Four duʿāʾs of the Prophet ﷺ and Allah grants three of them

that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, "I asked my Lord ﷻ for four ˹things˺. So he granted me three ˹of them˺ and denied me one ˹of them˺:

(1) I asked Allah ﷻ to not gather my Ummah upon misguidance, and he granted it to me, and

(2) I asked Allah ﷻ to not have ˹the Ummah˺ be overcome by an enemy other than themselves, and he granted it to me, and

(3) I asked Allah ﷻ to not have ˹ the Ummah˺ be destroyed by plagues similar to nations before them, and he granted it to me, and

(4) I asked Allah ﷻ to not to have ˹the Ummah˺ be splintered into groups have that they ˹not˺ taste affliction from each other, and he denied it to me."  

أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللهِ ﷺ قَالَ «سَأَلْتُ رَبِّي ﷻ أَرْبَعًا فَأَعْطَانِي ثَلَاثًا وَمَنَعَنِي وَاحِدَةً۔

(١) سَأَلْتُ اللهَ ﷻ أَنْ لَا يَجْمَعَ أُمَّتِي عَلَى ضَلَالَةٍ، فَأَعْطَانِيهَا۔ (٢) وَسَأَلْتُ اللهَ ﷻ أَنْ لَا يُظْهِرَ عَلَيْهِمْ عَدُوًّا مِنْ غَيْرِهِمْ، فَأَعْطَانِيهَا۔ (٣) وَسَأَلْتُ اللهَ ﷻ أَنْ لَا يُهْلِكَهُمْ بِالسِّنِينَ كَمَا أَهْلَكَ الْأُمَمَ قَبْلَهُمْ، فَأَعْطَانِيهَا۔ (٤) وَسَأَلْتُ اللهَ ﷻ أَنْ لَا يَلْبِسَهُمْ شِيَعًا وَيُذِيقَ بَعْضَهُمْ بَأْسَ بَعْضٍ، فَمَنَعَنِيهَا۔»  

[Machine] The Messenger of Allah ﷺ prayed the Asr prayer with us, and when he finished he said, "Indeed, this prayer was presented to those who came before you, but they neglected and abandoned it. So whoever among you prays it, his reward will be doubled, and there will be no prayer after it until the witness is seen, and the witness is the setting of the sun."  

صَلَّى بِنَا رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ صَلَاةَ الْعَصْرِ فَلَمَّا انْصَرَفَ قَالَ إِنَّ هَذِهِ الصَّلَاةَ قَدْ عُرِضَتْ عَلَى مَنْ كَانَ قَبْلَكُمْ فَتَوَانَوْا فِيهَا وَتَرَكُوهَا فَمَنْ صَلَّاهَا مِنْكُمْ ضُعِّفَ لَهُ أَجْرُهَا ضِعْفَيْنِ وَلَا صَلَاةَ بَعْدَهَا حَتَّى يُرَى الشَّاهِدُوَالشَّاهِدُ النَّجْمُ  

[Machine] "I came to the Prophet ﷺ when I migrated, and this was before I embraced Islam. He milked a sheep for me, which he used to milk for his family. I drank it, and when I became a Muslim in the morning, the Prophet's family said to me, 'You spent the night as we did yesterday, feeling hungry.' So the Messenger of Allah ﷺ milked a sheep for me, and I drank it and was satisfied. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ then asked me, 'Did you drink?' I replied, 'Yes, Messenger of Allah. I drank until I was full and have never drunk milk before today.' The Prophet ﷺ said, 'Indeed, the disbeliever eats in seven intestines, while the believer eats in one.'"  

