الحمد لله نحمده ونستعينة ونستغفره، ونعوذ بالله من شرور أنفسنا، ومن سيئات أعمالنا ، وأشهد أن لا إله إلا الله وحده لا شريك له ، وأشهد أن سيدنا محمداً عبده ورسوله ، اللهم صلِّ وسلم وبارك على سيدنا محمد وعلى آله وأصحابه  ومن تبعه إلى يوم الدين ،

Before we start, let us define the Arabic term “Salat”.  The term Salat is generally translated as prayers and the prayers are merely a form of Dua (supplication).  The term Salat is related to the root meaning “to connect”.   So, when we are doing Salat to Allah, we are connecting with Allah to ask Him for whatever we need and also for Him to correct any spiritual ailment that we may have.   

Therefore, recognizing that the terms Salat, prayers, Dua, supplication are all referring to the same thing and all of these are only directed to Allah because He is the only One Who can help us both spiritually and materialistically.  This recognition should be clear since Muslims only Worship Allah by directing all their Dua (prayers, supplication) to Him.   The Prophet (PBUH) said:

عن رسول الله – صلى الله عليه وسلم- أنه قال: الدعاء هو العبادة. ثم قرأ: وقال ربكم ادعوني أستجب لكم إن الذين يستكبرون عن عبادتي سيدخلون جهنم داخرين” رواه أحمد وأصحاب السنن

The Dua (Supplication) is the worship, and then recited: “Your Lord has said, “Call Me (Supplicate to Me, Pray to Me, Invoke Me), I will respond to you. Definitely those who show arrogance against worshipping Me shall enter Hell in humiliation!” (Ghafir 40:60)

There is very important and subtle issue that we must realize as believers that asking anyone for help while we are believing that this person has the sole power to help us is a form of Shirk.   Keep in mind that I am not saying that you should not ask people for help, I am saying if you ask them and you are convinced that they have the sole power to help you, this is the shirk.  But if you ask while believing that Allah is the only One in His hand is your help and this person you are asking may be the one by whom Allah will deliver to you the help, this is fine.  

This point is very important because we declare it at least 17 times per day in front of Allah by saying during our prayers: (إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وَإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ) “You alone we worship and from you alone we seek help”.  This simple verse summarizes the whole essence of the religion of Islam.   Scholars have said that the Fatihah is the secret of the Quran and the secret of the Fatihah is (إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وَإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ)“.

How do you know whether you have committed some form of shirk by asking someone for help?  Assess your feeling if the person did not help, do you get mad from him or you maintain good relationship with him because you know that he has no power to help unless Allah wanted him to do so.  If you get mad and angry from him, you need to question your state of belief, but if you maintain the same relationship with him whether he helped or not, you are a true believer.

So, now we realize that all our prayers which is our dua is directed only to Allah.   While it is not allowed to do prayers to anyone other than Allah, it is quite acceptable that we do prayers on someone.  The only difference in this statement of the proposition “to” and “on”.  “We only perform Salat, Prayers to Allah but we perform Salat, Prayers on anyone”.   

Note: Since Salat (prayers) are Dua (supplication), one can say perform prayer for someone instead of on someone.  But I’ll be using on in the talk because this is what the Quran uses.   Using on may actually be better choice because when someone is sick and you do Ruqya, you say I read the Quran on him/her and don’t say, I read the Quran for him/her. 

We said performing salat, prayers to Allah means doing Dua to Allah for help.   Performing salat, prayers on someone means that we are doing Dua for him. 

Allah gives us a clear command to do Salat, Prayers on the prophet (PBUH) by saying:

إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ وَمَلَـٰٓٮِٕڪَتَهُ ۥ يُصَلُّونَ عَلَى ٱلنَّبِىِّۚ يَـٰٓأَيُّہَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ صَلُّواْ عَلَيۡهِ وَسَلِّمُواْ تَسۡلِيمًا (٥٦)) الأحزاب(

” Indeed, Allah and His Angels do the Salat (prayers) on the Prophet: O you who believe, do your Salat on him, and salute him with perfect salutation.  (Al-Azab 33:56)

So, in this verse Allah and His angles are doing Salat, Prayers on the Prophet (PBUH). We understand that when the angels do Salat on the Prophet, they are supplicating to Allah to grant the Prophet (PBUH) forgiveness, blessings and high rank.  The same thing when we do Salat on the Prophet (PBUH), we are asking Allah to grant the Prophet (PBUH) forgiveness, blessings and high rank.

But when Allah is doing the Salat on the Prophet (PBUH) what does not it mean?  It means that Allah is committing Himself to forgive the Prophet (PBUH), to grant him blessings and to raise his rank.  So, if you can reach the point that Allah will do salat on you, it will mean that Allah has committed to forgive you, to grant you His blessings and to raise your rank.  This obviously should be the ultimate goal of anyone of us.

But this verse states that Allah and the angels are doing the Salat on the Prophet (PBUH) only, how about us?  When this verse was revealed Ubay Ibn Ka’ab (أبي بن كعب) said to the Prophet (PBUH):

ما أنزل فيك خيراً إلا خلطنا به معك إلا هذه الآية

“O Messenger of Allah, whenever a revelation came declaring goodness for you, we were included in it, except in this verse.  

The same concern was raised by both the immigrants and the helpers (المهاجرون والأنصار) who told the Prophet (PBUH) as was reported by Ibn Abbas (ابن عباس):

هذا لك يا رسول الله خاصة، وليس لنا فيه شيء

 “This blessing exclusive for you, Messenger of Allah, and we have no share in it.”

The reason of this concern is that in other revelations, Allah included the believers with the Messenger (PBUH) such as:

ءَامَنَ ٱلرَّسُولُ بِمَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيۡهِ مِن رَّبِّهِۦ وَٱلۡمُؤۡمِنُونَ‌ۚ كُلٌّ ءَامَنَ بِٱللَّهِ وَمَلَـٰٓٮِٕكَتِهِۦ وَكُتُبِهِۦ وَرُسُلِهِۦ

“The Messenger believes in what has been revealed to him from his Lord, as do the believers. Each one believes in Allah, His Angels, His Books, and His Messengers.” (Al-Baqara 2:285)

لَـٰكِنِ ٱلرَّسُولُ وَٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ مَعَهُ ۥ جَـٰهَدُواْ بِأَمۡوَٲلِهِمۡ وَأَنفُسِهِمۡ‌ۚ وَأُوْلَـٰٓٮِٕكَ لَهُمُ ٱلۡخَيۡرَٲتُ‌ۖ وَأُوْلَـٰٓٮِٕكَ هُمُ ٱلۡمُفۡلِحُونَ )التّوبَة(

“But the Messenger and those who believed with him strove and fought with their wealth and their lives. For them all the good things and it is they who will be successful” (Al-Tuba 9:88)

Shortly after the verse in question was revealed stating that Allah and His angels do Salat on the Prophet, Allah revealed:

يَـٰٓأَيُّہَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ ٱذۡكُرُواْ ٱللَّهَ ذِكۡرً۬ا كَثِيرً۬ا  وَسَبِّحُوهُ بُكۡرَةً۬ وَأَصِيلاً –  هُوَ ٱلَّذِى يُصَلِّى عَلَيۡكُمۡ وَمَلَـٰٓٮِٕكَتُهُ ۥ لِيُخۡرِجَكُم مِّنَ ٱلظُّلُمَـٰتِ إِلَى ٱلنُّورِۚ وَڪَانَ بِٱلۡمُؤۡمِنِينَ رَحِيمً۬ا.( سورة الأحزاب)

“O you who believe, remember Allah with much remembrance and glorify Him morning and evening.

He is One Who does “Salat” on you, as do His angels, that He may bring you out from the depths of Darkness into Light: and He is Most Merciful to the Believers. (Al-Ahzab 33:41:43)

So, if we want Allah and His angels to do salat on us, all we need to is do regular Dhikr and Tasbeeh. 

