1877 – ʿĀʾishah (may Allah be pleased with her) said: Shortly before his death the Messenger of Allah ﷺ repeatedly used to say, “Subḥānallāhi wa-biḥamdih, astaghfirullāha wa-atūbu ilayh (Glory and praise belong to Allah; I seek Allah’s forgiveness and repent to Him).” Agreed upon.

[Explanation]
Imām al-Nawawī, may Allah have mercy on him, included these reports in Riyāḍ al-Ṣāliḥīn under the Chapter on Seeking Forgiveness. Among them is the ḥadīth of Shaddād ibn Aws in which the Prophet ﷺ said, “The master formula of seeking forgiveness”—that is, the most noble and superior wording—is to say:

“Allahumma anta rabbī, lā ilāha illā anta. Khalaqtanī wa-anā ʿabduka, wa-anā ʿalā ʿahdika wa-waʿdika ma-staṭaʿt. Aʿūdhu bika min sharri mā ṣanaʿt. Abūʾu laka bi-niʿmatika ʿalayya, wa-abūʾu bi-dhanbī. Faghfir lī, fa-innahu lā yaghfiru al-dhunūba illā anta.”

Whoever recites it in the morning with full certainty and dies before evening enters Paradise; and whoever recites it in the evening with full certainty and dies before morning enters Paradise.

He called it “the master formula” because it surpasses all other invocations in worth. When one says, “Allahumma anta rabbī wa-anā ʿabduka” (O Allah, You are my Lord and I am Your servant), he affirms—both with tongue and heart—that Allah is his Lord: the One who owns him, disposes of his affairs, and cares for his state, while he himself is Allah’s slave in both the universal and the prescriptive sense.

In the universal sense, Allah may do with him whatever He wills: if He wills, He makes him ill or grants him health; enriches him or impoverishes him; lets him stray or guides him—each in keeping with His perfect wisdom. In the prescriptive sense, the servant worships Allah through what He has commanded, fulfilling His orders and shunning His prohibitions. All of this is acknowledged when he says, “O Allah, You are my Lord and I am Your servant. You created me, and I remain upon Your covenant and promise as best I can.”

Thus he admits that Allah brought him forth from non-existence, and that he stands upon Allah’s covenant and promise to the extent of his ability: upon His covenant, for every human being has pledged to Allah that he will act according to the knowledge granted him—“And when Allah took the covenant of those who had been given the Scripture …”