The Prophet (peace be upon him) used to remember Allah (Glorified is He) in the best way possible. In fact, all his sayings involved words of remembrance about Allah (Glorified is He) and what was connected to this; his orders, prohibitions and the Islamic rulings he (peace be upon him) gave his nation were a form of remembrance of Allah. Moreover, the information the Prophet (peace be upon him) told us about the Names and characteristics of Allah, His rulings, actions, promises and threats were words of remembrance of Allah (Glorified is He). The Prophet’s praise of the Lord (Glorified is He), magnifying, exalting and glorifying Him, were also words of remembrance of Allah, the Most High. Furthermore, the Prophet (peace be upon him) asking and supplicating Allah, and his hope and fear of Him (Glorified is He) included remembrance of the Magnificent Lord (Glorified is He). In fact, even the Prophet’s times of silence entailed remembrance of Allah (Glorified is He) which he performed in his heart. That is, the Prophet (peace be upon him) remembered Allah in all positions; remembrance of Allah (Glorified is He) flowed with his breath when he was standing, sitting and lying on his side, and when he was walking, riding and travelling, and when on trips and when resident]
[Zaad Al-Maad].
His Companions noted that he asked for forgiveness from Allah (Glorified is He) many times in one sitting. Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) said,
«We noted that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) used to say, ‘Oh Lord, forgive me; I have turned in repentance to You. You are the Accepter of Repentance, the Most Merciful,’ one hundred times in one meeting»
[related by Ahmed].
The Prophet (peace be upon him) considered such remembrance an indication that one is truly alive. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said,
«The example of one who remembers his Lord and one who does not remember his Lord is like one who is alive and one who is dead»
[related by Al-Bukhari].
Describing the Prophet (peace be upon him), his wife Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said,
«The Prophet (peace be upon him) used to remember Allah at all times»
[related by Muslim].
The Prophet (peace be upon him) used to teach his Companions, encouraging them to keep remembering Allah (Glorified is He),
«‘Shall I not tell you what your best action is, that which is most pure in sight of your Master, which raises your rank the most, is better for you than giving gold and silver [in charity]
and better for you than [the reward received for] meeting your enemy, both of you stricking each others’ necks?’ The Companions replied, ‘Of course.’ The Prophet (peace be upon him) answered, ‘Remembering Allah (Glorified is He)’»
[related by At-Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah].
The Prophet (peace be upon him) told us that the gathering in which Allah’s Name is mentioned has great benefits. The Prophet (peace be upon him) explained,
«No people sit together remembering Allah (Glorified is He) but the angels fold their wings around them. They are covered with mercy, calmness and serenity fall upon them and Allah mentions them to those (angels) who are near Him»
[related by Muslim].
Allah (Glorified is He) says in a sacred hadith,
«I am as My slave thinks of Me. And I am with My slave when he remembers Me. If he remembers Me to himself, I will remember him to Myself. If he remembers Me to a group, I will remember him to a group which is better than it. If he comes towards Me by a hand’s span, I will come towards him by an arm’s length. If he comes towards Me by an arm’s length, I will come towards him by a fathom’s length, and if he comes towards Me walking, I will rush towards him at [great] speed»
[related by Al-Bukhari and Muslim].
Special times when the Prophet (peace be upon him) used to remember Allah (Glorified is He)
The Prophet (peace be upon him) used to remember his Lord in all states and situations. For example, before "He went to sleep, he used to cup his hands together, blow lightly into them with a very small spray of saliva and read, ‘In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful,
{Say, ‘He is Allah, the One, Allah, the Everlasting Refuge; He does not beget nor is He begotten, And there is none comparable Him’}
[Surah Al-Ikhlas],
in the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful,
{Say, ‘I seek refuge with the Lord of the daybreak; from the mischief of created things; from the mischief of darkness as it overspreads; from the mischief of those who blow on knots; and from the mischief of the envier as he envies’}
[Surah Al-Falaq],
in the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful,
{Say, ‘I seek refuge with the Lord and Cherisher of mankind, the King [and Ruler] of mankind, the God [and Judge] of mankind, from the mischief of the whisperer [of evil]; who withdraws [after he whispers]; who whispers into the hearts of mankind; [who is] among jinns and among men’}
[Surah Al-Nas],
then the Prophet (peace be upon him) used to wipe as much of his body as he could reach, starting from his head and face, and then the front of his body.
And the Prophet (peace be upon him) used to perform that three times>
[related by Al-Bukhari and Muslim].
When he woke-up after sleeping, he would remember Allah (Glorified is He), saying,
«Praise be to Allah Who brought me back to life after He had caused me to die, and to Him will we be gathered [on the Resurrection Day]»
[related by Al-Bukhari].
