Supplications for the Opening of the Prayer
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
The questioner says: Is it said that the opening supplication, "Allah is the Greatest, the Greatest, and praise is to Allah, much praise," and so on, is to be recited in the obligatory prayers, or only in the voluntary ones?
Answer:
The takbirat al-ihram is "Allah is the Greatest," and nothing is added to it. One does not say "the Great Takbir" or "Glory be to Allah, the Greatest." Rather, one recites the takbirat al-ihram, "Allah is the Greatest," and then comes this opening supplication. These opening supplications were transmitted from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), the most authentic and most frequent of which is: "Glory is to You, O Allah, and praise, Blessed are You and Exalted, and there is no god but You."Jami` at-Tirmidhi 3452Sahih (Darussalam), "In the name of Allah, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate," and then he recites the chapter.
And in his tahajjud at night, if he said. This too was transmitted from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in his tahajjud at night. Mishkat al-Masabih 813 regarding that, and I am not the first of the Muslims. This too was transmitted from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him).
And Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) has a separate treatise explaining the types of opening supplications transmitted from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). Let the student of knowledge refer to it; it is published separately, and it is published in the *Majmu' al-Fatawa*.
The questioner says: Is it said that the opening supplication, "Allah is the Greatest, the Greatest, and praise is to Allah, much praise," and so on, is to be recited in the obligatory prayers, or only in the voluntary ones?
Answer:
The takbirat al-ihram is "Allah is the Greatest," and nothing is added to it. One does not say "the Great Takbir" or "Glory be to Allah, the Greatest." Rather, one recites the takbirat al-ihram, "Allah is the Greatest," and then comes this opening supplication. These opening supplications were transmitted from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), the most authentic and most frequent of which is: "Glory is to You, O Allah, and praise, Blessed are You and Exalted, and there is no god but You."
I seek refuge in Allah from Shaitan, the rejected (A`ūdhu billāhi minash-shaiṭānir-rajīm).
أعوذ بالله من الشيطان الرجيمAnd in his tahajjud at night, if he said
O Allah, Lord of Jibril, Ismail, and Israel, Creator of the heavens and the earth, Knower of the unseen and the witnessed, You judge between Your servants in that over which they differ. Guide me to the truth in that over which they differ by Your permission. Indeed, You guide whom You will to a straight path.
اللهم رب جبرائيل وإسماعيل وإسرائيل، فاطر السماوات والأرض، عالم الغيب والشهادة، فتحكم بين عبادك فيما كانوا فيه يختلفون، اهد إلى ما اختلف فيه من الحق بإذنك، إنك تهدي من تشاء إلى صراط مستقيمI have turned my face as a hanif * towards Him who created the heavens and the earth, and I am not a polytheist. My prayer and my devotion, my life and my death belong to God the Lord of the universe, who has no partner
وجهت وجهي للذي فطر السماوات والأرض حنيفا وما أنا من المشركين إن صلاتي ونسكي ومحياي ومماتي لله رب العالمين لا شريك لهAnd Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) has a separate treatise explaining the types of opening supplications transmitted from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). Let the student of knowledge refer to it; it is published separately, and it is published in the *Majmu' al-Fatawa*.
Source
75-اللقاء الأسبوعي مع الشيخ صالح الفوزان - 22 — archive.org (18:59)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.