Dhikr (Invocation) during Prayer

The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) used to seek refuge with Allah from four things after reciting the last Tashahhud and before ending the prayer, and he commanded us to do the same. First: from the punishment of the grave. Second: from the punishment of Hellfire on the Day of Judgment. Third: from the trials of life, including its forbidden desires and its misleading doubts, and from the trials of death, i.e., the time of dying, including deviation from Islam or from the Sunnah, or the trial of the grave like the questioning of the two angels. Fourth: from the trial of the Antichrist who will come at the end of time as an affliction from Allah to test His slaves. The Antichrist was mentioned in particular because of the gravity of his trial and misguidance.

1. This form of Isti‘ādhah (seeking refuge with Allah) is among the most important and most comprehensive supplications as it includes seeking refuge from the evils of this worldly life and the Hereafter.
2. Affirmation of the punishment of the grave and that it is real.
3. The gravity of the trials and the importance of seeking Allah's help and supplicating Him to be saved from such trials.
4. Proving the emergence of the Dajjāl (Antichrist) and the severity of his trial.
5. It is recommended to recite this supplication after the last Tashahhud.
6. It is recommended to make Du‘ā’ (supplication) after performing a righteous deed.

صحيح البخاري (2/ 99) (1377). صحيح مسلم (1/ 412) (588). الإلمام بشرح عمدة الأحكام، لإسماعيل الأنصاري (1/ 172). تيسير العلام شرح عمدة الأحكام، للبسام (ص212). خلاصة الكلام شرح عمدة الأحكام، لفيصل آل مبارك (ص96).

On making Takbīr to commence the prayer, the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) would take a brief pause before reciting Surat al-Fātihah. During this pause, he would start his prayer by reciting some supplications. Among the supplications reported in this regard is his saying: "Allāhumma bā‘id bayni wa bayna khatāyāy kama bā‘dta bayna al-mashriqi wa al-maghrib*. Allāhumma naqqini min khatāyāy kama yunaqqa ath-thawbu al-abyadu min ad-danas. Allāhumma ighsilni min khatāyāy bith-thalji wa al-mā’i wa al-barad (O Allah, distance me from my sins as You have distanced the east from the west. O Allah, purify me from my sins as a white garment is purified from dirt. O Allah, wash out my sins with water, snow, and hail)." He supplicates Allah Almighty to keep him far from sins, by helping him not to commit them, in such a way that makes it impossible for them to meet, just as the East and the West can never meet; and to purify him and remove such sins if he commits them, as filth is removed from the white garment; and to wash him from his sins and cool off its flames and heat with such cold purifiers: water, snow, and hail.

1. The opening supplication is to be recited inaudibly, even if the prayer is audible.
2. Keenness of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) to learn about the circumstances of the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) in his movements and instants of stillness.
3. Other wordings of the opening supplication have been reported. It is preferable that one pursues the opening supplications, which are authentically reported from the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him), and recites them alternately.

صحيح البخاري (1/ 149) (744). صحيح مسلم (1/ 419) (598). الإلمام بشرح عمدة الأحكام، لإسماعيل الأنصاري (1/ 118). تيسير العلام شرح عمدة الأحكام، للبسام (ص143). تنبيه الأفهام شرح عمدة الأحكام، لابن عثيمين (2/ 186).

The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) took Mu‘ādh (may Allah be pleased with him) by the hand and said to him: By Allah, I do love you, and I advise you, O Mu‘ādh, never fail to say after each prayer: (O Allah, help me remember You) in every word and deed that brings me closer to an act of obedience; (thank You) for bestowing favors and warding off misfortunes; (and excellently worship You) by being fully sincere to Allah and following the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him).

1. It is permissible to inform someone that you love him for the sake of Allah.
2. It is recommended to recite this supplication after every obligatory and voluntary prayer.
3. This brief supplication comprises the demands of this worldly life and the Hereafter.
4. Exhorting one another to the truth, mutual advice, and cooperation in goodness and righteousness are among the benefits of love for the sake of Allah.
5. At-Taybi said: Remembering Allah is an introduction to relief in the heart, thanking Him is a means of attaining blessings, and the required excellent manner in worship is to be free of whatever distracts one from Allah Almighty.

سنن أبي داود (2/ 630) (1522). سنن النسائي (3/ 53) (1303). مسند أحمد (36/ 429) (22119). بهجة الناظرين شرح رياض الصالحين، لسليم الهلالي (1/ 450). تطريز رياض الصالحين، لفيصل آل مبارك (ص259). شرح رياض الصالحين، لابن عثيمين (3/ 264). كنوز رياض الصالحين، لمجموعة من الباحثين (6/ 284). نزهة المتقين شرح رياض الصالحين، لمجموعة من الباحثين (1/ 353).

