Chapter 4: The Prophet on Conversing with Allah SWT
‘There is no Muslim on earth who calls upon Allah in supplication but Allah will grant him it, or avert an equivalent evil for him, so long as he does not incline in his supplication towards anything sinful or severing ties of kinship.’ (Muslim)
‘Supplication is worship.’ (Tirmidhi)
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said: O son of Adam, so long as you call upon Me and put your hope in Me, I shall forgive you for what you have done and I will not mind. O son of Adam, if your sins were to reach the clouds of the sky, then you were to ask forgiveness of Me, I will forgive you and I will not mind. O son of Adam, if you were to come to Me with an earthful of sins, then you were to Meet me ascribing no partner to Me, I will grant you an earthful of forgiveness.’ (Tirmidhi)
‘Your Lord, may He be blessed and exalted is Shy and Most Generous. He is shy to allow His slave’s hands, if he raises them to Him, to come back empty.’ (Tirmidhi)
‘A Muslim’s prayer for his brother in his absence will be answered. At his head, there is an angel who is appointed, and when he prays for good for his brother, the angel who is appointed says: Ameen, and you will have something similar.’ (Muslim)
‘When one of you offers supplication, let him begin by praising his Lord and then let him send blessings upon the Prophet then let him offer supplication after that for whatever he wishes.’ (Tirmidhi)
‘Offer supplication, for you will be answered. Ask, for you will be given.’ (Tirmidhi)
‘Call upon Allah in supplication being certain of a response and know that Allah will not answer the supplication of one who is heedless and distracted when offering supplication.’ (Tirmidhi)
‘One of you will receive a response as long as he does not become impatient and say: I offered supplication and received no response.’ (Bukhari, Muslim)
‘There is no believer who commits a sin then does wudu and purifies himself well, then prays two rakats, then asks Allah for forgiveness, but Allah will forgive him.’ (Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi)
‘Say: O Allah forgive me, have mercy on me, keep me safe and sound, and grant me provision…. these words sum up (what is good) for you in this world and in the Hereafter.’ (Bukhari)
‘The closest a person can be to his Lord is when he is prostrating, so offer a great deal of supplication at that time.’ (Muslim)
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ on offering supplication during the final tashahhud (before saying the salaam): ‘Then after that let him choose whatever supplication he wishes or he likes.’ (Muslim)
The Prophet when asked what supplication is most likely to be heard: ‘(That which is offered) in the last part of the night and following prescribed prayers.’ (Tirmidhi)
‘Our Lord, may He be blessed and exalted, descends to the lowest heaven every night when the last third of the night remains, and He says: Who will call upon Me that I may answer him. Who will ask of Me, that I may give him? Who will ask Me for forgiveness, that I may forgive him.’ (Muslim)
‘no supplication offered between the adhan and the iqama is rejected.’ (Tirmidhi)
‘There are three supplications that will be answered with both doubts about them: the supplication of one who has been wronged, the supplication of the traveller and the supplication of a parent against his child.’ (Tirmidhi)
‘When you visit one who is sick or dying, say good things, for the angels will say ‘Ameen’ to what you say.’ (Muslim)
‘Whoever would like Allah to respond to his supplication at times of hardship and distress, let him offer a great deal of supplication at times of ease.’ (Tirmidhi)
‘nothing averts the divine decree except supplication and nothing increases one’s lifespan except righteous deeds.’ (Ibn Majah)
‘On Friday, there is a time when if a Muslim happens to pray at that time and ask Allah for something good, He will give it to him.’ (Bukhari)
‘Whoever does not ask of Allah, He will be angry with him.’ (Tirmidhi)
‘Is it too difficult for any one of you to earn 1000 hasanahs (good deeds) every day? If he says one hundred tasbeehs, one thousand hasanahs will be recorded for him and one thousand bad deeds will be erased for him. (Muslim)
‘Whoever says Subhan Allah wa bi hamdihi one hundred times in a day, his sins will be erased even if they are like the foam of the sea.’ (Bukhari)
‘Whoever says Subhan Allah il’Azeem wa bi hamdihi, a palm tree will be planted for him in Paradise.’ (Tirmidhi)
‘Two words that are light on the tongue, heavy in the balance and beloved to the Most Merciful: Subhan Allah wa bi hamdihi, Subhan Allah il’Azeem.’ (Bukhari)
‘Whoever sits in a gathering in which he spoke too much, but he says before he leaves that gathering. ‘Subhanaak Allahumma wa bi hamdika, ashadhu an laa ilaaha illa Anta, astaghfiruka wa attobu ilayk (Glory and praise be to you O Allah, I bear witness that there is no god worthy of worship except You, I ask You for forgiveness and I repent to You), but he will be forgiven for what he said in that gathering.’ (Tirmidhi)
After finishing the Witr prayer, the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ would say three times: ‘Subhan al-Malik il-Quddoos’ (Glory be to the Sovereign, the Most Holy). (An-Nasa’i)
‘The best supplication is praise of Allah.’ (Tirmidhi)
