شَرِّ مَا يَعْرُجُ
فِيهَا ، وَمِنْ شَرِّ مَا ذَرَأَ فِي الأَرْضِ وَمِنْ شَرِّ مَا
يَخْرُجُ مِنْهَا ،
وَمِنْ شَرِّ فِتَنِ اللَّيْلِ وَالنَّهَارِ ، وَمِنْ شَرِّ كُلِّ
طَارِقٍ إِلَّا طَارِقًا يَطْرُقُ بِخَيْرٍ ، يَا رَحْمَنُ
Translation
I seek refuge with Allah's perfect words which no righteous or
unrighteous person can transgress, from all the evil that He has
created, made and originated.
(I seek refuge) from the evil that descends from the sky and the evil
that rises up to it. and (I seek refuge) from the evil that is spread
on Earth and the evil that springs from it.
And I seek refuge from the evil of the tribulations of night and day,
and the evil of one who visits at night except the one who brings
good, O Merciful One.
Transliteration
a‛oodhu bi kalimaat-illaahit-taammaat-illatee laa yujaawizuhunna
barrun wa laa faajirun min sharri maa khalaqa, wa bara'a , wa dhara'a,
wa min sharri maa yanzilu minas-samaa'i wa min sharri maa ya‛ruju
feehaa, wa min sharri maa dhara'a fil-arḍi wa min sharri maa yakhruju
minhaa,
wa min sharri fitanil-layli wan-nahaari, wa min sharri kulli ṭaariqin
illaa ṭaariqan yaṭruqu bikhayrin, yaa raḥman
Sources: Ahmad No# 15461 with an authentic chain and Ibn As-Sunni
#637. See Al-Silsilah Al-Sahihah No# 2995

Dua, - Dua when afraid of people

اللَّهُمَّ اكْفِنِيهِمْ بِمَا شِئْتَ
Translation
O Allah, protect me from them as You wish.
Transliteration
allaahummak-fineehim bi maa shi'ta
Sources: Ibn Hibban No# 6281

Fathwa, - Sitting arrangements in a party

Question:
We are going to have a dinner party at our house where some family
members and a friend's family will be coming. Obviously, it is
important that mixing between men and women be kept at a minimum. But
I have a question regarding how this should be done, given that none
of the guests wear hijab or pay much attention avoiding free-mixing.
If we have men downstairs, women upstairs, and then have men come
upstairs to get food (and then return downstairs to eat it), would the
hosts be sinful by having an opportunity for men to look at women and
vice-versa while the men come up to get food? The men will be getting
food from the kitchen, while the women will be sitting in an adjacent
family room (which is not walled off). Also, given that the guests do
not observe any hijab, how far should we go in forcing segregation?
Would the above situation in which men and women sit separately for
most of the time be OK? The men and women guests normally converse
with each other, so would the hosts be sinful if this occurs during
the gathering?
Answer:
Assalamu alaykum
In the name of Allah, Most Gracious Most Merciful.
The setup of having Men downstairs and the Women upstairs sounds like
a fair setup. The problem that you are mentioning in this setup can
probably be overcome by having women who are mahram (wife, sister,
mother. etc.) of the men transporting the food to pass the food to
them in the hallway or something similar to this.
The responsibility of the host is to take as many reasonable measures
to observe the laws of Allah in his boundaries and facilitate them.
The setup you have mentioned seems to be fulfilling this criteria to a
certain degree if the above problem can be somehow overcome. It is
very difficult to ensure that no prohibited interaction take place at
all, since such socialization may take place outside while the guests
are leaving.
The Prophet of Allah (upon him be peace) said, "O People, you will
never be able to [completely] observe all that you have been
commanded. However, either hit the mark or be close [saddidu aw
qaribu] (Bukhari, Muslim).
Hence, you are commended greatly for your attempts at observing the
obligations and prohibitions of Allah. May Allah accept your
endeavors.