[Week 7] Building a Relationship: Varying Supplications in Salat

Asalamu 'alaikum!

Bismillah wa'lhamdolilah wassalatu wassalam 'ala Rasool Allah sallalahu alayhi wasalam

For the most part, or at least from my personal experience, from childhood salat was always made to seem very rigid; one way of doing it, no variation, very systematic. And since we were never taught these variations, salat just ended up becoming a thoughtless set of actions, repeating the same things over and over again. However, as I grew older I realized that there is a lot of variation in salat, a lot that we can do to really build that relationship Allah throughout our salat.

The Prophet sallalahu alayhi wasalam would commence his recitation with many kinds of supplications in which he would praise Allaah the Exalted, and glorify and extol Him. He in fact ordered "the man who prayed badly" to do so, saying to him: No person's prayer is complete unless he says takbeer, praises Allaah the Mighty and Sublime and extols Him, recites of the Qur'aan what is easy for him ...

From this we gather that the Prophet sallalahu alayhi wasalam would start his salat with a variety of different supplications...not just one!

The most common supplication that is recited is the following:

Subhanaka Allahumma wa bihamdika wa tabaraka'smuka
wa ta'ala jadduka wa la ilaha ghayruka

You are Glorified, O Allaah, and Praised; Your Name is Blessed;
Your Majesty is Exalted, and none has the right to worshipped but You

However, do you know there are other supplications that can be made? Using different supplications will allow you to build a closer relationship with Allah and it will definitely make salat more enjoyable for the believers.

Try some of these other supplications from the traditions of our beloved Prophet sallalahu alayhi wasalam:

Allahu akbaru kabeera walhamdolilahi katheera wa subhanallahi bukrtann wa asiya

Allaah is the Greatest, very great. Praise be to Allaah, again and again. Glorified is Allaah morning and evening

One of the Companions commenced with this, to which the Messenger (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) said: Wonderful for it is that the doors of the heavens were opened for it (Muslim)

Alhamdolilahi hamdann katheeran tayyiban mubarakann fee

Praise be to Allaah, many, pure, blessed praises.

Another man commenced with this, to which he (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) said: I saw twelve angels competing as to which of them would take it up (Muslim)

And there are many more supplications which can be found in traditions of our beloved Prophet sallalahu alayhi wasalam. I recommend memorizing a few and inshallah switch up the use of them so you can take your prayers out of the same monotonous routine.

All of these supplications are taken from Shaykh Albani's book entitled, "The Prophets Prayer Described" which can be viewed by clicking here.

May Allah give us the tawfeeq to understand, implement, and teach others.