While we were commanded to do salat on the Prophet, we should aspire to also have the Prophet (PBUH) do salat on us. This is possible, all we need to do is to give charity as Allah said:

خُذۡ مِنۡ أَمۡوَٲلِهِمۡ صَدَقَةً۬ تُطَهِّرُهُمۡ وَتُزَكِّيہِم بِہَا وَصَلِّ عَلَيۡهِمۡ‌ۖ إِنَّ صَلَوٰتَكَ سَكَنٌ۬ لَّهُمۡ‌ۗ وَٱللَّهُ سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌ (١٠٣)

“Take Sadaqah (charity, alms) from their wealth by which you purify them and sanctify them with it, and do Salat (prayers) on them. Verily! Your prayers are a source of security for them, and Allah is All-Hearer, All-Knower.” (Al-Tuba 9:103) 

But how do we do the Salat on the Prophet (PBUH)?  The Prophet (PBUH) was asked about this and He (PBUH) said, say (the ending of the Tahyyaat, the salat Al-Ibrahimia):

اللهم صل على محمد وعلى آل محمد كما صليت على إبراهيم وعلى آل إبراهيم إنك حميد مجيد، اللهم بارك على محمد وعلى آل محمد كما باركت على إبراهيم وعلى آل إبراهيم إنك حميد مجيد،

There are many rewards awaiting those who are regular in doing the Salat on the Prophet (PBUH), These include:

First: it is a fulfillment of an obligatory command from Allah and obeying Allah’s command brings great rewards.

Second:  It is an expression of our love of the Prophet (PBUH) and a demonstration of our true belief.  Al-Bukhari reported that Anas ibn Malik said, the messenger of Allah (PBUH) said

 (لَا يُؤْمِنُ أحَدُكُمْ، حتَّى أكُونَ أحَبَّ إلَيْهِ مِن والِدِهِ ووَلَدِهِ والنَّاسِ أجْمَعِينَ).[ رواه البخاري، عن أنس بن مالك،[.”

“None of you will believe until I became more beloved to him than his parents, children and all the people.”

The best way to show our love of the Prophet (PBUH) is to prayer on him frequently.

If you love the Prophet (PBUH) and want to communicate with him (PBUH) do the salat on him, Abu Hurryrah said that the Prophet (PBUH) said:

عن أبي هريرة رضي الله عنه أن رسول الله ﷺ قال: صلوا علي فإن صلاتكم تبلغني حيثما كنتم [خرجه أبو داود وأحمد]

“Pray on me, your prayers reach me no matter where you are.” 

Abu Hurryrah also said that the Prophet (PBUH) said:

عن أبي هريرة أنَّ رسُولَ اللَّه ﷺ قَالَ: مَا مِنْ أَحَدٍ يُسلِّمُ علَيَّ إلاَّ ردَّ اللَّه علَيَّ رُوحي حَتَّى أرُدَّ عَليهِ السَّلامَ.] أَبُو داود[.

“Whenever someone salutes me, Allah will return my soul to me so that I will be able to reply to his salutation”.

Keep in mind that Allah is commanding us to do both Salat and Salaam on the Prophet as He said (صَلُّواْ عَلَيۡهِ وَسَلِّمُواْ تَسۡلِيمًا) “do your Salat on him, and salute him with perfect salutation”.

If you love the Prophet (PBUH) and wanted to be near him on the day of Judgement pray often on him, Ibn Masuad (ابن مسْعُودٍ) reported that the Prophet (PBUH) said:

وعن ابن مسْعُودٍ   أنَّ رسُول اللَّهِ ﷺ قَالَ:  أَوْلى النَّاسِ بِي يوْمَ الْقِيامةِ أَكْثَرُهُم عَليَّ صَلاَةً رواه الترمذي وقال: حديثٌ حسنٌ.

“Those who are the nearest to me on the day of judgement are those who are most frequent in doing salat on me. 

Third: Each time you do one salat on the Prophet (PBUH), Allah will do ten on you.   It is reported by Muslim that Abdullah ibn Amr (عن عبد الله بن عمرو) said, the Prophet (PBUH) said:

عن عبد الله بن عمرو بن العاص رضي الله عنهما أن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم قال : (مَنْ صَلَّى عَلَيَّ صَلَاةً صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ بِهَا عَشْرًا) رواه مسلم [.

“Whosoever prays on me one prayer, Allah will pray on him ten times”. 

In a similar hadeath, the Prophet (PBUH) also said:

عن أنس بن مالك رضي الله عنه أن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم قال 🙁 مَنْ صَلَّى عَلَيَّ صَلَاةً وَاحِدَةً صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ عَشْرَ صَلَوَاتٍ ، وَحُطَّتْ عَنْهُ عَشْرُ خَطِيئَاتٍ ، وَرُفِعَتْ لَهُ عَشْرُ دَرَجَاتٍ ) [رواه أحمد والبخاري والنسائي والحاكم].

