Book of Supplication

Sayyiduna Abu Sa'id al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Sayyiduna Zayd bin Thabit (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated to us from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he said three times: "Seek refuge with Allah from the punishment of the Fire." We said: "We seek refuge with Allah from the punishment of the Fire." He said: "Seek refuge with Allah from the punishment of the grave. Seek refuge with Allah from trials, those that are open and those that are hidden. Seek refuge with Allah from the trial of the Dajjal." We said: "We seek refuge with Allah from the trial of the Dajjal."

Sayyiduna Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him) said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) saying: "Ask Allah for beneficial knowledge, and seek refuge with Allah from knowledge that does not benefit."

Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to make this supplication: "O Allah, I seek refuge with You from Satan, from his madness, from the blowing of his poetry, and from his arrogance." He said: Hamz means madness, nafth means poetry, and nafkh means arrogance.

Abdullah bin al-Harith said that Sayyiduna Zayd bin Arqam (may Allah be pleased with him) once said: I say to you only the supplication that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to say: "O Allah, I seek refuge with You from helplessness, from laziness, from miserliness, from cowardice, from old age and from the punishment of the grave. O Allah, make my soul God-fearing; You alone are its Guardian and Master, You are the best to purify it. O Allah, I seek refuge with You from knowledge that does not benefit, from a soul that is never satisfied, from a heart that does not fear, and from a supplication that is not accepted."

Farwah bin Nawfal said: I asked Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her): "What is the supplication that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to make?" She said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to supplicate like this: "O Allah, I seek refuge with You from the evil of what I have done, and from the evil of the deeds I have not done."

Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said that among the supplications of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was this one: "O Allah, I seek refuge with You from knowledge that does not benefit, from a supplication that is not heard, from a heart that does not fear, and from a soul that is never satisfied."

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to make this supplication: "O Allah, I seek refuge with You from a heart that does not fear, from knowledge that does not benefit, from a supplication that is not heard, from a soul that is never satisfied, and from hunger, for hunger is indeed an evil companion."

Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) often made this supplication: "O Allah, I seek refuge with You from knowledge that does not benefit, from a deed that cannot attain the high ranks of acceptance, from a heart that does not fear, and from a call that is not heard."

Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to make this supplication: "O Allah, I seek refuge with You from the disease of leucoderma, from the disease of leprosy, and from evil illnesses."

Sayyiduna Sa'd (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to teach us these words of supplication: "O Allah, I seek refuge with You from miserliness, I seek refuge with You from cowardice, I seek refuge with You from being returned to the most decrepit old age, and I seek refuge with You from the trial of this world and from the punishment of the grave."

Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to supplicate: "O Allah, I seek refuge with You from laziness, from old age, from being immersed in sins, and from being in debt."

Sayyiduna Sa'd (may Allah be pleased with him) said to his sons: "O my dear sons, seek refuge with Allah through the words by which the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to seek refuge." Then the narrator mentioned the same wording as the hadith of Ubaydah, except that he did not mention the words "ardhal al-'umr" (the most decrepit old age).

Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to seek refuge from cowardice, from miserliness, from the punishment of the grave, from the most decrepit old age, and from the trial of the breast (the trial of the breast means that a man dies in a trial from which he has not sought forgiveness from Allah).

Through this chain also, the wording of the aforementioned hadith is reported from Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him).

Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to supplicate with these words: "O Allah, I seek refuge with You from the trial of the Fire and the punishment of the Fire, from the trial of the grave and the punishment of the grave, from the evil of the trial of wealth arising, and from the evil of the trial of poverty arising, and I seek refuge with You from the trial of the Masih al-Dajjal."

Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Seek refuge with Allah from Hell, seek refuge with Allah from the punishment of the grave, seek refuge with Allah from the trial of the Masih al-Dajjal, and seek refuge with Allah from the trial of life and death."

Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to seek refuge from cowardice and miserliness, from the trial of the time of life and death, and from the punishment of the grave.

Sayyiduna Abu Bakrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to supplicate after every prayer: "O Allah, I wish to come into Your refuge from disbelief, from poverty, and from the punishment of the grave."

Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) said that Sayyidah Umm Habibah (may Allah be pleased with her), the pure wife of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), was supplicating one day: "O Allah, let me continue to benefit for a long time from my husband the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), my father Abu Sufyan and my brother Mu'awiyah." Abdullah said: Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "You have asked Allah on behalf of people whose times of death have been fixed, whose days have been counted, and whose provisions have been apportioned. Allah will never bring anything forward before its appointed time, nor will He delay anything past its appointed time. If you had asked Allah in this way: 'Protect me from the punishment of Hell, and protect me from the punishment of the grave,' that would have been better and more virtuous for you."

Sayyidah Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) said: One night I found the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) missing from the bed, so I began searching for him (peace and blessings be upon him). My hand fell upon the lower part of his feet while he (peace and blessings be upon him) was in the mosque, with both his feet held upright, and he (peace and blessings be upon him) was supplicating: "I seek refuge in Your pleasure from Your displeasure, and in Your pardon from Your punishment, and I seek refuge in You from You. I am not capable of praising You as You have praised Yourself."

Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to make this supplication: "O Allah, I seek refuge with You from worry and grief, from helplessness, from laziness, from cowardice and from miserliness."

Sayyiduna Jubayr (may Allah be pleased with him) said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) saying these words when beginning the prayer: "Allah is the Greatest," three times; "All praise is for Allah, abundantly," three times; "I glorify Allah morning and evening," three times; "O Allah, I seek refuge with You from Satan, from his madness, from the blowing of his poetry, and from his pride."

Habib bin Abi Thabit said: I was told that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to supplicate: "O Allah, I seek refuge with You from a supplication that is not heard, from knowledge that does not benefit, from a heart that does not fear, and from a soul that is never satisfied. O Allah, I seek refuge with You from the evil of these four. O Allah, I ask You for a balanced life, a pure death, and a return to You without disgrace or regret."

Abu Ja'far said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to supplicate: "O Allah, I seek refuge with You from doubt coming after certainty, I seek refuge with You from the company of the devils, and I seek refuge with You from the punishment of the Day of Recompense."

Sayyiduna Shakal bin Humayd (may Allah be pleased with him) said: I came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and said: "Teach me words of refuge by which I may seek refuge." He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Say: 'O Allah, I seek refuge with You from the evil of my hearing and my sight, and from the evil of my tongue and my private parts.'"

Sayyidah Umm Khalid bint Khalid (may Allah be pleased with her) said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) seeking refuge from the punishment of the grave.

Sayyidah Umm Mubashshir (may Allah be pleased with her) said: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) came to me while I was in one of the orchards of the tribe of Banu al-Najjar. In that orchard were the graves of some people who had died in the time of ignorance (Jahiliyyah). Umm Mubashshir said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) left the orchard, and I heard him (peace and blessings be upon him) saying: "Seek refuge with Allah from the punishment of the grave."

Sayyiduna al-Bara' (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Indeed, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Seek refuge with Allah from the punishment of the grave."

Humayd said: Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) was asked about the punishment of the grave, and he said: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to supplicate: "O Allah, I seek refuge with You from laziness and old age, from cowardice and miserliness, from the trial of the Dajjal, and from the punishment of the grave."

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Indeed, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to supplicate: "O Allah, I seek refuge with You from a heart that does not fear, from a soul that is never satisfied, from knowledge that does not benefit, and from a supplication that is not heard. O Allah, I seek refuge with You from these four."

Mujahid said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to make this supplication: "O Allah, I seek refuge with You from being overcome by debt, from being overpowered by the enemy, and from an unmarried woman being left unsought."

Al-Hakam said: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to seek refuge from four things: "O Allah, I seek refuge with You from being overpowered by the enemy, from being overcome by debt, from the trial of the Dajjal, and from the punishment of the grave."

Ibn Abi Layla said: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to make this supplication: "O Allah, I seek refuge with You from being overcome by debt and from being overpowered by the enemy."