Dua Qunoot: Meaning, Words, When to Recite It and School Differences

Qunoot (qunut) means devout obedience, and in prayer it names a particular supplication made while standing. Shaykh Muhammad Fayez Awad's comparative answer on SeekersGuidance lists its linguistic meanings as obedience, prayer, silence and supplication, the last being the most common, and quotes Ibn Allan's definition: a specific supplication in a specific part of the standing position.

The meaning of silence is linked to Qur'an 2:238, which Pickthall renders as standing up with devotion to Allah. Zayd ibn Arqam explains in Sahih al-Bukhari 4534 that people used to speak during prayer until this verse was revealed, after which they were ordered to keep silent.

Sources: [11] [1]

It is the supplication the Prophet taught his grandson al-Hasan ibn Ali to say in Witr, recorded in Sunan Abi Dawud 1425, graded sahih by al-Albani, and Jami at-Tirmidhi 464, graded sahih by Darussalam. Tirmidhi said he knew nothing better from the Prophet on qunut in Witr.

In transliteration, following Tirmidhi's wording: Allahumma-hdini fiman hadayt, wa 'afini fiman 'afayt, wa tawallani fiman tawallayt, wa barik li fima a'tayt, wa qini sharra ma qadayt, fa innaka taqdi wa la yuqda 'alayk, wa innahu la yadhillu man walayt, tabarakta Rabbana wa ta'alayt.

Its meaning: O Allah, guide me among those You have guided, grant me well-being among those You have granted well-being, take me into Your care among those You care for, bless me in what You have given, and protect me from the evil of what You have decreed. You decree and none decrees against You, and the one You befriend is never humbled. Blessed are You, our Lord, and Exalted.

The Arabic of Abu Dawud's version adds wa la ya'izzu man 'adayt, and the one You oppose is never honoured, before the closing praise. Dar al-Ifta reports that Shafi'i scholars saw no harm in adding further praise and a request for forgiveness.

Sources: [2] [3] [13]

Hanafi practice commonly uses a supplication beginning Allahumma inna nasta'inuka. Ustadh Farid Dingle explains on SeekersGuidance that it is not a Prophetic hadith but is authentically reported from Umar and other Companions in the Musannafs of Abd al-Razzaq and Ibn Abi Shaybah.

One widely taught form, which Ustadh Salman Younas describes as closer to the wording known from Imam Abu Hanifa as recorded by Ibn Nujaym, is: Allahumma inna nasta'inuka wa nastaghfiruka, wa nu'minu bika wa natawakkalu 'alayk, wa nuthni 'alaykal-khayr, wa nashkuruka wa la nakfuruk, wa nakhla'u wa natruku man yafjuruk. Allahumma iyyaka na'budu, wa laka nusalli wa nasjud, wa ilayka nas'a wa nahfid, wa narju rahmataka wa nakhsha 'adhabak, inna 'adhabaka bil-kuffari mulhiq.

Its meaning: O Allah, we seek Your help and Your forgiveness, we believe in You and rely on You, we praise You with all good, we thank You and are not ungrateful to You, and we part from and leave whoever disobeys You. O Allah, You alone we worship, to You we pray and prostrate, towards You we strive and hasten; we hope for Your mercy and fear Your punishment, for Your punishment will surely reach the disbelievers.

Some Hanafi manuals add phrases such as wa nastahdik, and we ask Your guidance, and wa natubu ilayk, and we turn to You in repentance, as in the fuller form SeekersGuidance teaches. Ustadh Salman Younas explains that both forms have a basis in the school, and the Hanbali answer on IslamQA recommends a similar supplication alongside al-Hasan's.

Sources: [14] [15] [16] [24]

It depends on the school; the Witr guide explains where qunut falls in each school's form of that prayer. Egypt's Dar al-Ifta summarises the Hanafi position as obligatory qunut after the recitation of Witr's third rak'ah, the Shafi'i position as Sunnah in the second half of Ramadan, and the Hanbali position as Sunnah throughout the year.

The comparative SeekersGuidance answer adds that the well-known Maliki view dislikes qunut in Witr, though a narration from Malik allows it late in Ramadan. Tirmidhi's commentary on hadith 464 notes that Ibn Mas'ud made it all year before bowing, while Ali is reported to have made it only in late Ramadan, after bowing.