“Whosoever prays on me one prayer, Allah will pray on him ten times and will erase ten of his sins and will raise him up ten ranks”.

We said when Allah does Salat on you, it means that Allah committed to forgive you, to grant you His blessings and to raise your rank.

The worst state for any Muslim is to hear the Prophet’s name mentioned and does not care to do salat on him.  Abu Hurryrah said that the messenger of Allah (PBUH) said:

وعنْ أَبي هُريْرةَ  قَالَ: قَالَ رسُولُ اللَّه ﷺ: رَغِم أنْفُ رجُلٍ ذُكِرْتُ عِنْدَهُ فَلَمْ يُصَلِّ علَيَّ ]رواهُ الترمذي[

“Humiliated be the one who hears my name mentioned and does not pray on me.

There a hadeath reported in Al-Tirmidhi (الترمذي) and others and it highlights the importance of doing prayers on the Prophet (PBUH).  The hadeath is narrated by Ubay bin Ka’ab (أبي بن كعب) who said:

 رُوي عن أبي بن كعب -رضي الله عنه- أنه قال: قلْتُ: يا رسولَ اللهِ، إِنَّي أُكْثِرُ الصلاةَ عليْكَ فكم أجعَلُ لكَ من صلاتِي؟ فقال: ما شِئْتَ، قال: قلتُ: الربعَ؟ قال: ما شئْتَ، فإِنْ زدتَّ فهو خيرٌ لكَ، قلتُ: النصفَ؟ قال: ما شئتَ، فإِنْ زدتَّ فهو خيرٌ لكَ، قال: قلْتُ: فالثلثينِ؟ قال: ما شئْتَ، فإِنْ زدتَّ فهو خيرٌ لكَ، قلتُ: أجعلُ لكَ صلاتي كلَّها؟ قال: إذًا تُكْفَى همَّكَ ويغفرْ لكَ ذنبُكَ).[ رواه الترمذي، حسن صحيح[

‘I said, ‘O Messenger of Allah, I pray on you often, so how much of my prayers should I devote on you?’ He replied, ‘as you desire’.

I said, ‘a quarter of it?’ He said ‘as you desire, but if you were to increase upon this, it would be better for you.’

I said, ‘half of it?’ He said, ‘as you desire, but if you were to increase upon this, it would be better for you.’

I said, ‘two-thirds of it?’ He said again, ‘as you desire, but if you were to increase upon this, it would be better for you.’

Finally, I said: Should I then dedicate the entirety of my prayers on you?’ He said, ‘this is sufficient for your worries to be alleviated and for sins to be forgiven”.

When we pray on the Prophet (PBUH) once, Allah will pray on us ten folds, and when Allah prays on us, He will shower us with His abundant blessings and mercy.  When you make a specific Dua, you seek one specific thing, but when you pray on the Prophet, you are in fact doing Dua for all kinds of blessings in this life and the Hereafter. 

In addition, the hadeath ends with given the ultimate benefit which is alleviating our worries and forgiving our sins and this assures our happiness in this life because no worries will ever come to us and assures our happiness in the hereafter because our sins would have been forgiven. These are all by doing the Salat on the Prophet (PBUH).

But this hadeath raises a critical question, should we then dedicate all our Dua and dhikr to saying prayers on the Prophet (PBUH)? 

How can we reconcile this hadeath with many other commands by Allah and His messenger (PBUH) that suggest different kind of dhikr and Dua.

Examples:

The Prophet (PBUH) also said:

لأن أقول : سبحان الله و بحمده و الحمد لله و لا إله إلا الله و الله أكبر خير إلى مما تطلع عليه الشمس ]رواه_مسلم[

To be able to say (سبحان الله و بحمده و الحمد لله و لا إله إلا الله و الله أكبر) “Glory and Praise be to Allah, all thanks belong to Allah, there is no god but Allah, and Allah is the greatest” are better for me than anything that exists under the sun. 

