that the author confined himself to this wording for the sake of brevity. In any case, this wording may be expressed in four forms:
The first form: “Our Lord, and to You belongs all praise.” (1)
The second form: “Our Lord, to You belongs all praise.” (2)
The third form: “O Allah, our Lord, to You belongs all praise.” (3)
The fourth form: “O Allah, our Lord, and to You belongs all praise.” (4)
Each of these forms is sufficient. However, what is preferable is to say one of them at times and another at other times, in accordance with the principle we mentioned earlier: when acts of worship have been transmitted in a variety of forms, it is preferable to perform them in all those forms. We mentioned that this has three benefits: (5)
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Preserving the sunnah.
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Following the sunnah.
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Presence of heart.
For when a person consistently adheres to one wording, he becomes like a machine, saying it without awareness. But when he varies the wording—saying one form at times and another at other times—this is more conducive to the presence of his heart.