The Book of Forgetfulness (In Prayer)

‘Ubayd ibn Waki‘ ibn al-Jarrah, the brother of Sufyan ibn Waki‘, informed us: He said: My father narrated to us, from ‘Ikrimah ibn ‘Ammar, from Ishaq ibn ‘Abd Allah ibn Abi Talhah, from Anas ibn Malik, who said: Umm Sulaym came to the Prophet (ﷺ) and said, “O Messenger of Allah, teach me words with which I may supplicate during my prayer.” He said: “Glorify Allah ten times, praise Him ten times, and proclaim His greatness ten times; then ask Him for what you need. He will say, ‘Yes, yes.’”

Qutaybah narrated to us: Khalaf ibn Khalifah narrated to us, from Hafs, the nephew of Anas, from Anas ibn Malik, who said: I was sitting with the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ)—that is, sitting—while a man stood praying. When he bowed, prostrated, and recited the tashahhud, he supplicated, saying: “O Allah, I ask You, for all praise belongs to You. There is no deity but You, the Bestower, Originator of the heavens and the earth, Possessor of majesty and honor, O Ever-Living, O Sustainer. I ask You.” The Prophet (ﷺ) said to his companions, “Do you know what he supplicated with?” They said, “Allah and His Messenger know best.” He said: “By the One in whose hand is my soul, he called upon Allah by His great name: when He is called upon by it, He responds, and when He is asked by it, He gives.”

‘Amr ibn Yazid Abu Burayd al-Basri narrated to us, from ‘Abd al-Samad ibn ‘Abd al-Warith, who said: My father narrated to us: Husayn al-Mu‘allim narrated to us, from Ibn Buraydah, who said: Hanzalah ibn ‘Ali narrated to me that Mihjan ibn al-Adra‘ told him that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) entered the mosque and found a man who had finished his prayer and was reciting the tashahhud. He said: “O Allah, I ask You, O Allah, by the fact that You are the One, the Unique, the Self-Sufficient; You neither beget nor are begotten, and none is comparable to You: forgive me my sins. You are indeed the All-Forgiving, the Most Merciful.” The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: “He has been forgiven,” three times.

Qutaybah ibn Sa‘id narrated to us: al-Layth narrated to us, from Yazid ibn Abi Habib, from Abu al-Khayr, from ‘Abd Allah ibn ‘Amr, from Abu Bakr al-Siddiq—may Allah be pleased with them both—that he said to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), “Teach me a supplication that I may make in my prayer.” He said: “Say: ‘O Allah, I have greatly wronged myself, and none forgives sins except You. So grant me forgiveness from Yourself and have mercy on me. You are indeed the All-Forgiving, the Most Merciful.’”

Yunus ibn ‘Abd al-A‘la narrated to us: Ibn Wahb narrated to us, saying: I heard Haywah relate from ‘Uqbah ibn Muslim, from Abu ‘Abd al-Rahman al-Hubuli, from al-Sunabihi, from Mu‘adh ibn Jabal, who said: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) took my hand and said, “I love you, O Mu‘adh.” I said, “And I love you, O Messenger of Allah.” The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: “Do not fail to say in every prayer: ‘My Lord, help me to remember You, thank You, and worship You well.’”

Abu Dawud narrated to us: Sulayman ibn Harb narrated to us: Hammad ibn Salamah narrated to us, from Sa‘id al-Jurayri, from Abu al-‘Ala’, from Shaddad ibn Aws, that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) used to say in his prayer: “O Allah, I ask You for steadfastness in the matter and resolve to follow right guidance. I ask You to make me grateful for Your blessing and to worship You well. I ask You for a sound heart and a truthful tongue. I ask You for the best of what You know; I seek refuge in You from the evil of what You know; and I seek Your forgiveness for what You know.”

Yahya ibn Habib ibn ‘Arabi narrated to us: Hammad narrated to us: ‘Ata’ ibn al-Sa’ib narrated to us, from his father, who said: ‘Ammar ibn Yasir led us in prayer and made it brief. Some of the people said to him, “You have made the prayer light—or brief.” He replied, “Even so, I made supplications during it that I heard from the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ).” When he got up, a man from the group followed him—he was my father, though he referred to himself indirectly—and asked him about the supplication. Then he came back and told the people: “O Allah, by Your knowledge of the unseen and Your power over creation, keep me alive as long as You know that life is good for me, and cause me to die when You know that death is good for me. O Allah, I ask You for reverent fear of You in private and in public; for a word of truth in times of contentment and anger; for moderation in poverty and wealth; for bliss that does not end; for comfort that never ceases; for contentment after Your decree; for the comfort of life after death; and for the joy of looking upon Your face and the longing to meet You, without harmful adversity or a misguiding trial. O Allah, adorn us with the adornment of faith and make us guides who are rightly guided.”