‘Ā’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) said: I was sleeping beside the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him), and I could not find him at night. I touched the place where he used to pray in the room with my hand and found him prostrating with his feet erect, and he was saying: (I seek refuge with) and appeal to (Your pleasure from Your wrath) over me or over my Ummah, (and) I seek refuge (with Your pardon) and Your abundant forgiveness (from Your punishment), (And I seek refuge with You from You) and with the attributes of Your beauty from the attributes of Your majesty, as none can grant protection from You except You, and there is no shelter and no refuge from Allah except in Allah. (I cannot enumerate praise of You), and I am incapable and cannot list or count it because of my inability to enumerate Your favor and benevolence in a way that befits You no matter how hard I try. (You are as You have praised Yourself) as it is You Who have praised Yourself in a way that befits You, so who could praise You duly?!

1. It is recommended to recite these supplications during the prostration.
2. Mirak said: One of the versions by An-Nasā’i reads: He used to say this supplication after finishing his prayer and going to bed.
3. It is recommended to praise Allah by His Attributes and supplicate Him by His Names which are established in the Qur’an and the Sunnah.
4. It denotes glorifying the Creator in Rukū‘ (bowing) and Sujūd ( prostration).
5. Seeking refuge with the attributes of Allah is permissible just as it is permissible to seek refuge with His essence.
6. Al-Khattābi said: This speech bears a subtle meaning, which is: He sought refuge with Allah to protect him from His wrath by His pleasure and from His punishment by His pardon, bearing in mind that "pleasure" and "wrath" are two opposites and the same applies to "pardon" and "punishment." However, upon mentioning what does not have an opposite, namely Allah Almighty, he sought refuge with none but Him from Him. This means: Seeking Allah's forgiveness for falling short of fulfilling His worship duly and praising Him. His statement: I cannot enumerate praise of You, i.e., I am incapable of doing so and cannot attain it.

صحيح مسلم (1/ 352) (486). تطريز رياض الصالحين، لفيصل آل مبارك (ص781). شرح رياض الصالحين، لابن عثيمين (5/ 510). نزهة المتقين شرح رياض الصالحين، لمجموعة من الباحثين 2/ 979). طريق الهجرتين وباب السعادتين، لابن قيم الجوزية (ص136).

‘Ā’ishah, Mother of the Believers (may Allah be pleased with her), informs that upon the revelation of {When there comes Allah’s help and the conquest} to the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him), he complied with the command in the Qur’an and hastened to obey the command of Allah Almighty in His saying: {Then glorify the praise of your Lord, and ask His forgiveness}. Therefore, he used to frequently say in his Rukū‘ (bowing) and Sujūd (prostration) during the prayer, "Glory be to You," and may You be Exalted above any deficiency that does not befit You. "And praise, O Allah, our Lord," praise that is rightfully due to You for the perfection of Your essence, attributes, and actions. "O Allah, forgive me" and erase and overlook my sin.

1. It is recommended to say this supplication frequently in Rukū‘ and Sujūd.
2. Seeking forgiveness at the end of one’s life serves as a reminder to conclude acts of worship—especially the prayer—with seeking forgiveness to make up for any shortcomings that might have occurred in them.
3. The best thing to use in imploring Allah for accepting supplications is mentioning His praises, exalting Him, and declaring Him free from imperfections and flaws.
4. The merit of seeking Allah's forgiveness and pursuing it in all conditions.
5. The perfect servitude of the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) and his compliance with the command of Allah.

صحيح البخاري (6/ 178) (4968، 4967). صحيح مسلم (1/ 350-351) (484). تيسير العلام، للبسام (ص214). تنبيه الأفهام، للعثيمين (2/ 278). الإفهام في شرح عمدة الأحكام، لابن باز (ص263). الإلمام بشرح عمدة الأحكام، لإسماعيل الأنصاري (1/ 176). خلاصة الكلام، فيصل المبارك (ص97).

The Companions asked the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) how to invoke Allah's blessings upon him after learning how to greet him in At-Tahiyyāt: "As-salāmu ‘alayka ayyuha an-nabiyy wa rahmatullāhi wa barakātuh (O Prophet, may the peace, mercy, and blessings of Allah be upon you)..." The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) informed them of the manner of invoking Allah's blessings upon him and its meaning: "O Allah, bestow Your grace upon Muhammad and the family of Muhammad," i.e., mention him, as well as those who follow his religion and the believers from among his relatives, with good praise among the highest assembly of angels. "Just as You bestowed Your grace upon the family of Abraham." As You bestowed Your favor upon the family of Abraham (peace be upon him), namely Abraham, Ismā‘īl (Ishmael), Is-hāq (Isaac), and their offspring and their followers from the believers, so bestow Your favor upon Muhammad (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him). "Verily, You are Praiseworthy, All-Glorious," i.e., You are the Praiseworthy in Your essence, attributes, and acts; the All-Encompassing in Your greatness, sovereignty, and bounty. "O Allah, bless Muhammad and the family of Muhammad just as You blessed the family of Abraham," i.e., grant him the greatest of goodness and honor and increase it and establish it.

