– lahu al-mulk (His is the dominion): the sovereignty that is absolute, real, and everlasting, whose existence never ends. It belongs to Him alone, to none besides Him, as the advance placement of the prepositional phrase signals exclusivity.
– lahu al-ḥamd (His is the praise): ḥamd is the intentional ascription of every praiseworthy perfection for the purpose of exaltation. It is affirmed for Him, Most High, and the prefixed position of the complement conveys restriction to Him alone.
– Allāhu akbar (Allah is greater): meaning He is more sublime and more magnificent than everything else. The object of comparison is omitted to indicate universality.
– zabad al-baḥr: zabad, with two fatḥahs and ending in dāl, refers to the foam that appears on the sea when it surges—in other words, an image of vast quantity. Ibn Ḥajar said it is a metaphor for extreme abundance.
– waḥdahu lā sharīka lah (alone, without partner): an emphatic reinforcement of the meaning of “lā ilāha illā Allah.”
– wa-huwa ʿalā kulli shayʾin qadīr (and He has power over all things): He possesses an all-encompassing, universal power.

Lessons derived from the ḥadith
1 – This remembrance is recommended after the five obligatory prayers. In Fatḥ al-Bārī it is stated that most scholars restricted it to the prescribed prayers, and the report of Kaʿb ibn ʿUjrah in Muslim elevates this restriction to the level of Prophetic instruction; it seems they understood the unrestricted texts in light of it.
2 – Accordingly, it is not recommended to adhere to this formula outside the obligatory prayers, including Jumuʿah—even though it is a congregational prayer—nor the two ʿĪds, the eclipse prayer, the prayer for rain, or tarāwīḥ, in deference to the transmitted wording.
3 – The remembrance has been transmitted in two ways:
a) to say, “Subḥān Allah, al-ḥamdu lillāh, Allāhu akbar;”
b) to say, “Subḥān Allah” thirty-three times, then “al-ḥamdu lillāh” thirty-three times, then “Allāhu akbar” thirty-three times.
The preferable practice is to alternate, performing one form at times and the other at times, so that the entire Sunnah is observed. The rule is that when acts of worship are reported in multiple forms, each form should be practiced so that one fulfills the whole Sunnah.
4 – The arrangement of these phrases in this particular order is supremely fitting: