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 محمدًا عبده ورسوله

Many of you liked the method I used by me serving as graduate student and you serve as Professors. So today, I’ll, inshallah, follow this method in presenting my thesis that addresses three questions: 

What is the ultimate Dua (Supplication)?

Where is the best location to make it?

When is the perfect time for making the ultimate Dua?

So, please concentrate because at the end you will be voting whether I passed or I need to go back and rework my thesis.

To address these questions, I’ll follow the scientific methodology that was developed by the Muslim scientist and scholar ( أبو علي الحسن بن الهيثم) Abu-Ali al-Ḥasan ibn al-Haytham  whose Latinized name “Alhazen”.  This method involves 6 steps that are:

1. Make observations
2. Think of questions
3. Formulate hypothesis
4. Developing testable predictions
5. Collect data to test the prediction,
6. Develop general theory if the data validates the hypothesis, otherwise repeat the process by redefining altering, expanding or rejecting the hypothesis.

The first step is to make observations.

1. Making Observations

When we perform our Salat (prayer), we note that do not greet Allah in the beginning of the Salat but rather at the end of Salat when we sit down for the Tashahud (التشهد) that starts with (التحيات لله والصلوات والطيبات) “All greetings to Allah and the prayers and the good deeds”.

But this is contrary to the common practice of starting with the greeting when we meet anyone, particularly an important person from whom we need help.

When we want to meet an important person to seek his help, we commonly follow the following steps:

1. Make arrangement to identify the time and place of his choice.
2. When we meet him, we start with greeting him using the most appropriate words.
3. Following the greeting, we most likely express our gratitude to him.
4. When we make a request, we select the proper and most concise words that best represent our request.
5. Think of Questions

When we want to make request to Allah, we may want to seek answers to the following questions:

1. What type of arrangement I need to make for a meeting with Allah?
2. What are the best time and place to meet Allah?
3. What words I should use to greet Allah?
4. What is the one request that I should make that can cover all my other requests?

3. Formulate hypothesis
4. The best arrangement that we can make to meet Allah is to perform proper ablution (Wudu) and enter into prayer (Salat) and perform the Salat according to the format that Allah identified for us.
5. The best place to perform the salat is the house of Allah, but any other place is acceptable.
6. Beyond the obligatory prayers, the best time to pray is the last third part of the night.
7. The best position in the prayer to make the Dua is when sitting down for Tashahud.
8. The proper words to use to greet Allah are (التحيات لله والصلوات والطيبات) “All greetings to Allah and the prayers and the good deeds”.
9. The Ultimate Dua that will encompass all our needs is:

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

O Allah, pray on Muhammad and his family as You prayed on Ibrahim and the family of Ibrahim. Grant favor to Muhammad and his family as You granted favor to Ibrahim and the family of Ibrahim.

4. Developing testable predictions

There are verses in the Quran and authentic hadeeth that confirms the above hypothesis.

5. Collect data to test the prediction

After the obligatory prayers, praying at night is one of the best acts of worship and is the best of prayers. Prayers at night are better than prayers  during the day, especially in the last third of the night.  Also, the best time to make requests to Allah is the last third of the night. 

Al-Bukhari and Muslim reported that (أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ) Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said:

عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ: أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ:   يَنْزِلُ رَبُّنَا تَبَارَكَ وَتَعَالَى كُلَّ لَيْلَةٍ إِلَى السَّمَاءِ الدُّنْيَا حِينَ يَبْقَى ثُلُثُ اللَّيْلِ الآخِرُ يَقُولُ: مَنْ يَدْعُونِي فَأَسْتَجِيبَ لَهُ، مَنْ يَسْأَلُنِي فَأُعْطِيَهُ، مَنْ يَسْتَغْفِرُنِي فَأَغْفِرَ لَهُ   رواه البخاري  ومسلم

 “Our Lord, may He be blessed and exalted, descends to the lowest heaven every night when the last third of the night is left, and He says: ‘Who will call upon Me, that I answer him? Who will ask of Me, that I may give him? Who will ask Me for forgiveness, that I forgive him?”

Al-Bukhaari and Muslim reported that (عَبْد اللَّهِ بْن عَمْرِو بْنِ الْعَاصِ) ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Amr ibn al-‘Aas (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said:

روى البخاري  ومسلم عن عَبْد اللَّهِ بْن عَمْرِو بْنِ الْعَاصِ رضى الله عنهما أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ لَهُ : ( أَحَبُّ الصَّلاَةِ إِلَى اللَّهِ صَلاَةُ دَاوُدَ عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ ، وَأَحَبُّ الصِّيَامِ إِلَى اللَّهِ صِيَامُ دَاوُدَ ، وَكَانَ يَنَامُ نِصْفَ اللَّيْلِ وَيَقُومُ ثُلُثَهُ وَيَنَامُ سُدُسَهُ ، وَيَصُومُ يَوْمًا وَيُفْطِرُ يَوْمًا ) 

“The dearest of prayer to Allah is the prayer of Dawood (PBUH). He used to sleep for half the night, get up and pray for one third of it, and sleep for one sixth of it, and he used to fast one day and not the next.”