The Prophet (PBUH) told Abu Dhar: “Should I tell about the most beloved words to Allah”.  Abu Dhar said: yes, O Messenger of Allah. The Prophet (PBUH) said:

«ألا أخبرُك بأحبِّ الكلامِ إلى اللهِ؟» قلتُ: “يا رسولَ اللهِ! أخبرني بأحبِّ الكلامِ إلى اللهِ”، فقال: «إن أحبَّ الكلامِ إلى اللهِ، سبحانَ اللهِ وبحمدِه» (صحيح) [رواه مسلم من حديث أبي ذر رضي الله عنه.]

“The most beloved words to Allah are (سبحانَ اللهِ وبحمدِه) “Glory and Praise be to Allah.”

Sayeda Aisha reported that the Prophet (PBUH) used to say often:

عن عائشة رضي الله عنها كان رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يكثر من قول: «سبحان الله وبحمده أستغفر الله وأتوب إليه»، قالت فقلت : يا رسول الله! أراك تكثر من قول: “سبحان الله وبحمده أستغفر الله وأتوب إليه؟”، فقال: «خبرني ربي أني سأري علامة في أمتي، فإذا رأيتها أكثرت من قول: سبحان الله وبحمده أستغفر الله وأتوب إليه، فقد رأيتها»، {إِذَا جَاءَ نَصْرُ اللَّهِ وَالْفَتْحُ (فتح مكة) وَرَأَيْتَ النَّاسَ يَدْخُلُونَ فِي دِينِ اللَّهِ أَفْوَاجًا، فَسَبِّحْ بِحَمْدِ رَبِّكَ وَاسْتَغْفِرْهُ ۚ إِنَّهُ كَانَ تَوَّابًا} [النصر:] (رواه مسلم.

(سبحان الله وبحمده أستغفر الله وأتوب إليه) “Glory and Praise be to Allah; I seek Your forgiveness and I repent to You.”  So, she asked him (PBUH) why do you say these often.  The Prophet (PBUH) said:

“Allah have informed me of a sign that I’ll see in my nation and if I see it, I should say: (سبحان الله وبحمده أستغفر الله وأتوب إليه) “Glory and Praise be to Allah; I seek Your forgiveness and I repent to You.” an I have seen it.”   The Prophet was referring to the victory over Mecca and on whose occasion Allah revealed surat al-Nasr that says:

إِذَا جَآءَ نَصۡرُ ٱللَّهِ وَٱلۡفَتۡحُ (١) وَرَأَيۡتَ ٱلنَّاسَ يَدۡخُلُونَ فِى دِينِ ٱللَّهِ أَفۡوَاجً۬ا (٢) فَسَبِّحۡ بِحَمۡدِ رَبِّكَ وَٱسۡتَغۡفِرۡهُ‌ۚ إِنَّهُ ۥ ڪَانَ تَوَّابَۢا (٣)

When there comes Allah’s help and the Victory, (1) And you see people entering Allah’s religion in multitudes, (2) Then hymn the praises of Your Lord, and seek forgiveness of Him. Surely, He is ever ready to accept repentance.”  (Al-Nasr 110:1-3)

The prophet (PBUH) also said:

عن أبي هريرة أنَّ رسُولَ اللَّه ﷺ قَالَ كلمتان خفيفتان على اللسان ثقيلتان في الميزان حبيبتان إلى الرحمن :سبحان الله و بحمده , سبحان الله العظيم [متفق عليه[

“Two words that are very easy on the tongue, weigh heavily on the scale of good deeds on the Day of Judgment, and dear to the Most Generous (Al-Rahman):  Glory be to Allah and to Him is all the praise, Glory to Allah the Most High.  

The Prophet (PBUH) said:

من كان آخر كلامه من الدنيا لا إله إلا الله دخل الجنة 

“Whosoever his last words in this life are: “There is no God but Allah” will enter paradise

The Prophet (PBUH) said:

أفضل الذكر لا إله إلاّ الله وأفضل الدعاء الحمد لله

The best Dhikr is saying: (لا إله إلا الله) (There is no God but Allah) and the best “Dua” supplication is saying: (الحمد لله) Praise be to Allah (All thanks belong to Allah)

The Prophet (PBUH) said: Increase from the lasting virtues (إستكثروا من الباقيات الصالحات) and these are: التسبيح و التهليل و التحميد و التكبير ولاحول ولا قوة إلا بالله  (سبحان الله و لا إله إلا الله و الحمد لله و الله أكبر  )

The Prophet (PBUH) Said:

The most beloved speeches to Allah are four (أحب الكلام إلى الله تعالى أربع):

سبحان الله و الحمد لله و لا إله إلا الله و الله أكبر 

And it does not matter with which one you start. (لا يضرك بأيهن بدأت).