1. The righteous predecessors used to gift each other with knowledge-related matters.
2. It is obligatory to invoke Allah's blessings upon the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) during the last Tashahhud in prayer.
3. The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) taught his Companions how to greet him and invoke Allah's blessings upon him.
4. This is the most perfect form of invoking Allah's blessings upon the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him).

صحيح البخاري (8/ 77) (6357). صحيح مسلم (1/ 305) (406). تيسير العلام شرح عمدة الأحكام، لعبد الله البسام (ص208). تنبيه الأفهام شرح عمدة الأحكام، لابن عثيمين (2/ 270). الإلمام بشرح عمدة الأحكام، لإسماعيل الأنصاري (1/ 170).

‘Ā’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) used to recite in his bowing and prostration: "You are the Most Glorious, the Most Holy, and the lord of the angels and of the Spirit." "You are the Most Glorious, the Most Holy" is a superior form of glorification. "Lord of the angels" refers to the angels who are the soldiers of Allah; a world which we do not see. "the Spirit" is Jibrīl, who is the best of the angels. One should repeat this remembrance during the bowing and prostration. "the Most Holy" is one of Allah noble names. It is to deem Allah far removed from any imperfection along with glorifying and exalting Him. "The Most Glorious" is another of Allah's noble names.

شرح رياض الصالحين، لابن عثيمين، نشر: دار الوطن للنشر، الرياض، الطبعة: 1426هـ. رياض الصالحين، للنووي، تحقيق: ماهر الفحل، دار ابن كثير - بيروت، الطبعة الأولى 1428هـ - 2007م. صحيح مسلم, ترقيم محمد فؤاد عبد الباقي, دار إحياء التراث العربي, بيروت. نزهة المتقين شرح رياض الصالحين، لمجموعة من الباحثين, مؤسسة الرسالة, الطبعة الرابعة عشر, 1407هـ. كنوز رياض الصالحين، نشر: دار كنوز إشبيليا، الطبعة الأولى، 1430هـ - 2009م. بهجة الناظرين شرح رياض الصالحين، لسليم الهلالي، ط1، دار ابن الجوزي، الدمام، 1415هـ. شرح أسماء الله الحسنى في ضوء الكتاب والسُّنَّة، للقحطاني، الناشر: مطبعة سفير، الرياض، توزيع: مؤسسة الجريسي للتوزيع والإعلان، الرياض. صفات الله عز وجل الواردة في الكتاب والسنة، علوي بن عبد القادر السَّقَّاف، دار الهجرة، الطبعة الثالثة، 1426 هـ - 2006 م.

The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) used to celebrate Allah's oneness after making taslīm at the end of every obligatory prayer with this great dhikr, which means: "There is no god but Allah" means: None is truly worthy of worship except Allah. "Alone, with no partner" means: There is no partner with Him in His divinity, lordship, names, and attributes. "To Him belongs the dominion" means: The absolute, general, inclusive, and all-encompassing dominion, the dominion of the heavens and the earth and what is between them belongs to Him. "And praise is due to Him" means: The absolute perfection belongs to Him, and He is the One praised for His perfection out of love and exaltation in all conditions, good or bad. "And He has power over all things" means His power is complete and absolute in every aspect, and nothing escapes His power or can resist His Will. "There is no power or strength except through Allah" means There cannot be any shift from one condition to another and from disobedience to Allah to obedience to Him, and there is no power except through Allah; He is the One Who gives help and should be relied upon. "There is no god but Allah, and we worship none but Him": It affirms the meaning of divinity and the negation of polytheism and that none but Him deserves to be worshiped. "To Him belongs the favor, to Him belongs the grace": He is the One Who creates the blessings and possesses them and He bestows them, as a favor from Him, upon whomever of His servants He wishes. "And to Him belongs all excellent praise": For His essence, attributes, actions, and blessings, and for every condition. "There is no god but Allah; we are sincerely devoted to Him" means that we are believers in His Oneness, without showing off or pursuing a good reputation among people for our obedience to Allah. "Even if the disbelievers may dislike it" means: We firmly adhere to the belief in Allah's Oneness, even if the disbelievers detest it.

1. It is recommended to persistently say this dhikr after every obligatory prayer
2. A Muslim should be proud of his religion and manifest its rituals, even if the disbelievers dislike that.
3. When the phrase "after the prayer" occurs in a Hadīth, if the Hadīth contains dhikr, it should primarily be said after taslīm; and if it is a supplication, it should be said before taslīm.

صحيح مسلم (1/ 415) (594). سبل السلام شرح بلوغ المرام، للصنعاني (1/ 293). كنوز رياض الصالحين، لمجموعة من الباحثين (17/ 61). نزهة المتقين شرح رياض الصالحين، لمصطفى الخِن وغيره (2/ 973). بهجة الناظرين، لسليم الهلالي (2/ 499). مرقاة المفاتيح شرح مشكاة المصابيح، لعلي القاري (2/ 762). شرح رياض الصالحين، لابن عثيمين (5/ 492).