Ruling on Collective Duʿāʾ After Sunnah Prayers
Source: Fatāwā al-Deen al-Khāliṣ, Vol. 1, p.103
Question:
Is it an innovation (bidʿah) to make collective supplication (duʿāʾ) after Sunnah prayers? Kindly provide a clear and comprehensive explanation.
(Your brother: Ḥanẓalah)
❖ The Answer:
All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah. To proceed:
✿ Issue of Collective Duʿāʾ:
Making collective duʿāʾ after Sunnah prayers is a newly invented innovation (bidʿah) in the religion.
It is not established from the Prophet ﷺ, his companions, or the Successors (tābiʿīn).
✿ Why This Practice Falls Under Bidʿah:
① It is a newly invented matter in the religion that has no basis in the Qur’an or Sunnah.
② It has become a customary practice among people to the extent that it is now considered essential, which makes it a religious innovation.
③ Some individuals consider it a necessary religious act, despite the absence of any authentic Hadith.
④ Raising voices for duʿāʾ after prayer can disturb latecomers (masbūqīn) who are completing their prayers.
❶ Duʿāʾ Is an Act of Worship—Bidʿah Is Prohibited in Worship
Duʿāʾ is the core of worship, and all acts of worship must conform to the method of the Prophet ﷺ.
📖 The Prophet ﷺ said:
“Whoever does an act that is not in accordance with our matter (religion), it will be rejected.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 1718)
Hence, to establish collective duʿāʾ after Sunnah prayers as a regular or obligatory practice is an innovation that contradicts the Sunnah of the Messenger ﷺ.
❷ Practice of the Prophet ﷺ
The Prophet ﷺ used to make duʿāʾ individually after prayer, but there is no evidence that he ever conducted collective duʿāʾ.
📖 It is narrated from ʿĀʾishah (رضي الله عنها) in Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim that:
“When the Prophet ﷺ would complete the prayer (by saying salām), he would not sit for long except to say:
اللَّهُمَّ أَنْتَ السَّلَامُ وَمِنْكَ السَّلَامُ، تَبَارَكْتَ يَا ذَا الْجَلَالِ وَالْإِكْرَامِ
(O Allah! You are Peace, and from You is peace. Blessed are You, O Possessor of Majesty and Honor).”
(Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 591)
This Hadith clearly shows that the Prophet ﷺ did not perform collective duʿāʾ after prayers.
❸ Practice of the Companions (Ṣaḥābah)
After the Prophet ﷺ passed away, ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb (رضي الله عنه) once supplicated through the intercession of al-ʿAbbās (رضي الله عنه) for rain, but there was no collective duʿāʾ.
📖 Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī records:
“O Allah! We used to seek rain through our Prophet, and You gave us rain. Now we seek it through the uncle of our Prophet, so grant us rain.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 1010)
This example is proof of individual duʿāʾ, not a group supplication.
❹ Harms of Acting Against the Sunnah
Collective duʿāʾ after Sunnah prayers can result in:
◈ Introducing new customs into the religion
◈ Disrupting others’ prayers due to loud supplication
◈ People mistaking innovation for Sunnah, thinking it’s an essential part of the religion
📖 Imām Ibn al-Qayyim (رحمه الله) stated:
“Collective duʿāʾ after prayer did not exist during the time of the Prophet ﷺ or his companions. It is a newly invented innovation.”
(Zād al-Maʿād: 1/87)
📖 Ḥāfiẓ Ibn Ḥajar (رحمه الله) said:
“When a recommended act becomes regarded as obligatory, it turns into a reprehensible innovation.”
(Fatḥ al-Bārī: 2/270)
❺ Fatāwā of Scholars
📌 Shaykh Ibn Bāz (رحمه الله) said:
“Collective duʿāʾ after prayer is an innovation because it is not proven from the Prophet ﷺ. He used to make duʿāʾ individually after prayer.”
(Fatāwā Ibn Bāz: 1/241)
📌 Shaykh Ṣāliḥ al-Fawzān (حفظه الله) stated:
“There is no proof for collective duʿāʾ after obligatory or Sunnah prayers. It is an innovation.”
(al-Muntaqā min Fatāwā al-Fawzān: 1/257)
📌 Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah (رحمه الله) wrote:
“The Prophet ﷺ did not engage in collective duʿāʾ after prayers, nor did the companions. Therefore, it is a newly invented innovation.”
(Majmūʿ al-Fatāwā: 1/115)
✅ Conclusion:
Collective duʿāʾ after Sunnah prayers is an innovation because:
◈ It is not established from the Prophet ﷺ, the Companions, or the Successors.
◈ It constitutes a new addition to the religion, altering the boundaries of prescribed worship.
◈ It causes misconceptions among people, leading them to believe it is part of the religion.
◈ It contradicts the statement of the Prophet ﷺ:
“Every innovation is misguidance.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 867)
📌 Therefore, duʿāʾ should be made individually after Sunnah prayers, following the authentic practice of the Prophet ﷺ and his companions.
📖 Waṣallallāhu ʿalā Nabiyyinā Muḥammad wa ālihi wa ṣaḥbihi ajmaʿīn.
ھذا ما عندي واللہ أعلم بالصواب۔