‘Ubayd Allah ibn Sa‘d ibn Ibrahim ibn Sa‘d narrated to us: My uncle narrated to us: Sharik narrated to us, from Abu Hashim al-Wasiti, from Abu Majliz, from Qays ibn ‘Ubad, who said: ‘Ammar ibn Yasir led the people in prayer and made it brief, so they seemed to disapprove. He asked, “Did I not complete the bowing and prostration?” They said, “Yes.” He said: “I made during it a supplication that the Prophet (ﷺ) used to make: ‘O Allah, by Your knowledge of the unseen and Your power over creation, keep me alive as long as You know that life is good for me, and cause me to die when You know that death is good for me. I ask You for reverent fear of You in private and in public, and for sincerity in speech in times of contentment and anger. I ask You for bliss that does not end, comfort that never ceases, contentment with Your decree, and the comfort of life after death. I ask You for the joy of looking upon Your face and the longing to meet You. I seek refuge in You from harmful adversity and a misguiding trial. O Allah, adorn us with the adornment of faith and make us guides who are rightly guided.’”

Ishaq ibn Ibrahim narrated to us: Jarir narrated to us, from Mansur, from Hilal ibn Yasaf, from Farwah ibn Nawfal, who said: I said to ‘Aishah, “Tell me of a supplication that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) used to make in his prayer.” She said, “Yes. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) used to say: ‘O Allah, I seek refuge in You from the evil of what I have done and from the evil of what I have not done.’”

Muhammad ibn Bashshar narrated to us, from Muhammad, who said: Shu‘bah narrated to us, from Ash‘ath, from his father, from Masruq, from ‘Aishah—may Allah be pleased with her—who said: I asked the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) about the punishment of the grave. He said, “Yes, the punishment of the grave is real.” ‘Aishah said: After that, I never saw the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) pray without seeking refuge from the punishment of the grave.

‘Amr ibn ‘Uthman narrated to us: My father narrated to us, from Shu‘ayb, from al-Zuhri, who said: ‘Urwah ibn al-Zubayr informed me that ‘Aishah told him the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) used to supplicate during prayer: “O Allah, I seek refuge in You from the punishment of the grave; from the trial of the False Messiah; and from the trials of life and death. O Allah, I seek refuge in You from sin and debt.” Someone said to him, “How often you seek refuge from debt!” He replied, “When a man becomes indebted, he speaks and lies, and makes a promise and breaks it.”

Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allah ibn ‘Ammar al-Mawsili informed me, from al-Mu‘afa, from al-Awza‘i. Another chain: ‘Ali ibn Khashram informed us, from ‘Isa ibn Yunus—and these are his words—from al-Awza‘i, from Hassan ibn ‘Atiyyah, from Muhammad ibn Abi ‘Aishah, who said: I heard Abu Hurayrah say that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: “When one of you recites the tashahhud, let him seek refuge in Allah from four things: the punishment of Hell, the punishment of the grave, the trials of life and death, and the evil of the False Messiah. Then let him supplicate for himself with whatever he wishes.”

‘Amr ibn ‘Ali narrated to us: Yahya narrated to us, from Ja‘far ibn Muhammad, from his father, from Jabir, that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) used to say in his prayer after the tashahhud: “The best words are the words of Allah, and the best guidance is the guidance of Muhammad (ﷺ).”

Ahmad ibn Sulayman informed us: Yahya ibn Adam narrated to us: Malik—who is Ibn Mighwal—narrated to us, from Talhah ibn Musarrif, from Zayd ibn Wahb, from Hudhayfah, who saw a man praying carelessly. Hudhayfah asked him, “How long have you been praying this prayer?” He said, “For forty years.” Hudhayfah said, “You have not truly prayed for forty years. If you were to die while praying in this manner, you would die following a way other than the way of Muhammad (ﷺ).” Then he said: “A person can make his prayer brief while still completing it and performing it well.”

