Supplications in Prostration
In this pillar of the prayer the Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—would recite various remembrances and supplications, choosing one form at one time and another at a different time:
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“subḥāna rabbī al-aʿlā” (Glory be to my Lord, the Most High) — three times.
He would sometimes repeat it more than that. On one occasion, during the night prayer, he prolonged its repetition until his prostration was almost as long as his standing; in that rakʿah he recited three of the long surahs—al-Baqarah, an-Nisāʾ, and Āl ʿImrān—interspersing them with supplication and seeking forgiveness, as mentioned in the section on the Night Prayer. -
“subḥāna rabbī al-aʿlā wa bi-ḥamdih” (Glory be to my Lord, the Most High, and praise be to Him) — three times.
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“subbūḥ, quddūs,(1) Lord of the angels and the Spirit.”
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“subḥānaka Allāhumma rabbana wa bi-ḥamdik; Allāhumma ighfir lī” (Glory be to You, O Allah, our Lord, and with Your praise; O Allah, forgive me). He frequently recited this in his bowing and prostration, acting in accordance with the Qur’an.
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“Allāhumma, laka sajadtu, wabika āmantu, walaka aslamtu, [wa anta rabbī]; sajada wajhī lilladhī khalaqahu wa ṣawwarahu, [fa-aḥsana ṣuwarah], wa shaqqa samʿahu wa baṣarah, …”
(O Allah, to You I have prostrated; in You I have believed, and to You I have submitted, [and You are my Lord]. My face has prostrated to the One who created it and fashioned it, [perfected its form], and brought forth its hearing and sight, …)