The Prayer of Istikharah, Its Supplication, and When It Is Prescribed
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Question:
The questioner says: Peace be upon you, Shaykh Salih. When is the supplication for the prayer of istikharah recited? Is it for all acts of worship and obedience?
Answer:
For matters that are clear in their benefit, there is no need for istikharah, because their merit and their value in the Shari'ah are well known. It is only for matters in which a person hesitates between doing them or leaving them, and neither option seems preferable to him, that he prays the prayer of istikharah, two rak'ahs, and then says after the two rak'ahs: Sahih al-Bukhari 6382. Yes.
The questioner says: Peace be upon you, Shaykh Salih. When is the supplication for the prayer of istikharah recited? Is it for all acts of worship and obedience?
Answer:
For matters that are clear in their benefit, there is no need for istikharah, because their merit and their value in the Shari'ah are well known. It is only for matters in which a person hesitates between doing them or leaving them, and neither option seems preferable to him, that he prays the prayer of istikharah, two rak'ahs, and then says after the two rak'ahs:
O Allah, You know and I do not know, You have power and I do not have power, and You are the All-Powerful over all things, and You are the Knower of the unseen. O Allah, if there is good in this matter for me in my religion, my worldly life, my livelihood, and my hereafter, then decree it for me and help me to attain it. And if there is evil in it, then turn it away from me and turn me away from it,
اللهم إنك تعلم ولا أعلم، تقدر ولا أقدر، وأنت على كل شيء قدير، وأنت علام الغيوب، اللهم إن كان في هذا الأمر خير لي في ديني ودنياي ومعاشي ومعادي فاقدره لي وأعني عليه، وإن كان فيه شر فاصرفه عني واصرفني عنه،wa aqdur li alkhaira haithu kana
أقدر لي الخير حيث كان
Source
قناة «السعودية»، برنامج فتاوى — youtube.com (24:52)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.