Sources: [12] [11] [3]

In the Shafi'i and Maliki schools it is, while Hanafis and Hanbalis do not make it a regular Fajr practice. Egypt's Dar al-Ifta calls this a secondary issue that should not divide Muslims.

In Shafi'i teaching it is a Sunnah after rising from bowing in Fajr's second rak'ah, with a prostration of forgetfulness if omitted. In Maliki teaching, Ustadh Tariq Abdul-Rasheed explains, it is a recommended act said silently before bowing, with no prostration for missing it. The Hanbali answer on IslamQA calls regular Fajr qunut disliked except for the ruler in times of great hardship.

Both sides cite reports. In Jami at-Tirmidhi 401, graded sahih, al-Bara says the Prophet made qunut in Subh and Maghrib; in Jami at-Tirmidhi 402, also sahih, a Companion tells his son that Fajr qunut was newly introduced, and Tirmidhi says most scholars acted on this. Malaysia's Federal Territory Mufti notes that the report of the Prophet continuing Fajr qunut until he died is graded weak by Shu'ayb al-Arna'ut, though al-Haythami judged its narrators reliable.

Sources: [13] [19] [25] [22] [9] [10]

Qunut al-nawazil is a supplication added to prayer when Muslims face a calamity. Its basis is the Prophet's month of qunut after about seventy reciters were killed at Bi'r Ma'unah: Sahih al-Bukhari 4088 calls this the beginning of qunut, and Sahih al-Bukhari 1003 records a month of it in Fajr.

Sunan Abi Dawud 1443, graded hasan by al-Albani, reports it in all five daily prayers after the last bowing, with those behind the Prophet saying amin, and Sahih al-Bukhari 797 records Abu Hurayrah making qunut for the believers in Zuhr, Isha and Fajr.

The comparative SeekersGuidance answer gives the Shafi'i view as qunut in all obligatory prayers during a calamity, the Hanbali view as the imam making it in obligatory prayers except Jumu'ah, the Hanafi view as the imam making it in the audible prayers, and the well-known Maliki view as none outside Fajr. A Hanafi answer from MuftiSays restricts it to Fajr, and the Hanbali answer on IslamQA reserves it for the ruler.

Sources: [6] [5] [8] [7] [11] [21] [22]

Both have a basis in the reports: in Sahih al-Bukhari 1002, Anas says qunut was before bowing, adding that the Prophet made it after bowing for one month. Each school has settled its own preferred place, as the table summarises from the sources on this page.

Sources: [4] [12] [11] [25] [13] [18] [23] [19] [22]

Practice differs by school. For Hanafi Witr, the Darul Ifta Birmingham answer describes a takbir with raised hands before qunut, and the Hanafi answer from MuftiSays gives the preferred view that imam, follower and lone worshipper all recite it silently.

Malaysia's Federal Territory Mufti describes raising the hands as the accepted Shafi'i Sunnah within a recognised difference of opinion, and a Shafi'i answer on IslamQA says followers say amin aloud to the imam's supplications while softly repeating the praise. The Hanbali answer tells a follower to raise the hands and say amin, and Sunan Abi Dawud 1443 records the congregation saying amin behind the Prophet.

Sources: [18] [21] [19] [20] [22] [8]

Say a shorter supplication while you learn. A Hanafi answer on SeekersGuidance, approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani, says the necessary qunut in Witr is fulfilled by any supplication, though the Sunnah wording is far better, and suggests Ya Rabb or Allahumma-ghfir li three times, or Allahumma Rabbana atina fid-dunya hasanatan wa fil-akhirati hasanatan wa qina 'adhaban-nar: Our Lord, give us good in this world and good in the Hereafter, and protect us from the punishment of the Fire, from Qur'an 2:201.

The Shafi'i answer on IslamQA says any qunut containing praise of Allah, a supplication and blessings on the Prophet fulfils the basic Sunnah. To memorise the full wording, learn one phrase at a time with its meaning, recite it outside prayer, and ask a teacher to check your pronunciation, because transliteration cannot show every sound.

Sources: [17] [20]

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