أَتَيْتُ النَّبِيَّ ﷺ لَمَّا هَاجَرْتُ وَذَلِكَ قَبْلَ أَنْ أُسْلِمَ فَحَلَبَ لِي شُوَيْهَةً كَانَ يَحْتَلِبُهَا لِأَهْلِهِ فَشَرِبْتُهَا فَلَمَّا أَصْبَحْتُ أَسْلَمْتُ وَقَالَ عِيَالُ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ نَبِيتُ اللَّيْلَةَ كَمَا بِتْنَا الْبَارِحَةَ جِيَاعًا فَحَلَبَ لِي رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ شَاةً فَشَرِبْتُهَا وَرَوِيتُ فَقَالَ لِي رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ أَرَوِيتَ؟ فَقُلْتُ يَا رَسُولَ اللهِ قَدْ رَوِيتُ مَا شَبِعْتُ وَلَا رَوِيتُ قَبْلَ الْيَوْمِ فَقَالَالنَّبِيُّ ﷺ إِنَّ الْكَافِرَ يَأْكُلُ فِي سَبْعَةِ أَمْعَاءٍ وَالْمُؤْمِنُ يَأْكُلُ فِي مِعًى وَاحِدٍ  

[Machine] The Messenger of Allah ﷺ prayed with us in a valley called al-Mukhammas during the Asr prayer. He said, "Indeed, this prayer, the Asr prayer, was presented to those before you, but they neglected it. So, whoever prays it will have his reward doubled, and no prayer after it until you see the evening star." I asked Ibn Lahi'ah, "What is the evening star?" He replied, "It is the planet that the Arabs call al-Kawkab, which is the witness of the night."  

صَلَّى بِنَا رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ فِي وَادٍ مِنْ أَوْدِيَتِهِمْ يُقَالُ لَهُ الْمُخَمَّصُ صَلَاةَ الْعَصْرِ فَقَالَ إِنَّ هَذِهِ الصَّلَاةَ صَلَاةَ الْعَصْرِ عُرِضَتْ عَلَى الَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِكُمْ فَضَيَّعُوهَا أَلَا وَمَنْ صَلَّاهَا ضُعِّفَ لَهُ أَجْرُهُ مَرَّتَيْنِ أَلَا وَلَاصَلَاةَ بَعْدَهَا حَتَّى تَرَوْا الشَّاهِدَ قُلْتُ لِابْنِ لَهِيعَةَ مَا الشَّاهِدُ؟ قَالَ الْكَوْكَبُ الْأَعْرَابُ يُسَمُّونَ الْكَوْكَبَ شَاهِدَ اللَّيْلِ  

[Machine] The Messenger of Allah ﷺ prayed for us and mentioned us.  

صَلَّى بِنَا رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ فَذَكَرَهُ  

[Machine] A man from the companions of the Prophet ﷺ informed me, saying, "Indeed, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, 'Verily, Allah has increased your prayers, so pray the Witr prayer after the 'Isha prayer until the Fajr prayer." Abu Basrah Al-Ghifari said, "Abu Tamim and I were sitting." He said, "Then Abu Basrah took my hand and we went to Abu Basrah's house and found him at the door of Amr ibn Al-'As's house. Abu Basrah said, 'O Abu Basrah, have you heard the Prophet ﷺ saying, 'Verily, Allah has increased your prayers, so pray the Witr prayer after the 'Isha prayer until the Fajr prayer?" He said, 'Yes.' He said, 'Did you hear it?' He said, 'Yes.' He said, 'Did you hear it?' He said, 'Yes.'"  

