when you entered your garden you had said, “Whatever Allah wills; there is no power except through Allah.” That would have been better for you, and your garden would have remained safe from ruin. This short formula is truly momentous. The Prophet ﷺ even said to ʿAbd Allah ibn Qays, Abu Musa al-Ashʿari—may Allah be pleased with him—“Shall I not show you a treasure from the treasures of Paradise?” He replied, “Indeed, do so.” The Prophet said, “La hawla wa la quwwata illa billah.”

Accordingly, when the muʾadhin proclaims, “Hayya ʿala as-salah, hayya ʿala al-falah,” we respond, “La hawla wa la quwwata illa billah.” When, at the dawn prayer, he adds, “As-salah khayrun min an-nawm” (prayer is better than sleep), we repeat, “As-salah khayrun min an-nawm.” When he says, “Allahu akbar,” we say, “Allahu akbar,” and when he says, “La ilaha illa Allah,” we say, “La ilaha illa Allah.”

After that we invoke blessings upon the Prophet ﷺ, saying, “O Allah, bless Muhammad,” for whoever invokes one blessing upon him, Allah in return blesses that person ten times. We then ask Allah to grant him al-wasilah, saying: “O Allah, Lord of this perfect call and of the prayer about to be established, grant Muhammad al-wasilah and al-fadilah and raise him to the praised station You have promised him; surely You never break Your promise.”

When we have sent blessings upon the Prophet and asked Allah to grant him al-wasilah, his intercession becomes due for us—meaning the intercession of the Prophet ﷺ. Al-wasilah is the highest rank in Paradise, a station befitting only one servant of Allah. The Prophet ﷺ said, “I hope I will be that servant,” and—God willing—this hope will certainly be fulfilled, for we know that he is the finest of all creation.