Sayyid al-Istighfār
The master of seeking forgiveness
اللَّهُمَّ أَنْتَ رَبِّي لاَ إِلَٰهَ إِلاَّ أَنْتَ، خَلَقْتَنِي وَأَنَا عَبْدُكَ، وَأَنَا عَلَىٰ عَهْدِكَ وَوَعْدِكَ مَا اسْتَطَعْتُ، أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ شَرِّ مَا صَنَعْتُ، أَبُوءُ لَكَ بِنِعْمَتِكَ عَلَيَّ، وَأَبُوءُ بِذَنْبِي فَاغْفِرْ لِي فَإِنَّهُ لاَ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ إِلاَّ أَنْتَ
Allāhumma anta Rabbī lā ilāha illā anta, khalaqtanī wa anā ʿabduka, wa anā ʿalā ʿahdika wa waʿdika mā istaṭaʿtu, aʿūdhu bika min sharri mā ṣanaʿtu, abūʾu laka bi-niʿmatika ʿalayya, wa abūʾu bi-dhanbī fa-ghfir lī fa-innahu lā yaghfiru adh-dhunūba illā anta.
"O Allah, You are my Lord, there is no god but You. You created me and I am Your servant. I abide by Your covenant and Your promise as best I can. I seek refuge in You from the evil I have done. I acknowledge Your favor upon me, and I acknowledge my sin — so forgive me, for none forgives sins but You."
Source: Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 6306
The Prophet ﷺ said: whoever says this during the day with conviction and dies that day before evening is among the people of Paradise; whoever says it at night with conviction and dies before morning is among the people of Paradise.
Where the scholars teach this duʿāʾ.
-
"between acknowledging the grace and recognizing the faults of oneself and one's deeds. This is akin to the saying of the Prophet, peace be upon him, in the authentic Hadith. The master of seeking forgiveness is for the servant to say, O Allah, You are my Lord, there is no deity but You. You created me, and I am Your servant, and I am bound by Your covenant and promise as much as I can."
— Ibn al-Qayyim, The Wholesome Rain of Good Words
-
"They acknowledge His favor upon them and their sin, asking Him to forgive them, for no one forgives sins except Him. This is why this supplication is the master of seeking forgiveness, as it embodies pure servitude. What good deed remains for the insightful and truthful person, with their witnessing of their self's faults and deeds, and اللّٰه's grace upon them?"
— Ibn al-Qayyim, Volume One
-
"As in the authentic حَدِيث: "The master of seeking forgiveness is for the servant to say: 'O اللّٰه, You are my Lord, there is no deity but You...'" and "Jihad is the peak of the matter." Only those with insight and truthfulness, who place deeds in their proper places, can overcome this obstacle. If one escapes this, there remains one inevitable obstacle."
— Ibn al-Qayyim, Volume One