أَخْبَرَنِي رَجُلٌ مِنْ أَصْحَابِ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ يَقُولُ إِنَّ رَسُولَ اللهِ ﷺ قَالَ إِنَّ اللهَ ﷻ زَادَكُمْ صَلَاةً فَصَلُّوهَا فِيمَا بَيْنَ صَلَاةِ الْعِشَاءِ إِلَى صَلَاةِ الصُّبْحِ الْوَتْرُ الْوَتْرُ أَلَا وَإِنَّهُ أَبُو بَصْرَةَ الْغِفَارِيُّ قَالَ أَبُو تَمِيمٍ فَكُنْتُ أَنَا وَأَبُو ذَرٍّ قَاعِدَيْنِ قَالَ فَأَخَذَ بِيَدِي أَبُو ذَرٍّ فَانْطَلَقْنَا إِلَى أَبِي بَصْرَةَ فَوَجَدْنَاهُ عِنْدَ الْبَابِ الَّذِي يَلِي دَارَ عَمْرِو بْنِ الْعَاصِ فَقَالَ أَبُو ذَرٍّ يَا أَبَا بَصْرَةَ آنْتَ سَمِعْتَ النَّبِيَّ ﷺ يَقُولُ إِنَّ اللهَ ﷻ زَادَكُمْ صَلَاةً فَصَلُّوهَا فِيمَا بَيْنَ صَلَاةِ الْعِشَاءِ إِلَى صَلَاةِ الصُّبْحِ الْوَتْرُ الْوَتْرُ؟ قَالَ نَعَمْ قَالَ أَنْتَ سَمِعْتَهُ؟ قَالَ نَعَمْ قَالَ أَنْتَ سَمِعْتَهُ؟ قَالَ نَعَمْ  

[Machine] I met Abu Hurairah while he was walking towards the Mosque of Mount Sinai (Masjid al-Tour) to pray in it. So, I said to him, "If I had met you before you left, you wouldn't have left." He asked, "Why?" I replied, "I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ saying, 'Do not travel except to three mosques: the Sacred Mosque (Masjid al-Haram), the Al-Aqsa Mosque, and my Mosque (Masjid al-Nabawi).' "  

لَقِيتُ أَبَا هُرَيْرَةَ وَهُوَ يَسِيرُ إِلَى مَسْجِدِ الطُّورِ لِيُصَلِّيَ فِيهِ قَالَ فَقُلْتُ لَهُ لَوْ أَدْرَكْتُكَ قَبْلَ أَنْ تَرْتَحِلَ مَا ارْتَحَلْتَ قَالَ فَقَالَ وَلِمَ؟ قَالَ قَالَ فَقُلْتُ إِنِّي سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللهِ ﷺ يَقُولُ لَا تُشَدُّ الرِّحَالُ إِلَّا إِلَى ثَلَاثَةِ مَسَاجِدَ الْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ وَالْمَسْجِدِ الْأَقْصَى وَمَسْجِدِي  

[Machine] "He left his village and went to a nearby village called Uqbah in Ramadan. Then he broke his fast and some people broke their fast with him, while others disliked breaking their fast. When he returned to his village, he said, 'By Allah, I witnessed something today that I did not expect to see. There are people who are deviating from the guidance of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and his companions. They say this to those who are fasting.' At that moment, he said, 'O Allah, take me to You.'"  

أَنَّهُ خَرَجَ مِنْ قَرْيَتِهِ إِلَى قَرِيبٍ مِنْ قَرْيَةِ عُقْبَةَ فِي رَمَضَانَ ثُمَّ أَنَّهُ أَفْطَرَ وَأَفْطَرَ مَعَهُ نَاسٌ وَكَرِهَ آخَرُونَ أَنْ يُفْطِرُوا قَالَ فَلَمَّا رَجَعَ إِلَى قَرْيَتِهِ قَالَ وَاللهِ لَقَدْ رَأَيْتُ الْيَوْمَ أَمْرًا مَا كُنْتُ أَظُنُّ أَنْ أَرَاهُ إِنَّ قَوْمًا رَغِبُوا عَنْ هَدْيِ رَسُولِ اللهِ ﷺ وَأَصْحَابِهِ يَقُولُ ذَلِكَ لِلَّذِينَ صَامُوا ثُمَّ قَالَ عِنْدَذَلِكَ اللهُمَّ اقْبِضْنِي إِلَيْكَ  

[Machine] I traveled with Abu Basrah al-Ghifari, the companion of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ , on a ship from Fusṭāṭ during Ramadan. Then he approached his lunch, and after that, he said, "Come closer." I asked him, "Aren't you among the houses?" Abu Basrah said, "Are you deviating from the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ ?"  

