The Prophet's ﷺ night prayer and dua for nur

I spent the night with Maymunah. The Prophet ﷺ got up and went to relieve himself; he washed his face and hands, then slept. Then he got up, went to the waterskin, untied its strap, and performed an ablution that was between two ablutions: he did not use much water, yet he did it thoroughly. Then he prayed. I got up and stretched, not wanting him to think that I had been watching him, then I performed ablution. He stood to pray, and I stood on his left, so he took me by my ear and turned me to his right. His prayer was completed as thirteen rakahs. Then he lay down and slept until he breathed audibly; when he slept, he would breathe audibly. Bilal then informed him of the prayer, so he prayed and did not perform ablution. In his dua he would say:

allāhumma ijʿal fī qalbī nūrā, wa-fī basarī nūrā, wa-fī samʿī nūrā, wa-ʿan yamīnī nūrā, wa-ʿan yasārī nūrā, wa-fawqī nūrā, wa-taḥtī nūrā, wa-amāmī nūrā, wa-khalfī nūrā, wa-ijʿal lī nūrā

(O Allah, place light in my heart, light in my sight, light in my hearing, light on my right, light on my left, light above me, light beneath me, light before me, light behind me, and grant me light.)

Kurayb said: And seven are in the chest. I then met a man from the descendants of al-Abbas, and he narrated them to me, mentioning my sinew, my flesh, my blood, my hair, and my skin, and he mentioned two qualities.

بِتُّ عِنْدَ مَيْمُونَةَ، فَقَامَ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ فَأَتَى حَاجَتَهُ، غَسَلَ وَجْهَهُ وَيَدَيْهِ ثُمَّ نَامَ، ثُمَّ قَامَ فَأَتَى الْقِرْبَةَ فَأَطْلَقَ شِنَاقَهَا، ثُمَّ تَوَضَّأَ وُضُوءًا بَيْنَ وُضُوءَيْنِ، لَمْ يُكْثِرْ وَقَدْ أَبْلَغَ، فَصَلَّى، فَقُمْتُ فَتَمَطَّيْتُ كَرَاهِيَةَ أَنْ يَرَى أَنِّي كُنْتُ أَتَّقِيهِ، فَتَوَضَّأْتُ، فَقَامَ يُصَلِّي، فَقُمْتُ عَنْ يَسَارِهِ، فَأَخَذَ بِأُذُنِي فَأَدَارَنِي عَنْ يَمِينِهِ، فَتَتَامَّتْ صَلاَتُهُ ثَلاَثَ عَشْرَةَ رَكْعَةً، ثُمَّ اضْطَجَعَ فَنَامَ حَتَّى نَفَخَ، وَكَانَ إِذَا نَامَ نَفَخَ، فَآذَنَهُ بِلاَلٌ بِالصَّلاَةِ، فَصَلَّى وَلَمْ يَتَوَضَّأْ. وَكَانَ يَقُولُ فِي دُعَائِهِ:

«اللَّهُمَّ اجْعَلْ فِي قَلْبِي نُورًا، وَفِي بَصَرِي نُورًا، وَفِي سَمْعِي نُورًا، وَعَنْ يَمِينِي نُورًا، وَعَنْ يَسَارِي نُورًا، وَفَوْقِي نُورًا، وَتَحْتِي نُورًا، وَأَمَامِي نُورًا، وَخَلْفِي نُورًا، وَاجْعَلْ لِي نُورًا».

قَالَ كُرَيْبٌ: وَسَبْعٌ فِي التَّابُوتِ، فَلَقِيتُ رَجُلاً مِنْ وَلَدِ الْعَبَّاسِ فَحَدَّثَنِي بِهِنَّ، فَذَكَرَ عَصَبِي وَلَحْمِي وَدَمِي وَشَعَرِي وَبَشَرِي، وَذَكَرَ خَصْلَتَيْنِ.

That he stayed overnight in the house of Maimuna the wife of the Prophet, his aunt. He added : I lay on the bed (cushion transversally) while Messenger of Allah ﷺ and his wife lay in the lengthwise direction of the cushion. Messenger of Allah ﷺ slept till the middle of the night, either a bit before or a bit after it and then woke up, rubbing the traces of sleep off his face with his hands. He then, recited the last ten verses of Sura Al-ʿImran, got up and went to a hanging water-skin. He then Performed the ablution from it and it was a perfect ablution, and then stood up to offer the prayer. I, too, got up and did as the Prophet had done. Then I went and stood by his side. He placed his right hand on my head and caught my right ear and twisted it. He prayed two rakʿat then two rakʿat and two rakʿat and then two rakʿat and then two rakʿat and then two rakʿat (separately six times), and finally one rakʿa (the witr). Then he lay down again in the bed till the Mu'adh-dhin came to him where upon the Prophet ﷺ got up, offered a two light rakʿat prayer and went out and led the Fajr prayer.

