The short answer
Dua e hajat is the supplication for a need in Jami' at-Tirmidhi 479, said after wudu and two rak'ahs, the prayer called Salatul Hajat. The report, attributed to the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, is graded weak: al-Tirmidhi's own note says its chain is criticised, and 12 other graders we found weaken it. It promises no set outcome.
Is the Salatul Hajat hadith authentic?
It is graded weak. Abdullah ibn Abi Awfa, may Allah be pleased with him, reports the prayer of need and its dua in Jami' at-Tirmidhi 479. The note in the collection calls it gharib (reported through a single chain; one edition reads hasan gharib), and in the same sentence says its chain is criticised: one narrator, Fa'id ibn ʿAbd al-Rahman, is weakened in hadith.
Copies of the collection differ on that note. The text on sunnah.com reads hasan gharib; the copy on the dorar.net hadith encyclopedia reads gharib, without hasan. No grading in the sources accepts it:
| What the grading says | Graders we found |
|---|---|
| Hasan gharib, with its chain criticised | 1 |
| Weak, very weak, unsound or not established | 8 |
| Names a weak narrator in its chain (weak, very weak, abandoned or ruined) | 4 |
| Quote critics of the narrator | 2 |
Our count is 15 graders: 1 plus 8 plus 4 plus 2. The full list, with each grader and the wording of each grading, is in the sources.
How do you pray Salatul Hajat, as the report describes it?
The report covers a need مَنْ كَانَتْ لَهُ إِلَى اللَّهِ حَاجَةٌ أَوْ إِلَى أَحَدٍ مِنْ بَنِي آدَمَ: a need from Allah, or from any one of the children of Adam. The report does not limit the kind of need. For example, a reply you are waiting for from an employer. Its method, in its own order:
فَلْيَتَوَضَّأْ وَلْيُحْسِنِ الْوُضُوءَ ثُمَّ لْيُصَلِّ رَكْعَتَيْنِ ثُمَّ لْيُثْنِ عَلَى اللَّهِ وَلْيُصَلِّ عَلَى النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم ثُمَّ لْيَقُلْ
Do wudu, and do it well
The report opens the method with wudu done well (fal-yatawadda' wal-yuhsin al-wudu').
Pray two rak'ahs
Then pray two rak'ahs (units of prayer). The report names no surahs for them.
Praise Allah and send blessings on the Prophet
Then praise Allah and send blessings on the Prophet. The report gives no set wording for either.
Say the dua e hajat
Then say the dua, from "La ilaha illallahu al-Halimu al-Karim" to "ya Arhama al-rahimin".
Salatul Hajat is also spelt salat hajat or salat ul hajat, and called namaz e hajat. Its supplication is the salatul hajat dua, also called dua hajat, hajat dua or hajat ki dua.
What is the dua e hajat in Arabic?
This is the dua as Jami' at-Tirmidhi 479 (graded weak) gives it: from "La ilaha illallahu al-Halimu al-Karim" to "ya Arhama al-rahimin". The copy button gives the Arabic.
Jami' at-Tirmidhi 479, graded weak
لاَ إِلَهَ إِلاَّ اللَّهُ الْحَلِيمُ الْكَرِيمُ سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَرْشِ الْعَظِيمِ الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ أَسْأَلُكَ مُوجِبَاتِ رَحْمَتِكَ وَعَزَائِمَ مَغْفِرَتِكَ وَالْغَنِيمَةَ مِنْ كُلِّ بِرٍّ وَالسَّلاَمَةَ مِنْ كُلِّ إِثْمٍ لاَ تَدَعْ لِي ذَنْبًا إِلاَّ غَفَرْتَهُ وَلاَ هَمًّا إِلاَّ فَرَّجْتَهُ وَلاَ حَاجَةً هِيَ لَكَ رِضًا إِلاَّ قَضَيْتَهَا يَا أَرْحَمَ الرَّاحِمِينَ
La ilaha illallahu al-Halimu al-Karim. Subhana Allahi Rabbi al-ʿarshi al-ʿazim. Al-hamdu lillahi Rabbi al-ʿalamin. As'aluka mujibati rahmatik, wa ʿaza'ima maghfiratik, wal-ghanimata min kulli birr, was-salamata min kulli ithm. La tadaʿ li dhanban illa ghafartah, wa la hamman illa farrajtah, wa la hajatan hiya laka ridan illa qadaytaha, ya Arhama al-rahimin.
