In the Quran, Surah Ibrahim there is a dua which was said by Prophet Ibrahim, may peace be upon him, which asks Allah to make him and his family among the best Muslims.

In this short dua Prophet Ibrahim asks of Allah for the following things:

  • Be among the Muslims who have the discpline to pray the five salats consistently.
  • Asks Allah to have children who would remember the importance of establishing prayer.
  • Asks for Allah’s forgiveness for himself.
  • Asks Allah to forgive his parents.
  • Asks Allah to forgive the entire Ummah.

So what exactly was this dua?

Rabbij alni muqeemas salati in arabic

The dua is from Surah Ibrahim ayat 40-41. In arabic this is written,

رَبِّ اجْعَلْنِي مُقِيمَ الصَّلَاةِ وَمِنْ ذُرِّيَّتِي ۚ رَبَّنَا وَتَقَبَّلْ دُعَاءِ رَبَّنَا اغْفِرْ لِي وَلِوَالِدَيَّ وَلِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ يَوْمَ يَقُومُ الْحِسَابُ

Transliteration: [ayah 40] Rabbij alni muqeemas salati wa min zurriyati Rabbana wa taqabbal du’a [41] Rabbanagh fir lee waliwalidayya wa lil mumineena Yawma yaqoomul hisaab

rabbi jalni muqimas salati meaning:

The english translation of this dua is:

“My Lord, make me an establisher of prayer, and [many] from my descendants. Our Lord, and accept my supplication. Our Lord, forgive me and my parents and the believers the Day the account is established.”

On the day account is established “Allah will recompense every soul for what it earned. Indeed, Allah is swift in account.” (14:51)

We would be wise to recite this dua every so often, it is a beautiful dua and asks Allah many things, the main focus being for good family. It wishes well for yourself, your children and your parents. It even goes to on to ask forgive the entire Muslim ummah.

MORE BACKGROUND BEHIND THIS DUA:

Prophet Ibrahim (pbuh) included his father who was a mushrik in this prayer because he made a promise to pray to Allah for his forgiveness. But when he came to realize his father was an enemy of Allah, he absolved himself for praying for his forgiveness. This was mentioned in Surah At-Taubah Ayat 114.

“And the request of forgiveness of Abraham for his father was only because of a promise he had made to him. But when it became apparent to Abraham that his father was an enemy to Allah, he disassociated himself from him. Indeed was Abraham compassionate and patient.”