We made the hypothesis the proper greeting to Allah is the one we make when sitting in the Tashahud.  Al-Boukhari and Muslim reported that Abdullah ibn Masoud (عبدالله بن مسعود) (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said:

عن عبدالله بن مسعود رضي الله عنه قال: التفَت إلينا رسولُ الله صلى الله عليه وسلم، فقال: ((إذا صلَّى أحدُكم، فليَقُل:

 التحيات لله والصلوات والطيبات، السلام عليك أيها النبي ورحمة الله وبركاته، السلام علينا وعلى عباد الله الصالحين، أشهد أن لا إله إلا الله وأشهد أن محمدًا عبده ورسوله. ثم ليتخيَّر من الدعاء أعجبَه إليه، فيدعو))؛ متفق عليه، واللفظ للبخاري.

When one of you prays, he should say: “All greetings to Allah and the prayers and the good deeds. Peace be upon you, O Prophet, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings. Peace be on us and on the righteous servants of Allah. I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and His messenger and then he chooses from the Dua (الدعاء) the most wonderous to him and make Dua with it. “

The Question is what is the best Dua and the most concise form that one can make in the Tashahud.  I made the hypothesis that it is:

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

O Allah, pray on Muhammad and his family as You prayed on Ibrahim and the family of Ibrahim. Grant favor to Muhammad and his family as You granted favor to Ibrahim and the family of Ibrahim.  

First, the payer on the Prophet (الصلاة على النبي) is command from Allah and Allah loves though who follow His commands.  Allah said in Surat Al-Azab:

 (إِنَّ اللَّـهَ وَمَلَائِكَتَهُ يُصَلُّونَ عَلَى النَّبِيِّ يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا صَلُّوا عَلَيْهِ وَسَلِّمُوا تَسْلِيمًا)،[ الأحزاب[

‘Indeed, Allah and His angels prayon to the Prophet; O you who believe! pray on him and invoke Peace upon him in abundance.’ (Al-Ahzab 33:56)

It is reported by Al-Bukhari and Muslim and others on the authority of several companions with the often reported one is by (عبد الرحمن بن أبي ليلى) ‘Abdullah ibn Abi Layla who said I met Ka’ab ibn Ugrah (كعب بن عجرة) who said should I give a gift I heard from the Messenger of Allah (PBUH).   I said: Yes.  He said: We said to the messenger of Allah (PBUH), Allah ordered us to pray on you, how should we prayer on you.?’ The messenger of Allah (PBUH) said, say:

عبد الرحمن بن أبي ليلى قال لقيني كعب بن عجرة فقال ألا أهدي لك هدية إن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم خرج علينا فقلنا يا رسول الله قد علمنا كيف نسلم عليك فكيف نصلي عليك قال فقولوا :

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

O Allah, pray on Muhammad and his family as You prayed on Ibrahim and the family of Ibrahim. Verily, You are the Praiseworthy, the Glorious. O Allah, grant favor to Muhammad and his family as You granted favor to Ibrahim and the family of Ibrahim. Verily, You are the Praiseworthy, the Glorious

But the hypothesis we made states that this is the best Dua one can make after greeting Allah while sitting in the prayer in the Tashahud, what is the proof that this is Dua and what is the proof that it is the best Dua for us:    

It is reported in Al-Tirmidhi (الترمذي) and others that Ubai 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 (meaning make Dua), so how much of my supplication should I devote to 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 supplication to you?’ He said, ‘then your needs will be satisfied, and your sins forgiven.’’

In addition, it is reported by Muslim that Abdullah ibn Amr (عن عبد الله بن عمرو) said, the Prophet (PBUH) said:

فعن 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”. 

What Allah prays on you, He would shower you 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 and the best time to do this Dua is when you are in the prayer and after you have greeted Allah.

Also, focusing your Dua to the Prophet (PBUH) is a demonstration of your 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 that his parents, children and all the people.”

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

I hope I succeeded in proving the main elements of the hypothesis of this thesis and these were:

1. The best position in the prayer to make the Dua is when sitting down for
2. The proper words to us to greet Allah are (التحيات لله والصلوات والطيبات) “All greetings to Allah and the prayers and the good deeds”.
3. The Ultimate Dua that will encompass all our needs is:

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

O Allah, pray on Muhammad and his family as You prayed on Ibrahim and the family of Ibrahim. Grant favor to Muhammad and his family as You granted favor to Ibrahim and the family of Ibrahim.

Obviously, there are other forms or Dua and there are other times but what I am justifying in this thesis is the best form and the best time.

 Let me know to receive your votes on whether I proved the hypothesis or I need to modify it.

Before I close with the Dua, I want to highlight one issue that I plan, Insha’Allah, to discuss in a future talk.   This issue is related to the challenge of translating the words of the Quran and the sayings of the Prophet (PBUH) from Arabic to English.  As an example of these challenges: The word “Salat” that is often mentioned in this talk which I translated as prayers but it is often translated as supplication (Dua) and also translated as blessings and even as connection by relating it to the root Silah (صلة) . 

The question is whether we should translate the word or the thoughts intended by the word. If we translate the thought, how can be sure what Allah or the messenger (PBUH) mean by the word. 

May be there is another question which if we can answer, we may resolve this challenge.    In the Quran, Allah mentions the verbal communications of many people who did not speak in Arabic such as the Pharaoh, Prophets Musa, Ibrahim, Lut, Isa and many others who either followed or rejected those prophets.  This means that Allah translated to us what they said in Arabic.  

Did Allah translate the word or the meaning of what they intended to say?  Or did Allah translate the electrical signal that came from the neurons in their brain to their mouth to utter in words.   This may raise an interesting technical question, is the electrical signal created in the brain dependent or independent on the language the person uses.  

DUA