What does the dua e hajat mean in English?
The dua in 11 lines: the Arabic, a plain transliteration, and our English, translated from the Arabic.
لاَ إِلَهَ إِلاَّ اللَّهُ الْحَلِيمُ الْكَرِيمُ
La ilaha illallahu al-Halimu al-Karim.
There is no god but Allah, the Forbearing, the Generous.
سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَرْشِ الْعَظِيمِ
Subhana Allahi Rabbi al-ʿarshi al-ʿazim.
Glory be to Allah, Lord of the mighty Throne.
الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ
Al-hamdu lillahi Rabbi al-ʿalamin.
Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds.
أَسْأَلُكَ مُوجِبَاتِ رَحْمَتِكَ
As'aluka mujibati rahmatik,
I ask You for what brings about Your mercy,
وَعَزَائِمَ مَغْفِرَتِكَ
wa ʿaza'ima maghfiratik,
and what makes Your forgiveness certain,
وَالْغَنِيمَةَ مِنْ كُلِّ بِرٍّ
wal-ghanimata min kulli birr,
a share in every good deed,
وَالسَّلاَمَةَ مِنْ كُلِّ إِثْمٍ
was-salamata min kulli ithm.
and safety from every sin.
لاَ تَدَعْ لِي ذَنْبًا إِلاَّ غَفَرْتَهُ
La tadaʿ li dhanban illa ghafartah,
Leave me no sin that You do not forgive,
وَلاَ هَمًّا إِلاَّ فَرَّجْتَهُ
wa la hamman illa farrajtah,
no worry that You do not relieve,
وَلاَ حَاجَةً هِيَ لَكَ رِضًا إِلاَّ قَضَيْتَهَا
wa la hajatan hiya laka ridan illa qadaytaha,
and no need that pleases You, without You fulfilling it,
يَا أَرْحَمَ الرَّاحِمِينَ
ya Arhama al-rahimin.
O Most Merciful of those who show mercy.
The dua opens with praise (lines 1 to 3) and asks for mercy, forgiveness, good and safety (lines 4 to 7). It then asks Allah to leave no sin unforgiven, no worry unrelieved and no need that pleases Him unmet (lines 8 to 10). The need it asks for is any need "that pleases You", in the dua's own words.
What does the Salatul Hajat hadith not say?
Jami' at-Tirmidhi 479 (graded weak) gives the four steps and the dua, and nothing more. These details, often asked about, are not in it:
| Question | In the report? |
|---|---|
| Which surahs to recite in the two rak'ahs | Not given |
| A time of day or night | Not given |
| How many times to say the dua | Not given |
| That the need will be granted, or when | Not given |
| Making the request in a language other than Arabic | Not addressed |
For supplication after the prayer, see Dua after Salah.
For a question about your own situation, such as praying it at a particular time, ask a scholar you trust.
Is Salatul Hajat the same as istikhara?
No. They are two different reports with two different duas. In the istikhara hadith, Jabir ibn ʿAbd Allah, may Allah be pleased with him, reports that istikhara is for when you intend a matter. It is two rak'ahs other than the obligatory prayer, then the istikhara dua, and the person names his need.
2AuthenticSahih al-Bukhari 1166
Salatul Hajat, from Jami' at-Tirmidhi 479 (graded weak), is for a need, and its dua asks for that need to be met. The istikhara guide gives that dua and its steps in full.
Before a job interview, my mum told me to pray hajat and a friend told me to pray istikhara. I was not sure which one fitted, so I asked the imam after Jumu'ah. He explained the difference in two minutes on the mosque steps.
Try it: the steps and the grade
Four quick checks on the report. Each answer explains itself.
1In the report, what comes straight after wudu?
Answer: Two rak'ahs of prayer. The order is wudu done well, then two rak'ahs, then praise and blessings, then the dua. Source 1
2Does the Salatul Hajat hadith say the need will be granted?
