Striving to offer du’aa’ at the appropriate times during the prayer, especially in sujood

There is no doubt that talking to Allah, humbling oneself before Him, asking things from Him and earnestly seeking His help, all help to strengthen the slave’s ties to his Lord and increase his khushoo’. Du’aa’ is an act of worship, and we are commanded to make du’aa’. Allah says (interpretation of the meaning): “… call upon Him in humility and in secret…” [Surah al-An’am 6:63]. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “Whoever does not call on Allah, Allah will be angry with him.” (Reported by al-Tirmidhi, Kitaab al-Da’waat, 1/426; classed as hasan in Saheeh al-Tirmidhi, 2686).

It was reported that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) used to make du’aa’ at specific places in the prayer, i.e., in sujood, between the two prostrations and after the Tashahhud. The greatest of these is in sujood, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, “The closest that the slave can be to his Lord is when he is prostrating, so increase your du’aa’ [at that time].” (Reported by Muslim, Kitaab al-Salaah, Baab maa yuqaalu fi’l-rukoo’ wa’l-sujood. No. 215). And he said: “… As for sujood, strive hard to make du’aa’ in it, for it is bound to be answered for you.” (Reported by Muslim, Kitaab al-Salaah, Baab al-Nahy ‘an qiraa’at al-Qur’aan fi’l rukoo’ wa’l-sujood, no. 207).

One of the du’aa’s which the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) used to recite in his sujood was: “Allahumma’ghfir li dhanbi diqqahu wa jillahu wa awwalahu wa aakhirahu wa ‘alaaniyatahu wa sirrahu (O Allah, forgive me my sins, the minor and the major, the first and the last, the open and the hidden).” (Reported by Muslim, Kitaab al-Salaah, Baab ma yuqaalu fi’l-rukoo’ wa’l-sujood, no. 216). He also used to say, “Allahumma’ghfir li maa asrartu wa maa a’lantu (O Allah, forgive me what I have done in secret and done openly).” (Reported by al-Nisaa'i, al-Mujtabaa, 2/569; Saheeh al-Jaami’, 1067).

We have already described some of the du’aa’s that he used to recite between the two sajdahs. (See section 11).

One of the things that he (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) used to recite after the Tashahhud is what we learn from the hadeeth: “When any one of you finishes the Tashahhud, let him seek refuge with Allah from four things, from the punishment of Hell, from the punishment of the grave, from the trials (fitnah) of life and death, and from the evil of the Dajjal (‘Antichrist’).” He used to say, “Allahumma innee a’oodhu bika min sharri maa ‘amiltu wa min sharri maa lam a’mal (O Allah, I seek refuge with You from the evil of what I have done and the evil of what I have not done).”

“Allahumma haasibni hisaaban yaseeran (O Allah, make my accounting easy).”

He taught Abu Bakr al-Siddeeq (may Allah be pleased with him) to say, “Allahumma innee zalamtu nafsi zulman katheeran, wa la yaghfir al-dhunooba illa anta, faghfir li maghfiratan min ‘indaka warhamni innaka anta al-Ghafoor al-Raheem (O Allah, I have wronged myself very much, and no one can forgive sin but You. Grant me forgiveness from You and have mercy on me, for You are the All-Forgiving, Most Merciful).”

He heard a man saying in his Tashahhud: “Allahumma inne as’aluka yaa Allah al-Ahad al-Samad alladhi lam yalid wa lam yoolad wa lam yakum lahu kufuwan ahad an taghfir li dhunoobi innaka anta’l-Ghafoor al-Raheem (O Allah, I ask You O Allah, the One, the Self-Sufficient Master, Who begets not neither is begotten, and there is none like unto Him, to forgive me my sins, for You are the All-Forgiving, Most Merciful).” He (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said to his companions: “He has been forgiven, he has been forgiven.”

He heard another man saying, “Allahumma innee as’aluka bi-anna laka’l-hamd, laa ilaaha ill anta wahdaka laa shareeka lak al-Mannaan yaa badee’ al-samawaati wa’l-ard, yaa dhaa’l-jalaali wa’l-ikraam, ya hayyu yaa qayyoom, innee as’aluka al-jannah wa a’oodhu bika min al-naar (O Allah, I ask You as all praise is due to You, there is no god but You Alone, with no partner or associate, the Bestower, O Originator of the heavens and earth, O Possessor of Glory and Honour, O Ever-Living, O Self-Sustaining, I ask You for Paradise and I seek refuge with You from Hell).” The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said to his companions: “Do you know by what did he ask Allah?” They said, “Allah and His Messenger know best.” He said, “By the One in Whose hand is my soul, he asked Allah by His greatest Name (ismuhu’l-a’zam) which, when He is called by it, He responds, and if He is asked by it, He gives.”

The last thing he would say between the Tashahhud and the Tasleem was: “Allahumma’aghfir li maa qaddamtu wa ma akhkhartu wa maa asrartu wa maa a’lantu wa maa asraftu wa maa anta a’lam bihi minni anta’l-muqaddim wa anta’l-mu’akhkhir, laa ilaaha illa anta (O Allah, forgive me what I have done in the past, and what I will do in the future, and what I have concealed, and what I have done openly, and what I have exceeded in, whatever You know about more than I. You are the Bringer-Forward, and You are the Delayer, there is no god except You).”

(These du’aa’s and others, along with their isnaads, are to be found in Sifat al-Salaah by al-‘Allamah al-Albaani, p.163, 11th edn.)

Memorizing du’aa’s like these will solve the problem that some people have of remaining silent behind the imam when they have finished the Tashahhud because they do not know what they should say.