رَكِبْتُ مَعَ أَبِي بَصْرَةَ الْغِفَارِيِّ صَاحِبِ رَسُولِ اللهِ ﷺ فِي سَفِينَةٍ مِنَ الْفُسْطَاطِ فِي رَمَضَانَ ثُمَّ قَرَّبَ غَدَاءَهُ ثُمَّ قَالَ اقْتَرِبْ فَقُلْتُ أَلَسْتَ بَيْنَ الْبُيُوتِ؟ فَقَالَ أَبُو بَصْرَةَ أَرَغِبْتَ عَنْ سُنَّةِ رَسُولِ اللهِ ﷺ؟  

[Machine] "I traveled with my father from Fustat to Alexandria on a ship. When we departed from Marsana, he ordered his meal to be brought closer to him. It was during Ramadan, so I said, 'O Aba Basrah, by Allah, our houses have never been far from us.' He asked, 'Are you deviating from the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ ?' I replied, 'No.' He then said, 'Eat, and we did not break our fast until we reached our destination.'"  

رَكِبْتُ مَعَ أَبِي بَصْرَةَ مِنَ الْفُسْطَاطِ إِلَى الْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةِ فِي سَفِينَةٍ فَلَمَّا دَفَعْنَا مِنْ مَرْسَانَا أَمَرَ بِسُفْرَتِهِ فَقُرِّبَتْ ثُمَّ دَعَانِي إِلَى الْغَدَاءِ وَذَلِكَ فِي رَمَضَانَ فَقُلْتُ يَا أَبَا بَصْرَةَ وَاللهِ مَا تَغَيَّبَتْ عَنَّا مَنَازِلُنَا بَعْدُ؟ فَقَالَ أَتَرْغَبُ عَنْ سُنَّةِ رَسُولِ اللهِ ﷺ؟ قُلْتُ لَا قَالَ فَكُلْ فَلَمْ نَزَلْ مُفْطِرِينَ حَتَّى بَلَغْنَا مَاحُوزَنَا  

[Machine] I boarded the ship with my father, heading to Alexandria, while he recalled the conversation.  

رَكِبْتُ مَعَ أَبِي بَصْرَةَ السَّفِينَةَ وَهُوَ يُرِيدُ الْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةَ فَذَكَرَ الْحَدِيثَ  

[Machine] The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said to them one day, "I am going to visit the Jews, so whoever wants to come with me, if they greet you, say 'peace be upon you too,' and then we will proceed." So when we arrived to them and they greeted us, we said, "and upon you too."  

قَالَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ لَهُمْ يَوْمًا إِنِّي رَاكِبٌ إِلَى يَهُودَ فَمَنْ انْطَلَقَ مَعِي فَإِنْ سَلَّمُوا عَلَيْكُمْ فَقُولُوا وَعَلَيْكُمْ فَانْطَلَقْنَا فَلَمَّا جِئْنَاهُمْ وَسَلَّمُوا عَلَيْنَا فَقُلْنَا وَعَلَيْكُمْ  

"I am riding to the Jews tomorrow. Do not initiate the greeting with them, and if they greet you, then say: Wa 'alaikum (and also upon you)". (Using translation from Ibn Mājah 3699)  

قَالَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ إِنَّا غَادُونَ إِلَى يَهُودَ فَلَا تَبْدَءُوهُمْ بِالسَّلَامِ فَإِذَا سَلَّمُوا عَلَيْكُمْ فَقُولُوا وَعَلَيْكُمْ  

"I am riding to the Jews tomorrow. Do not initiate the greeting with them, and if they greet you, then say: Wa 'alaikum (and also upon you)". (Using translation from Ibn Mājah 3699)   

قَالَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ إِنَّا غَادُونَ عَلَى يَهُودَ فَلَا تَبْدَءُوهُمْ بِالسَّلَامِ فَإِذَا سَلَّمُوا عَلَيْكُمْ فَقُولُوا وَعَلَيْكُمْ