Answer: No, it names no result or timetable. The dua asks Allah to meet a need that pleases Him. The report names no result, no timetable and no count. Source 1
3How is the Salatul Hajat hadith graded?
Answer: Weak. Al-Tirmidhi's note criticises its chain (only one edition adds hasan); the other 12 graders in the sources weaken it. Source 1
4Which surahs does the report set for the two rak'ahs?
Answer: None. It says only "two rak'ahs" and names no surahs. Source 1
Questions people ask
Can I ask Allah for a need without praying Salatul Hajat?
The Quran addresses believers in Al-Baqarah 2:153: "O you who believe! Seek help in steadfastness and prayer. Indeed, Allah is with the steadfast." This page gives the Quran's words and does not rule on how a person should ask. For a question about your own practice, ask a scholar you trust.
Is there a dua to get what you want?
The dua e hajat in Jami' at-Tirmidhi 479 (graded weak) asks Allah to leave no need that pleases Him unmet. It is a request to Allah; the report sets no result or timetable. Al-Tirmidhi's note criticises its chain, and 12 other graders weaken it.
Which number is the Salatul Hajat hadith?
It is Jami' at-Tirmidhi 479 on sunnah.com (Book 3, Hadith 27), narrated by Abdullah ibn Abi Awfa, may Allah be pleased with him, and graded weak. The dua e hajat on this page is the wording of Jami' at-Tirmidhi 479.
Sources
Every claim on this page comes from one of these. Gradings are reported with the scholar's name; we do not grade hadith ourselves.
- 1
Abdullah ibn Abi Awfa reports that the Prophet said whoever has a need from Allah, or from any person, should do wudu and do it well, pray two rak'ahs, praise Allah and send blessings on the Prophet, then say a supplication that runs from 'la ilaha illallahu al-halimu al-karim' to 'ya arham al-rahimin'.
Jami' at-Tirmidhi 479 Book 3, Hadith 27
Weak: hasan gharib, and there is criticism in its chain: Fa'id ibn 'Abd al-Rahman is weakened in hadith; the copy on dorar.net reads gharib, without hasan (Al-Tirmidhi); Da'if (Darussalam); very weak (Al-Albani); weak (Al-Albani); it contains Fa'id ibn 'Abd al-Rahman, who is very weak (Ahmad Shakir); weak (Ibn al-'Arabi); it contains Fa'id ibn 'Abd al-Rahman Abu al-Warqa', an abandoned narrator, from whom trustworthy narrators reported (Al-Mundhiri); he graded it weak (Ibn al-Qayyim); it contains Fa'id ibn 'Abd al-Rahman Abu al-Warqa', who is ruined as a narrator (Al-Mu'allimi); it contains Fa'id ibn 'Abd al-Rahman, who is weak (Shu'ayb al-Arna'ut); its chain is unsound, as he set out in his introduction (Al-Dimyati); there is weakness in it (Ibn Muflih); very weak; it may be written down for the merits of deeds (Al-Sakhawi). Remarks: on the prayer of need in general: nothing about it is established from the Prophet. A juristic assessment of the prayer, not a grading of this report's chain (Ibn 'Uthaymin); listed in al-Mawdu'at, with narrator criticism quoted from others: Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Fa'id is abandoned in hadith; Yahya, not trustworthy; Ibn Hibban, not to be used as proof (Ibn al-Jawzi); it contains Fa'id, quoting al-Tirmidhi: he is weakened in hadith (Al-Diya' al-Maqdisi)
- 2
Jabir said the Prophet taught them istikhara in matters as he taught them a surah of the Quran: when one of you intends a matter, let him pray two rak'ahs other than the obligatory prayer, then say the istikhara dua; the narration ends 'and he names his need'.
Sahih al-Bukhari 1166 Book 19, Hadith 45
Authentic: in Sahih al-Bukhari
- Q
Al-Baqarah 2:153, quoted in the FAQ.
Tanzil Project Uthmani text, CC BY 3.0. English: adapted from Marmaduke Pickthall's translation (1930), modernised and checked against modern translations.
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