Encyclopedia of Prophetic Hadiths

When the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) made Takbīr in the prayer, he would remain silent a while before reciting. I said: O Messenger of Allah, may my father and mother ransom you! Have you seen your silence between Takbīr and the recitation? What is it that you say? He said: "I say: Allāhumma bā‘id bayni wa bayna khatāyāy kama bā‘dta bayna al-mashriqi wa al-maghrib. Allāhumma naqqini min khatāyāy kama yunaqqa ath-thawbu al-abyadu min ad-danas. Allāhumma ighsilni min khatāyāy bith-thalji wa al-mā’i wa al-barad (O Allah, distance me from my sins as You have distanced the east from the west. O Allah, purify me from my sins as a white garment is purified from dirt. O Allah, wash out my sins with water, snow, and hail)."

When the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) finished his prayer, he would seek Allah’s forgiveness three times and say: "Allahumma anta as-salām wa minka as-salām, tabārakta yadha al-jalāl wa al-ikrām (O Allah, You are As-Salām (peace, perfection), and as-salām comes from You. Blessed are You, O Possessor of Glory and Honor)". Al-Walīd said: I said to Al-Awzā‘i: "How is the seeking of forgiveness?" He said: "You say: Astaghfirullāh, astaghfirullāh (I seek forgiveness from Allah, I seek forgiveness from Allah)."

When the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) raised his back from Rukū‘ (bowing), he would say: "Sami‘a allāhu liman hamidah, allāhumma rabbana laka al-hamd mil’a as-samawāt wa mil’a al-ard wa mil’a ma shi’ta min shay’in ba‘d" (Allah hears he who praises Him. O Allah, our Lord, to You is the praise as much as fills the heavens, as much as fills the earth, and as much as fills whatever You will thereafter).

"Whoever glorifies Allah directly after each prayer thirty-three times, praises Allah thirty-three times, and proclaims the greatness of Allah thirty-three times, these are ninety-nine, and completes one hundred by saying: La ilāha illallāh wahdahu la sharīka lah, lahu al-mulku wa lahu al-hamdu wa huwa ‘ala kulli shay’in qadīr (There is no god except Allah. He is One and has no partner with Him. To Him belongs sovereignty and to Him belongs praise, and He is Omnipotent over everything), his sins will be forgiven even if they are like the sea foam."

Ibn az-Zubayr (may Allah be pleased with him) used to say after every prayer after making taslīm: “Lā ilāha illa Allah wahdahu lā sharīka lahu, lahu al-mulk wa lahu al-hamd wa huwa ‘ala kolli shay‘in qadīr; lā hawla wa lā quwwata illa billāh, lā ilāha illa Allah, wa lā na‘budu illa iyyāh, lahu an-ni‘mah wa al-fadl, wa lahu ath-thanā’ al-hasan; lā ilāha illa Allah, mukhlisīn lahu ad-dīn wa law kariha al-kāfirūn (There is no god but Allah, alone, with no partner. To Him belongs the dominion, and praise is due to Him, and He has power over all things. There is no power or strength except through Allah. There is no god but Allah, and we worship none but Him. To Him belongs the blessing, to Him belongs the grace, and to Him belongs all excellent praise. There is no god but Allah; we are sincerely devoted to Him, even if the disbelievers may dislike it)." And he said: "The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) used to celebrate Allah’s oneness with these words after every prayer."

The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) did not offer a prayer after the revelation of {When there comes Allah’s help and the conquest} [Surat an-Nasr: 1] except that he would say therein: "Subhānaka Rabbana wa bihamdik, Allāhumma ighfir li (Glory and praise be to You, our Lord. O Allah, forgive me)".

One night I did not find the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) in bed, and as I groped for him, my hand fell over the sole of his feet, while he was in the mosque, and they were held erect. He was saying: "O Allah, I seek refuge with Your pleasure from Your wrath, and with Your pardon from Your punishment, and I seek refuge with You from You. I cannot enumerate praise of you; You are as You have praised Yourself."

The Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) used to say after every obligatory prayer: "Lā ilāh illa Allah, wahdahu lā sharīka lah, lahu al-mulku wa lahu al-hamdu wa huwa ‘ala koll shay’in qadīr, allahumma lā māni‘a lima a‘tayt wa lā mu‘tiya lima mana‘ta wa la banfa‘u dha al-jaddi minka al-jadd" (There is no god but Allah, alone, with no partner with Him. To Him belongs the dominion and to Him praise is due, and He is Able to do all things. O Allah, none can withhold what You give and none can give what You withhold, and riches cannot avail a wealthy person against You).