When the Prophet (peace be upon him) wanted to enter the bathroom, he would say,
«Oh Allah, I seek Your protection from every male and female satan»
[related by Al-Bukhari].
And when the Prophet (peace be upon him) left the bathroom, he would say,
«Oh Allah, I ask for Your forgiveness»
[related by Ahmed].
It was as though the Prophet (peace be upon him) was asking for forgiveness for not verbally remembering Allah (Glorified is He) while he was in the water closet!
When the Prophet (peace be upon him) wanted to perform ablution, he would say,
«In the Name of Allah»
[related by Ahmed].
And when he had finished performing ablution, he would say,
«I bear witness that there is no god [worthy of worship] but Allah, alone, Who has no partners, and I bear witness that Muhammed is His slave and Messenger»
[related by Muslim].
And the Prophet (peace be upon him) would also say,
«Oh Allah, make me from those who turn in repentance to You, and make me among those who purify themselves»
[related by At-Tirmidhi].
When the Prophet (peace be upon him) left his house, he used to say,
«In the Name of Allah. I put my trust in Allah. Oh Allah, I seek Your protection from being done wrong to or from doing wrong to others, from being made to err or from causing another to err, from being abused or from abusing others, and from acting foolishly or others dealing with me in a foolish manner»
[related by At-Tirmidhi, An-Nisa’i and Ibn Majah].
Concerning entering or leaving a mosque, the Prophet (peace be upon him) used to say to his Companions,
«If any of you enter a mosque, he should say, ‘Oh Allah, open the doors of Your mercy for me.’ And if any of you leave, you should say, ‘Oh Allah, I ask for Your blessings’»
[related by Muslim].
When the Prophet (peace be upon him) had finished praying, he used to ask Allah (Glorified is He) for forgiveness three times, and then say,
«Oh Allah, You are peace and from You comes peace. You are blessed, Oh possessor of majesty and honour»
[related by Muslim].
And the Prophet (peace be upon him) used to also add,
«There is no god [worthy of worship] but Allah, alone, Who has no partners. He has total dominion and to Him belongs all praise. He is able to do all things. Oh Allah, there is nothing that can stop what You have given, and nothing that can give what You have prevented [for anyone]. And the fortune of the fortunate will be of no help to them against You [and Your will and decisions]»
[related by Al-Bukhari and Muslim],
and then say,
«There is no god but Allah, alone, He has no partner. To Him belongs all dominion and to Him belongs all praise, and He is able to do all things. There is no power or might except by Allah; there is no god [worthy of worship] but Allah. We do not worship anything but Him. To Him belongs all blessings and to Him belongs all benefits and graces, and to Him belongs all glorious praises. There is no god but Allah. [We are] sincere in faith and devotion to Him, even if the disbelievers dislike this [fact]»
[related by Muslim].
It has also been reported that the Prophet (peace be upon him) used to say, «Who glorifies Allah after each [obligatory] prayer thirty-three times, praises Him thirty-three times, and says takbir (Allah is the greatest) thirty-three times, all of which add up to ninety-nine times, and then makes them one hundred by saying, ‘There is no god but Allah, alone, He has no partners. To Him belongs all dominion and to Him belongs all praise, and He is able to do all things,’ his sins will be forgiven, even if they (their number) were like the foam of the sea»
[related by Muslim].
It was the habit of the Prophet (peace be upon him) to remain sitting where he had just prayed Fajr after finishing the Fajr (dawn) prayer and keep saying words of remembrance of Allah (Glorified is He) until the sun rose (sayings which are referred to as morning supplications). He was in the habit of saying,
«We have entered a new day and (also) the whole kingdom of Allah [has entered a new day]. All praise belongs to Allah. There is no god but Allah, alone, He has no partner. To Him belongs all dominion and to Him belongs all praise. He is able to do all things. Oh my Lord, I ask You for the good of this day and the good of the days that come after it, and I ask for Your protection from the evil of this day and the evil of the days that come after it. Oh Allah, I seek Your protection from laziness and helplessness in old age, and I seek Your protection from the punishment of the hell-fire»
[related by Muslim].
It has also been reported that the Prophet (peace be upon him) used to say,
«We have entered a new day having the innate belief of Islam, and upon the statement of absolute sincerity (there is no god but Allah), the religion of our Prophet Muhammed and way of our forefather Ibrahim; he had pure monotheistic belief and was totally submissive towards his Lord, and was not one of those who worshipped others with Allah»
[related by Ahmed].
Whenever morning or evening started, the Prophet (peace be upon him) would remember Allah by saying,
«Oh Allah, by You (and Your help) we have reached the morning, and by You (and You help) we have reached the evening. And by You (and Your help), we live, and by You (and Your command) we die. And towards You will we be gathered (one the Resurrection Day)»
[related by Aby Dawood, At-Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah].
