Prophet Yunus dua: meaning and context

What is the dua of Yunus in Arabic?

These are the closing words of Al-Anbiya 21:87, taken from the Quran text on this site.

Say it in three parts: Lā ilāha illā anta, "there is no god but You"; subḥānaka, "glory be to You"; and innī kuntu minaẓ-ẓālimīn, "indeed I have been among the wrongdoers". These are our own words for the three parts. The site's translation gives the meaning of the whole supplication.

The Latin letters are a reading aid. A line over a vowel marks a long one, and ḥ and ẓ are sounds that English spelling does not show. A fluent teacher or reciter can help you hear them.

Where does the dua appear in the Quran?

It is the closing passage of Al-Anbiya 21:87, which begins with Dhu al-Nun (a name for Yunus, explained below).

The verse places the call in the darkness and then gives the words. Al-Anbiya 21:88 says that Allah answered him and rescued him from the distress, and then speaks of saving the believers in the same way.

What does the Quran say about Yunus, and what does the commentary add?

As-Saffat 37:139 to 145 gives more of the account. It says that Yunus was one of the messengers and that he ran off to a laden ship. It then tells of his drawing lots and being among those rejected, of a fish swallowing him while he was blameworthy, and of his being cast onto a desert shore while he was sick. These verses are a separate passage from 21:87, and they do not give the number of days he spent in the fish.

In his commentary on Al-Anbiya 21:87 in Jami' al-Bayan, al-Tabari says that by Dhun-Nun the verse means Yunus ibn Matta, and that al-nun is the fish (source 3). He explains the words of the supplication as Yunus's acknowledgement of his wrongdoing and repentance from his error (source 4).

What does the report in Jami at-Tirmidhi say?

In Jami at-Tirmidhi 3505, graded sahih on sunnah.com, Sa'd, the narrator the chain names, reports the words of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, about the supplication of Dhun-Nun in the belly of the fish. The Arabic is taken from the record, and the meaning is our own.

1AuthenticJami' at-Tirmidhi 3505

That report says Allah responds to a Muslim who supplicates with it for something. It sets no repetition count, time limit or result, and it does not say how or when the response comes.

The commentary of al-Tirmidhi on this report, in Jami at-Tirmidhi, notes a chain variant. Some transmitters include "from his father" in the chain and some leave it out. Yunus ibn Abi Ishaq (a transmitter in the chain, not the Prophet Yunus) sometimes included it and sometimes did not. The text of that commentary on sunnah.com gives no grade of its own.

Does a delayed answer mean the dua has failed?

Sahih Muslim 2735c, reported by Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, is a general teaching about all supplication. It says that a servant's supplication keeps being answered unless he asks for sin or for cutting family ties, or unless he grows impatient, says that he has prayed again and again without an answer, and gives up.

2AuthenticSahih Muslim 2735c

This is a teaching about patience in supplication. It does not give a timetable for any request, and it does not say what the Yunus supplication will bring.

How many times should the dua be said?

Neither Al-Anbiya 21:87 nor Jami at-Tirmidhi 3505 (sunnah.com's sahih grading, not Tirmidhi's own), the two passages this page cites for the supplication, gives a repetition count. This page does not claim that a count appears in any other report.

If someone recommends a set number, ask which source gives it and whether they mean a personal practice or a religious rule. For your own practice, a scholar you trust can advise you.