‘Indeed Allah is pleased with a person when he eats some food and praises Him for it, or drinks something and praises Him for it.’ (Muslim)
When the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ went to bed at night, he would say: ‘O Allah, in Your name I die and I live’ And when he woke up, he said: ‘Praise be to Allah Who brought us back to life after causing us to die and to Him is the resurrection.’ (Bukhari)
‘Whoever wakes up at night and says: There is no god worthy of worship except Allah alone, with no partner or associate. His is the dominion and to Him be praised and he has power over all things. Praise be to Allah, glory be to Allah, there is no god worthy of worship except Allah. Allah is most great, and there is no power and no strength except with Allah, then he says: O Allah, forgive me’ or offers supplication, he will receive a response, and if he does wudu and prayer, his prayer will be accepted.’ (Bukhari)
‘Whoever puts on a new garment and says: Praise be to Allah Who has given me this garment to wear and has provided it for me with no strength or power on my part, will be forgiven for his past and future sins.’ (Abi Dawud)
‘Whoever glorifies Allah by saying Subhan Allah thirty-three times following every prayer, and praises Allah by saying Alhamdulillah thirty-three times and magnifies Allah by saying Allahu Akbar thirty-three times, making it ninety-nine times and he completes one hundred by saying: Laa ilaaha illa Allah wahdahi laa shareeka lah, lahul mulk wa la lahul hamd, wa huwa ala kulli shay’in qadeer (There is no god worthy of worship except Allah alone, with no partner or associate. His is the dominion and to Him be praise, and He has power over all things), his sins will be forgiven even if they are like the foam of the sea.’ (Muslim)
‘When one of you sneezes, let him say: Alhamdulillah.’ (Bukhari)
‘Whoever sees an afflicted person and says: Praise be to Allah Who has spared me from that with which He tested you, and has favoured me greatly over many of those whom He has created, that affliction will not befall him.’ – (This should be said carefully so the afflicted person does not hear him). (Tirmidhi)
‘Whoever says : Laa ilaaha illa Allah wahdahu laa shareka lah, lahul mulk wa lahu’l hamd, wa huwa ‘ala kulli shay’in qadeer (There is no god worthy of worship except Allah alone, with no partner or associate. His is the dominion and to Him be praise, and He has power over all things) one hundred times a day, it will be equivalent of freeing ten slaves, and one hundred good deeds will be recorded for him, and one hundred bad deeds will be erased for him, and it will be a protection for him against the Shaytan all day until evening comes, and no one will do anything better than what he has done except one who does more than that.’ (Bukhari, Muslim)
‘The one who will be most blessed with my intercession on the Day of Resurrection is the one who says: ‘Laa ilaaha illa Allah’ sincerely from the heart.’ (Bukhari)
‘Whoever says when he hears the mu’adhdhin: ‘I bear witness that there is no god worthy of worship except Allah, with no partner or associate and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger, I am content with Allah as my Lord, Muhammad as my Messenger and Islam as my religion’ his sins will be forgiven. (An-Nasa’i)
‘Faith has seventy-odd or sixty-odd branches. The best of which is saying Laa ilaaha ill-Allah and the least of which is removing something harmful from the road.’ (Muslim)
‘Renew your faith by frequently saying Laa ilaaha illa Allah.’ (Ahmad)
‘Allah has forbidden to the Fire those who say: ‘Laa ilaaha illa Allah’ seeking thereby the pleasure of Allah.’ (Bukhari, Muslim)
‘Whoever says: ‘I bear witness that there is no god worthy of worship except Allah alone with no partner or associate and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger, and that Isa is the slave of Allah, the son of His maidservant, a Word which He bestowed upon Maryam and a soul created by Him, and that Paradise is true and that Hell is true, Allah will admit him through whichever of the eight gates of Paradise he wants.‘ (Riyad as-Salihin)
‘There is no one among you who does wudhu and does it well then says: ‘I bear witness that there is no god worthy of worship except Allah alone, with no partner or associate and I bear witness that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger’ but the eight gates of Paradise will be opened to him and he will enter through whichever one he wishes. (An-Nasa’i)
‘Whoever says when morning or evening comes: O Allah, this morning I call upon You and I call upon the bearers of Your Throne, Your angels and all Your creation to bear witness that You are Allah, there is no god worthy of worship except You, and that Muhammad is Your slave and Messenger’ Allah will ransom one quarter of him from the Fire. Whoever says it twice, Allah will ransom half of him. Whoever says it three times, Allah will ransom three quarters of him and if he says it four times, Allah will ransom him completely from the Fire.‘ (Hisn al-Muslim)
Following every prayer and after returning from a campaign, Hajj or Umrah, the Prophet would say: ‘Laa illaha illa Allah wahdahu laa shareeka lah, lahul mulk wa lahul hamd wa huwa ala kulli shay’in qadeer’ (There is no god worthy of worship except Allah alone, with no partner or associate. His is the dominion and to Him be praise, and He has power over all things).
