“Take it away from me, for its images keep appearing before me while I am praying.”
He ﷺ also used to say, “There is no prayer when food has been served, nor while a person is restraining the two impurities.” (ص 230 - 237)
Opening Supplications (Adʿiyat al-Istiftāḥ)
Thereafter, the Prophet ﷺ would open his recitation with many varied supplications in which he praised, magnified, and extolled Allah. He instructed the man who performed his prayer poorly to do the same, saying to him, “No one’s prayer is complete until he pronounces the opening takbīr, praises Allah the Mighty and Majestic, extols Him, and recites whatever is easy for him of the Quran …” At times he would choose one formula, and at other times another. Among what he would say are the following:
1- “O Allah, distance me from my sins as You have distanced the East from the West. O Allah, cleanse me of my sins as a white garment is cleansed of dirt. O Allah, wash me of my sins with water, snow, and ice.” He used to say this in the obligatory prayers, and it is the most authentic of the opening supplications in terms of its chain.
2- “I have turned my face toward the One who originated the heavens and the earth, inclining in pure faith [as a Muslim], and I am not of the polytheists. My prayer, my sacrifice, my living, and my dying are for Allah, Lord of the worlds; He has no partner. Thus have I been commanded, and I am the first of those who submit. O Allah, You are the Sovereign—there is no god but You [glory be to You and praise]. You are my Lord and I am Your servant; I have wronged myself and I confess my sin, so forgive me all my sins, for none forgives sins but You. Guide me to the best of character—none guides to its best but You; and turn from me its evil—none turns its evil away but You. Here I am, at Your service and favor; all good is in Your Hands, and evil is not attributable to You. [Whom You guide is truly guided.] I am by You and to You; [there is no refuge and no escape from You except to You]. You are Blessed and Exalted. I seek Your forgiveness and repent to You.” He would recite this in both obligatory and voluntary prayers.
3- The same formula, omitting his words, “You are my Lord and I am Your servant …,” and adding: “O Allah, You are the Sovereign, there is no god but You; glory be to You and praise.”
4- Likewise—up to his words, “and I am the first of those who submit,” with the addition: “O Allah, guide me to the best of character and the best of deeds; none guides to their best but You. And protect me from evil character and evil deeds; none protects from their evil but You.”
5- “Glory be to You, O Allah, and praise; blessed is Your Name, exalted is Your Majesty, and there is no god besides You.”