I said to him, “Did not the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say, ‘Then let him choose from the supplication whatever he wishes’?” He replied, “He should choose only from what has been transmitted in the report.” I pressed him again, and he said, “Whatever is in the report.” Ibn Taymiyyah cites this—copied from his own hand—in Majmuʿ (69/218/1) and approves of it, saying: “The definite article in ‘the supplication’ refers to the supplication beloved to Allah, not to the generic act of supplication.” He then added: “The sounder wording is to say: except with the prescribed, Sunnah-based supplication—that which is borne out by the reports and is genuinely beneficial.” I say: That is exactly so; but knowing which supplications are truly beneficial depends on sound knowledge, and few possess that. Hence it is better to confine oneself to the transmitted supplications, especially since they already include whatever the supplicant seeks. Allah knows best. 1 – This forms part of the hadith of ʿAishah ﵂: “The Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to supplicate in the prayer…,” and she then related it. Recorded by al-Bukhari (2/253); Muslim (2/93); Abu ʿAwanah (2/236-237); Abu Dawud (1/141); al-Nasaʾi (1/193); al-Bayhaqi (2/154); and Ahmad (6/88-89) through the chain al-Zuhri → ʿUrwah → ʿAishah. (1) Qadi ʿIyad ﵀ said: “The Prophet’s ﷺ supplication and his seeking refuge from matters from which he was already safeguarded were only to maintain fear of Allah, magnify Him, and show need of Him, so that his community might follow his example and learn the proper manner and the most important aspects of supplication. Allah knows best.” This is in his Sharh Muslim. (2) The hadith affirms the punishment and trial of the grave— the doctrine of Ahl al-Sunnah and most of the Muʿtazila, contrary to those who deny it, such as the Khawarij and some Muʿtazilites.