أَخْبَرَهُ أَنَّهُ بَاتَ لَيْلَةً عِنْدَ مَيْمُونَةَ زَوْجِ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ وَهِيَ خَالَتُهُ فَاضْطَجَعْتُ فِي عَرْضِ الْوِسَادَةِ وَاضْطَجَعَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ وَأَهْلُهُ فِي طُولِهَا فَنَامَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ حَتَّى إِذَا انْتَصَفَ اللَّيْلُ أَوْ قَبْلَهُ بِقَلِيلٍ أَوْ بَعْدَهُ بِقَلِيلٍ اسْتَيْقَظَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ فَجَلَسَ يَمْسَحُ النَّوْمَ عَنْ وَجْهِهِ بِيَدِهِ ثُمَّ قَرَأَ الْعَشْرَ الآيَاتِ الْخَوَاتِمَ مِنْ سُورَةِ آلِ عِمْرَانَ ثُمَّ قَامَ إِلَى شَنٍّ مُعَلَّقَةٍ فَتَوَضَّأَ مِنْهَا فَأَحْسَنَ وُضُوءَهُ ثُمَّ قَامَ يُصَلِّي قَالَ ابْنُ عَبَّاسٍ فَقُمْتُ فَصَنَعْتُ مِثْلَ مَا صَنَعَ ثُمَّ ذَهَبْتُ فَقُمْتُ إِلَى جَنْبِهِ فَوَضَعَ يَدَهُ الْيُمْنَى عَلَى رَأْسِي وَأَخَذَ بِأُذُنِي الْيُمْنَى يَفْتِلُهَا فَصَلَّى رَكْعَتَيْنِ ثُمَّ رَكْعَتَيْنِ ثُمَّ رَكْعَتَيْنِ ثُمَّ رَكْعَتَيْنِ ثُمَّ رَكْعَتَيْنِ ثُمَّ رَكْعَتَيْنِ ثُمَّ أَوْتَرَ ثُمَّ اضْطَجَعَ حَتَّى أَتَاهُ الْمُؤَذِّنُ فَقَامَ فَصَلَّى رَكْعَتَيْنِ خَفِيفَتَيْنِ ثُمَّ خَرَجَ فَصَلَّى الصُّبْحَ

The prayer of the Prophet ﷺ used to be of thirteen rakʿat, i.e. of the night prayer.

كَانَ صَلاَةُ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ ثَلاَثَ عَشْرَةَ رَكْعَةً يَعْنِي بِاللَّيْلِ

Whenever the Prophet ﷺ offered the night (Tahajjud) prayer, he used to say, "O Allah! All the Praises are for You; You are the Light of the Heavens and the Earth. And all the Praises are for You; You are the Keeper of the Heavens and the Earth. All the Praises are for You; You are the Lord of the Heavens and the Earth and whatever is therein. You are the Truth, and Your Promise is the Truth, and Your Speech is the Truth, and meeting You is the Truth, and Paradise is the Truth and Hell (Fire) is the Truth and all the prophets are the Truth and the Hour is the Truth. O Allah! I surrender to You, and believe in You, and depend upon You, and repent to You, and in Your cause I fight and with Your orders I rule. So please forgive my past and future sins and those sins which I did in secret or in public. It is You Whom I worship, None has the right to be worshipped except You ." (See Hadith No. 329,Vol. 8)

أَخْبَرَهُ أَنَّهُ سَمِعَ ابْنَ عَبَّاسٍ يَقُولُ كَانَ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ إِذَا تَهَجَّدَ مِنَ اللَّيْلِ قَالَ اللَّهُمَّ لَكَ الْحَمْدُ أَنْتَ نُورُ السَّمَوَاتِ وَالأَرْضِ وَلَكَ الْحَمْدُ أَنْتَ قَيِّمُ السَّمَوَاتِ وَالأَرْضِ وَلَكَ الْحَمْدُ أَنْتَ رَبُّ السَّمَوَاتِ وَالأَرْضِ وَمَنْ فِيهِنَّ أَنْتَ الْحَقُّ وَوَعْدُكَ الْحَقُّ وَقَوْلُكَ الْحَقُّ وَلِقَاؤُكَ الْحَقُّ وَالْجَنَّةُ حَقٌّ وَالنَّارُ حَقٌّ وَالنَّبِيُّونَ حَقٌّ وَالسَّاعَةُ حَقٌّ اللَّهُمَّ لَكَ أَسْلَمْتُ وَبِكَ آمَنْتُ وَعَلَيْكَ تَوَكَّلْتُ وَإِلَيْكَ أَنَبْتُ وَبِكَ خَاصَمْتُ وَإِلَيْكَ حَاكَمْتُ فَاغْفِرْ لِي مَا قَدَّمْتُ وَمَا أَخَّرْتُ وَمَا أَسْرَرْتُ وَمَا أَعْلَنْتُ أَنْتَ إِلَهِي لاَ إِلَهَ إِلاَّ أَنْتَ