What to recite on the day of Arafah?

‘Aishah (may Allah raise her rank) said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “There is no day on which Allah ransoms more of His slaves from the Fire than the day of ‘Arafah .

‘Abd-Allah ibn ‘Amr ibn al-‘As (may Allah raise his rank) narrated that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “The best of du’a is du’a on the day of ‘Arafah, and the best that I and the Prophets before me said is ‘La ilaha ill-Allah wahdahu la sharika lah, lahu’l-mulk wa lahu’l-hamd wa huwa ‘ala kulli shay’in qadir (There is no god but Allah Alone, with no partner or associate; His is the dominion, to Him be praise, and He has power over all things).” 

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, “The best of du’a is du’a on the day of ‘Arafah.” (Hasan)

Here are five du’as you can recite on the day of Arafah.

1. Du’a for Affirming Tawheed

The word Arafah means “to know” and what better way to know our Lord than through the du’a taught by His beloved Rasul, Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ):

لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللهُ ، وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ ، لَهُ الْمُلْكُ وَلَهُ الْحَمْدُ ، وهُوَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ

Laa ilaaha ill-allaahu, waḥdahu laa shareeka lah, lahul-mulku wa lahul-ḥamdu, wa huwa ‛alaa kulli shay’in qadeer.

2. Du’a for Forgiveness

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, “There is no day in which Allah saves more people from the fire than the Day of `Arafah.” ( Ibn Majah)

We are not perfect but the Day of Arafah is the perfect time to make the du’a asking for Allah’s forgiveness, His help in providing us a solid foundation to stand firm upon the deen and granting us victory and success, inshaAllah. Our iman has highs as well as lows and it is important to be aware of our lows and seek forgiveness from Allah. 

 رَبَّنَا ظَلَمْنَآ أَنفُسَنَا وَإِن لَّمْ تَغْفِرْ لَنَا وَتَرْحَمْنَا لَنَكُونَنَّ مِنَ ٱلْخَـٰسِرِينَ

Rabbana zalamna anfusana wa-in lam taghfir lana watarhamna lanakoonanna mina alkhasireen

3. Du’a for Protection from Cowardice and Laziness

If the current circumstances have taught us anything, it is surely that there is no time to waste. We need to make every precious moment of our lives count by reading the Qur’an, learning the deen and helping our fellow Muslims in any way we can.

اللّهُـمَّ إِنِّي أَعْوذُ بِكَ مِنَ الهَـمِّ وَ الْحُـزْنِ، والعًجْـزِ والكَسَلِ والبُخْـلِ والجُـبْنِ، وضَلْـعِ الـدَّيْنِ وغَلَبَـةِ الرِّجال

Allaahumma ‘innee ‘a’oothu bika minal-hammi walhazani, wal’ajzi walkasali, walbukhli waljubni, wa dhala’id-dayni wa ghalabatir-rijaal.

5. Du’a for Halal Sustenance

‏اللهم اغفر لي، وارحمني، واهدني، وعافني، وارزقني

Rabi Ighfir lee, warhamni, warfa’ani, wahdini, warzuqni

Do Allah descends from the heavens on this day?

Perhaps you’ve come across some social media posts or heard people sharing a recent hadith classified as “weak” in the science of Prophetic Hadith, suggesting that Allah descends to the sky on the Day of Arafah to boast to the inhabitants of the heavens (the pilgrims). Here, it’s important to clarify some matters related to Islamic belief.

Islamic creed affirms that Allah is transcendent beyond any similarity to His creation, as indicated by the verse: “There is nothing like unto Him.” So, whatever comes to your mind, Allah is beyond that. In Islamic creed, Allah is characterized by eternal and everlasting attributes. He existed before everything, before the heavens, before the throne, before place, and before time. It is not valid for Allah to change from one state to another. In this context, it is neither rational nor in accordance with Islamic law to imagine Allah existing before the place without a place, and then creating the heavens to dwell in it. Any verse or hadith that suggests Allah is similar to His creation is interpreted in a manner that upholds His transcendence and is returned to what befits Allah in terms of exaltation.