The Prophet (peace be upon him) used to also supplicate in the early morning and evening with the following supplications,
«Oh Allah, I ask You for me to be secure in this world and in the next life. Oh Allah, I ask You for forgiveness and for me to be secure in my religion, my worldly affairs, my family and my wealth. Oh Allah, cover my faults and keep me safe from the things I fear. Oh Allah, protect me from the front and from the back, from my right and my left, and from above me. And I seek in Your greatness protection from unexpected harm (the earth swallowing me) from beneath me»
[related by Al-Hakim].
This is a small collection of citations relating the Prophet’s words of remembrance of Allah (Glorified is He). All his life entailed remembering Allah (Glorified is He). It is not possible here to mention all that has been reported about the Prophet (peace be upon him) with regards to his words of remembrance of Allah (Glorified is He) due to the lack of available space. In fact, there are many books and publications about this point.
It is enough here to mention what we have learned about the Prophet (peace be upon him) always keeping his tongue busy saying words of remembrance of Allah (Glorified is He). Such words of remembrance used to flow with his breath in all positions: standing, sitting and while sitting down, as well as while walking, riding or travelling, climbing up and down hills etc…. In fact, his words of remembrance of Allah were not limited to only his tongue; it has been reported that the Prophet’s heart was preoccupied with Allah (Glorified is He), even when he was asleep. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said,
«My eyes sleep but my heart does not sleep»
[related by Al-Bukhari].
The fact that the Prophet (peace be upon him) mentioned that saying words of remembrance of Allah (Glorified is He) has benefits similar to partaking in Jihad in Allah’s cause is sufficient to indicate the noble and beneficial status of saying such words of remembrance.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said,
«‘The devotees have surpassed all.’ The Companions asked, ‘Who are these devotees, Oh Messenger of Allah.’ The Prophet (peace be upon him) replied, ‘Those men and women who remember Allah unceasingly’»
[related by Muslim].
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, «Allah has mobile (squads) of angels, who have no other work (to attend to but) to follow the gatherings where Allah’s Name is being mentioned. And when they find such gatherings, they sit in them and surround them [the people] with their wings till the space between them and the sky of the world is fully filled, and when the people disperse (after the gathering where Allah’s Name is being mentioned is finished) they (the angels) go upwards to the heavens and Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, asks them, although He is best informed about them, ‘Where have you come from?’ They say, ‘We come from Your slaves upon the earth who had been glorifying You, uttering Your greatness (saying Allahu Akbar), stating Your oneness (La ilaha ill Allah), praising You and begging of You.’ Allah will say, ‘What do they beg of Me?’ They will say, ‘They beg of You Your paradise.’ He (Allah) will say, ‘Have they seen My paradise?’ They will say, ‘No, our Lord.’ He will say, ‘(What would it be then) if they were to see My paradise?’ They (the angels) will say, ‘They seek Your protection.’ He (the Lord) will say, ‘Against what do they seek My protection?’ They (the angels) will say, ‘Our Lord, from the hell-fire.’ He (Allah) will say, ‘Have they seen My fire?’ They will say, ‘No.’ He (Allah) will say, ‘What would it [the case] be if they were to see My fire?’ They will say ‘They beg Your forgiveness.’ He will say, ‘I grant pardon to them, and give them what they ask for and grant them protection against what they seek protection.’ They (the angels) will again say, ‘Our Lord, there is one among them, such-and-such a simple servant, who happened to pass by (that gathering) and sat there with the.’ He (Allah) will say, ‘I also grant him pardon, as whoever sits with such people will not be unfortunate»
[related by Muslim].
The Prophet (peace be upon him) used to keep saying words of remembrance of Allah (Glorified is He) in all situations and circumstances. There was no task the Prophet (peace be upon him) performed but he remembered Allah (Glorified is He) during it. What is the proof of this fact?
What is the evidence from the hadiths that the Prophet’s tongue was always busy with saying words of remembrance of Allah (Glorified is He)? What is the proof that his heart never stopped remembering Allah (Glorified is He)?
1.Keep remembering Allah (Glorified is He) and keep your tongue moist with the words of remembrance of Allah (Glorified is He), as the Prophet (peace be upon him) used to do.
2.Make times of silence an opportunity to remember Allah (Glorified is He), times when you speak a chance to talk about Allah (Glorified is He), and what you see a way to learn about Allah (Glorified is He), as the Prophet (peace be upon him) was in the habit of doing.
3.Be regular in saying the morning and evening supplications every day, following the Prophet’s example.
Prophet Muhammad's b...
