Chapter: Supplication after the Final Tashahhud (1)

Hadith One

On the authority of Abū Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him): The Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to say:

“O Allah, I seek refuge in You from the torment of the grave, from the torment of the Fire, from the trials of life and death, and from the trial of the Messiah al-Dajjāl.”

In another rendition recorded by Muslim: “When any one of you has completed the tashahhud, let him seek refuge with Allah from four things. He should say: O Allah, I seek refuge in You from the punishment of Hellfire…”—and he mentioned the remainder of the invocation in like manner.

Overall meaning

These are momentous and far-reaching supplications, for they are petitions for protection from the gravest evils and from the causes that lead to them. For this reason the Prophet ﷺ gave them exceptional attention: he himself recited them, he commanded others to recite them, and he fixed their place immediately after the prayers, a moment specially favored for the acceptance of supplication.

The invocation includes seeking refuge from the punishment of the grave and of the Fire; from the temptations of worldly life—its desires and its doubtful matters; from the enticements of devils at the time of death; from the trials of the grave, which are themselves a cause of its punishment; and from the mischief of pretenders who appear to people in the guise of truth while they are in fact steeped in falsehood. The greatest of these trials is that of the Antichrist whose emergence at the end of time is confirmed by authentic reports. We ask Allah to shield us from every trial, apparent and hidden.

Legal rulings derived from the hadith

1. It is recommended to recite this supplication after the final tashahhud, as the authentic wording in Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim explicitly confines it to this position.
2. The invocation ranks among the most important and comprehensive of prayers because the Prophet ﷺ treated it with such care and because it gathers refuge from the evils of this world and the next and from their causes; thus he instructed that it be repeated at these virtuous moments in hope of acceptance.
3. The punishment of the grave is real and believing in it is obligatory, for the reports concerning it are abundant—indeed, they are recurrent (mutawātir).
4. One must guard himself against the dubious matters and sinful passions of life, for they lie at the root of many evils.
5. One must be vigilant regarding corrupt preachers and the promoters of atheism and depravity: they present themselves to the people as reformers and renewers, whereas in truth they are demolishers of virtue and religion.