Saying "Indeed, to Allah we belong and to Him we return" upon calamity
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
The issue of saying[Al-Baqarah 2:156] and whether it is obligatory upon calamity: is this specific to worldly calamities, or does it also apply to religious ones? For example, if one does not complete his prayer, does he say "Indeed, to Allah we belong and to Him we return, O Allah, give me patience in my calamity and replace it for me with something better"?
Answer:
No. If the calamity is the loss of a child or a relative, or the missing of a great act of worship, there is no harm in saying[Al-Baqarah 2:156]. For instance, if one misses a prayer, that is undoubtedly a calamity, and he says "Indeed, to Allah we belong and to Him we return." As for minor, ordinary calamities, it is not appropriate to say this for them; it is for great calamities: a calamity in religion, a calamity in this world, a calamity to oneself, or a calamity to a relative—great calamities.
The issue of saying
Indeed we belong to Allah, and indeed to Him we will return."
إِنَّا لِلَّهِ وَإِنَّا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعُونَAnswer:
No. If the calamity is the loss of a child or a relative, or the missing of a great act of worship, there is no harm in saying
Indeed we belong to Allah, and indeed to Him we will return."
إِنَّا لِلَّهِ وَإِنَّا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعُونَ
Source
شرح بلوغ المرام من أدلة الأحكام [ صالح الفوزان ]، تتمة باب سجود السهو وغيره — islamhouse.com (1:03:42)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.