‘no Muslim man says this supplication concerning anything but Allah will respond to him: ‘Laa ilaha illa anta subhaanaka inni kuntu min az-zaalimeen (none has the right to be worshipped but You (O Allah), Glorified (and Exalted) be You! Truly, I have been of the wrongdoers). (Tirmidhi, Ahmad)
‘The most beloved words to Allah are four: Subhaan Allah, wa’l-hamdu Lillah, wa laa ilaaha illa Allah, wa Allahu Akbar’ and it does not matter with which of them you start.’ (Muslim)
‘To say: Subhan Allah, wa’l-hamdu Lillah, wa laa ilaaha illa Allah, wa Allahu Akbar is dearer to me than everything on which the sun rises.’ (Muslim)
‘There is no man on earth who says: Laa ilaaha illa Allah, wa Allahu akbar wa subhaan Allah, wa’l-hamdu Lillah, wa la hawla wa laa quwwata illa Billah’ but some of his sins will be expiated, even if they are like the foam of the sea.’ (Tirmidhi)
‘I met Ibraheem on the night on which I was taken up to heaven and he said: O Muhammad, convey greetings of salaam from me to your Ummah, and tell them that Paradise has good soil and fresh water, it is a flat, treeless plain and its saplings are Subhan Allah, wa’l-hamdu Lillah, wa laa ilaaha illa Allah wa Allahu akbar.’ (Tirmidhi)
‘Every time you say Subhan Allah, it is a charity, every time you say Allahu Akbar, it is a charity, every time you say Alhamdulillah, it is a charity, every time you say Laa ilaaha illa Allah, it is a charity.’ (Riyad As-Salihin)
‘Among the dhikr that you recite to glorify Allah is your tasbeeh, tahleel and tahmeed. These words go around the Throne, making a sound like the buzzing of bees, mentioning the one who says them. Wouldn’t one of you like to have someone who mentions his name in Allah’s presence?’ (Ibn Majah)
‘Allah has chosen from among words four: ‘Subhan Allah, wa’l-handilillah, wa laa ilaaha illa Allah wa Allahu akbar. Whoever says Subhan Allah, twenty good deeds will be recorded for him and twenty bad deeds will be erased from him. Whoever says: Allahu Akbar, the same will be done for him. Whoever says: Laa ilaaha illa Allah, the same will be done for him and whoever says: ‘Al-hamdu Lillahi Rabb il ‘aalameen of his own accord, thirty good deeds will be recorded for him and thirty bad deeds will be erased from him.’ (Ahmad)
‘If a man goes out of his way and says: Bismillah tawakkaltu ‘ala Allah la hawla wa laa quwwata illah Billah (In the name of Allah, I put my trust in Allah, there is no power and no strength except with Allah), in that case it will be said: You have been guided, you have been taken care of, and you have been protected and the devils will get out of his way.’ (Tirmidhi, An-Nas’i)
‘Shall I not tell you one of the treasures of Paradise? Laa hawla wa laa quwwata illa Billah (there is no power and no strength except with Allah).’ (Ibn Majah)
‘Whoever seeks refuge with Allah, then grant him protection.’ (An-Nasa’i)
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ advised to seek refuge with Allah: before reciting Quran, when feeling angry, when praying, when faced with whispers during prayer (from Shaytan), when entering the toilet, when hearing the braying of donkeys and barking of dogs, when suffering from insomnia, when Shaytan whispered and makes one doubt, when doing ruqyah, when halting in a new place, in the morning and afternoon and when going to sleep, when feeling worried or sad.
When entering the toilet the Prophet would say: ‘Allahumma inni a’oodhu bika min al-khubthi wa-l-khabaa’ith (I seek refuge with Allah from the male and female devils). (Tirmidhi)
‘If you hear the braying of a donkey (or when dogs bark), then seek refuge with Allah from the Shaytaan, for it has seen a devil.’ (Bukhari)
‘O Allah, I seek refuge with You from worry, grief, helplessness, laziness, miserliness, cowardice, heavy debt, and being overwhelmed by men.’
‘O Allah, I seek refuge with You from disbelief, poverty and punishment of the grave.’
‘O Allah, I seek refuge You from knowledge that is not beneficial, a heart that is not humble (before Allah), a soul that is not satisfied and a prayer that is not answered.’
‘O Allah, I seek refuge with You from evil characteristics, evil deeds and evil desires.’
‘O Allah, I seek refuge with You from the evil of what I have done and from the evil of what I have not done.’ (Hisn al-Muslim)
‘Seek refuge with Allah from trials and troubles, those which are apparent and those which are hidden.’ (Muslim)
‘I seek refuge with You from the trials of this world.’ (An-Nasa’i)
‘O Allah, I seek refuge with You from the trial of the Dajjaal, I seek refuge with You from the trials of life and the trials of death. O Allah, I seek refuge from You from sin and debt.’ (Muslim)
‘O Allah, I seek refuge in Your pleasure and from Your wrath, in your forgiveness from Your punishment. I seek refuge in You from You. I cannot praise You enough, You are as You have praised Yourself.’ (Hisn al-Muslim)
‘The one who remembers his Lord and the one who does not remember his Lord are like the living and the dead.’ (Bukhari)
‘Keep your tongue moist with remembrance of Allah.’ (Tirmidhi)