Qutaybah informed us; he said: Al-Layth narrated to us, from Ibn ‘Ajlan, from ‘Ali—namely, Ibn Yahya—from his father, from an uncle of his who had fought at Badr, who told him: A man entered the mosque and prayed while the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) watched him, though we were unaware. When he finished, he came over and greeted the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). He said, “Go back and pray, for you have not prayed.” The man went back and prayed, then came to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), who said, “Go back and pray, for you have not prayed”—twice or three times. The man said to him, “By the One who honored you, O Messenger of Allah, I have exerted myself; teach me.” He said: “When you get up intending to pray, perform ablution and do it well. Then face the Qiblah and say the takbir. Then recite, then bow, being at ease in your bowing. Then rise until you are standing upright. Then prostrate, being at ease in your prostration. Then rise until you are at ease sitting. Then prostrate, being at ease in your prostration. Then rise, and do that in this manner until you have finished your prayer.”

Suwayd ibn Nasr informed us; he said: ‘Abdullah ibn al-Mubarak narrated to us, from Dawud ibn Qays, who said: ‘Ali ibn Yahya ibn Khallad ibn Rafi‘ ibn Malik al-Ansari narrated to me; he said: My father narrated to me, from an uncle of his who had fought at Badr, who said: I was sitting with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) in the mosque when a man entered and prayed two rak‘ahs. Then he came and greeted the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). The Prophet had been watching him during his prayer. He returned his greeting, then said to him, “Go back and pray, for you have not prayed.” The man went back and prayed, then came and greeted the Prophet. He returned his greeting, then said, “Go back and pray, for you have not prayed,” until it was the third or fourth time. The man said, “By the One who sent down the Book to you, I have exerted myself and tried hard. Show me and teach me.” He said: “When you intend to pray, perform ablution and do it well. Then face the Qiblah and say the takbir. Then recite, then bow until you are at ease in your bowing. Then rise until you are standing upright. Then prostrate until you are at ease in your prostration. Then rise until you are at ease sitting. Then prostrate until you are at ease in your prostration. Then rise. When you have completed your prayer in this way, it is complete; whatever you omit from this diminishes your prayer.”

Muhammad ibn Bashshar informed us; he said: Yahya narrated to us, from Sa‘id, from Qatadah, from Zurara ibn Awfa, from Sa‘d ibn Hisham, who said: I said, “Mother of the Believers, tell me about the Witr prayer of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him).” She said: “We would prepare his tooth-stick and water for purification. Then Allah would wake him at whatever time of the night He willed. He would use the tooth-stick, perform ablution, and pray eight rak‘ahs, sitting during none of them except at the eighth. He would sit, remember Allah, Mighty and Majestic, and supplicate. Then he would say the salutation aloud enough for us to hear.”

Muhammad ibn Isma‘il ibn Ibrahim informed us; he said: Sulayman—meaning Ibn Dawud al-Hashimi—narrated to us; he said: Ibrahim—namely, Ibn Sa‘d—narrated to us; he said: ‘Abdullah ibn Ja‘far—namely, Ibn al-Miswar al-Makhzumi—narrated to me, from Isma‘il ibn Muhammad, who said: ‘Amir ibn Sa‘d narrated to me, from his father, that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) would say the salutation to his right and to his left.

Ishaq ibn Ibrahim informed us; he said: Abu ‘Amir al-‘Aqadi narrated to us; he said: ‘Abdullah ibn Ja‘far al-Makhzumi narrated to us, from Isma‘il ibn Muhammad ibn Sa‘d, from ‘Amir ibn Sa‘d, from Sa‘d, who said: I used to see the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say the salutation to his right and left, until the whiteness of his cheek could be seen. Abu ‘Abd al-Rahman said: ‘Abdullah ibn Ja‘far is acceptable, but ‘Abdullah ibn Ja‘far ibn Najih, the father of ‘Ali ibn al-Madini, is abandoned in hadith.

‘Amr ibn Mansur informed us; he said: Abu Nu‘aym narrated to us, from Mis‘ar, from ‘Ubaydullah ibn al-Qibtiyyah, who said: I heard Jabir ibn Samurah say: When we prayed behind the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), we would say, “Peace be upon you, peace be upon you,” and Mis‘ar gestured with his hand to his right and left. He said: “What is the matter with these people, gesturing with their hands as if they were the tails of restless horses? Is it not enough for a person to place his hand on his thigh, then greet his brother to his right and left?”