The Prophet (PBUH) also said:

التسبيح نصف الميزان و الحمد لله تملأ الميزان و لا إله إلا الله ليس لها دون الله حجاب حتى تخلص إليه

Praise Allah fills half of the scale and thanking Allah fills the wholescale and there is no God but Allah has no barrier between it and Allah until it reaches Him.

Allah also encouraged to ask for forgiveness as He said:

فَقُلۡتُ ٱسۡتَغۡفِرُواْ رَبَّكُمۡ إِنَّهُ ۥ كَانَ غَفَّارً۬ا (١٠) يُرۡسِلِ ٱلسَّمَآءَ عَلَيۡكُم مِّدۡرَارً۬ا (١١) وَيُمۡدِدۡكُم بِأَمۡوَٲلٍ۬ وَبَنِينَ وَيَجۡعَل لَّكُمۡ جَنَّـٰتٍ۬ وَيَجۡعَل لَّكُمۡ أَنۡہَـٰرً۬ا (١٢)

“And I have said: Seek forgives of your Lord. Indeed, He was ever Forgiving. (10)

He will cause the heavens to rain upon you in abundance, (11) And will help you with riches and sons, and will cause gardens to grow for you, and will cause rivers to flow for you.” (Nooh 71:10) 

Also, we are commanding to read the Quran and it is considered the best form of dhikr.

So, we see that there are so many commands that provide many forms of dhikr that are different from performing prayers on the Prophet (PBUH).   So, how are we going to resolve this apparent dichotomy with the Hadeath reported by Ubay bin Ka’ab (أبي بن كعب).

It is almost the consensus of the scholars that the solution is what they call (وظيفة الوقت) “The function of the Time”.  What they are saying is that every form of Dkir has preferred time for it and during this time is not preferred to do any other dhikr.   So, it is important to know the best time to make a specific Dhikr and this time is revealed to us either in the Quran or in a hadeath of the Prophet (PBUH). 

  The best time to do Tasbeeh is before the rising of the sun, and before its setting, and during some hours of the night, and at the ends of the day, Allah says for Surat Taha:

وَسَبِّحۡ بِحَمۡدِ رَبِّكَ قَبۡلَ طُلُوعِ ٱلشَّمۡسِ وَقَبۡلَ غُرُوبِہَا‌ۖ وَمِنۡ ءَانَآىِٕ ٱلَّيۡلِ فَسَبِّحۡ وَأَطۡرَافَ ٱلنَّہَارِ لَعَلَّكَ تَرۡضَىٰ (١٣٠)

“And glorify the praises of your Lord before the rising of the sun, and before its setting, and during some hours of the night, and at the ends of the day that you may become pleased (with all the rewards)” (Taha 20:130).

The best time to do salat on the Prophet (PBUH) is on Friday, as the Prophet (PBUH) said:

– وعن أوس بن أوسٍ، قَالَ: قالَ رسولُ اللَّه ﷺ: إنَّ مِن أَفْضلِ أيَّامِكُمْ يَوْمَ الجُمُعةِ، فَأَكْثِرُوا عليَّ مِنَ الصلاةِ فِيهِ، فإنَّ صَلاتَكُمْ معْرُوضَةٌ علَيَّ فقالوا: يَا رسول اللَّه، وكَيْفَ تُعرضُ صلاتُنَا عليْكَ وقدْ أرَمْتَ؟ قال: يقولُ: بَلِيتَ، قالَ:  إنَّ اللَّه حَرم عَلَى الأرْضِ أجْساد الأنْبِياءِ. رواهُ أَبُو داود بإسنادٍ صحيحِ.

“Of your best days is Friday, therefore, increase in sending your Salat on me, for your Salat on me is presented to me.”

They said: “O Messenger of Allah, how will our Salat on you be presented to you after you have perished?”

He (PBUH) replied: “Allah has prohibited the earth from (decomposing) the bodies of the Prophets.” [Abu Dawud in his Sunan, Ibn Khuzaimah and Ibn Hibban, and Hakim]

Also, the designated time to do salat on the Prophet (PBUH) after the Adhan (call for payer) as the Prophet (PBUH):

ولقوله ﷺ: إذا سمعتم المؤذن فقولوا مثلما يقول، ثم صلوا علي فإنه من صلى علي واحدة صلى الله عليه بها عشرًا، ثم سلوا الله الوسيلة فإنها منزلة في الجنة لا تنبغي إلا لعبد من عباد الله، وأرجو أن أكون أنا هو، فمن سأل لي الوسيلة حلت له الشفاعة[مسلم]

When you hear the Muadhin (caller for the prayer) , say what he says and then do salat on me, as for every Salat on me, Allah will do ten prayers on him. . 

The best time to ask for forgiveness is after the prostrations and immediately after the prayer. Then after the Istighfar, the best action is to say

سبحان الله، والحمد لله، والله أكبر ثلاثة وثلاثين مرة ثم يختم فيها بقوله: لا إله إلا الله وحده لا شريك له، له الملك وله الحمد وهو على كل شيء قدير

Subhan Allah 33 time, Al-Hamdulillah 33 time and Allahu Akbr 34 times (or 33 and complete the 100 by saying “There is no god but Allah, He is alone who has no partner. All thanks to Him and He is powerful over all things” لا إله إلا الله وحده لا شريك له، له الملك وله الحمد وهو على كل شيء قدير).

The best dhikr one can do after the Maghrib and Fajr prayers is to say the following dua 10 times:

لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ لَهُ الْمُلْكُ وَلَهُ الْحَمْدُ بِيَدِهِ الْخَيْرُ يُحْيِي وَيُمِيتُ وَهُوَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٍ

“There is no god but Allah. He is Alone and has no partner. His is the Kingdom and to Him is all praise, in His hands is good, He gives and takes life (gives death) and He has power overall things”, because the Prophet (PBUH) said:

حديث عبد الرحمن بن غنم – رضي الله عنه – عن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم أنه قال: من قال قبل أن ينصرف ويثني رجليه من صلاة المغرب والصبح: لا إله إلا الله وحده لا شريك له، له الملك وله الحمد يحيي ويميت وهو على كل شيء قدير ـ عشر مرات ـ كتب الله له بكل واحدة عشر حسنات، ومحا عنه عشر سيئات، ورفع له عشر درجات، وكانت له حرزًا من كل مكروه، وحرزًا من الشيطان الرجيم، ولم يحل للذنب أن يدركه إلا الشرك، وكان من أفضل الناس عملًا إلا رجلًا يفضله يقول أفضل مما قال. قال المنذري: رواه أحمد,

“Whoever recites this dua 10 times while sitting in the Tashahudd position after the prayers of the Maghrib and the morning, Allah will  grant him for each one ten rewards and erase for him ten sins and raise him up ten ranks and they will be protection for him form every harm and shield him from Satan the cursed and no other sin besides shirk will be able to reach him, and he will be superior in deeds to other people except for one who recites more”.

In addition to preferred times, there are also preferred places for saying certain Dua.  As example, the best Dua to say while on Arafat is what the Prophet (PBUH) instructed us to say:

عَنْ عَمْرِو بْنِ شُعَيْبٍ عَنْ أَبِيهِ عَنْ جَدِّهِ أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ خَيْرُ الدُّعَاءِ دُعَاءُ يَوْمِ عَرَفَةَ وَخَيْرُ مَا قُلْتُ أَنَا وَالنَّبِيُّونَ مِنْ قَبْلِي لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ لَهُ الْمُلْكُ وَلَهُ الْحَمْدُ وَهُوَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ   )سنن الترمذي باب في دعاء يوم عرفة(

“The best supplication is the one makes on the day of Arafat and the best of what I and all the Prophets before me said is:  

لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ لَهُ الْمُلْكُ وَلَهُ الْحَمْدُ وَهُوَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِير

There is no god but Allah alone, without any partners, unto him belong the dominion and all the praise and He has power over all things.”  (Sunan al-Tirmidhī)

While the Quran is the best dhikr because it the speech of Allah, engaging in other forms of dhikr in their recommended time that is specified by the Quran or the Sunnah will be preferred.

Obviously, there is more to be said on the subject, but hope this is enough to encourage you to search it more.

DUA