Step · 01

What is Istikharah prayer?

For everything important that a person intends to do or leave, from what is permissible to do or not do (and not what is forbidden or commanded), it is sunnah to perform istikharah prayer as a voluntary prayer which has two rakats and is performed at any time of day or night, and after performing those two rakats of voluntary prayer, the special istikharah supplication is recited.

By performing istikharah, a person asks Allah to decree, facilitate and bless what he has decided to do if there is good in it for him, his religion and life and has good consequences in both worlds, and if there is harm in what he has decided to do for his religion and life, and has bad consequences in both worlds, he asks Allah to turn it away from him and turn him away from that intention.

Also, after performing istikharah, it is not reported that one should dream something about that matter where he will be informed in dreams what to do, nor should he expect to receive some special inspiration within himself by which he will be guided how and what to do.

It is a wrong understanding that istikharah is performed when a person is in doubt and dilemma about what to do, this or that, because in the hadith it says 'When any of you intends to do some (important) matter', which means he has already decided what he wants but doesn't know if there is good for him in what he wants to do, so he performs istikharah for that.

Step · 02

How is Istikharah prayer performed?

Istikharah prayer is performed like any other prayer of two rakats.

After giving the salam, the Istikharah supplication is recited.

The supplication can be studied in Arabic as it was transmitted in the hadith, or in translation, or in your own words.

After the prayer and supplication, a decision should be made about the matter for which we performed Istikharah prayer.

Arabic

اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَسْتَخِيرُكَ بِعِلْمِكَ وَأَسْتَقْدِرُكَ بِقُدْرَتِكَ وَأَسْأَلُكَ مِنْ فَضْلِكَ الْعَظِيمِ فَإِنَّكَ تَقْدِرُ وَلَا أَقْدِرُ وَتَعْلَمُ وَلَا أَعْلَمُ وَأَنْتَ عَلَّامُ الْغُيُوبِ اللَّهُمَّ إِنْ كُنْتَ تَعْلَمُ أَنَّ هَذَا الْأَمْرَ خَيْرٌ لِي فِي دِينِي وَمَعَاشِي وَعَاقِبَةِ أَمْرِي - أَوْ قَالَ: فِي عَاجِلِ أَمْرِي وَآجِلِهِ - فَاقْدُرْهُ لِي وَيَسِّرْهُ لِي ثُمَّ بَارِكْ لِي فِيهِ وَإِنْ كُنْتَ تَعْلَمُ أَنَّ هَذَا الْأَمْرَ شَرٌّ لِي فِي دِينِي وَمَعَاشِي وَعَاقِبَةِ أَمْرِي - أَوْ قَالَ: فِي عَاجِلِ أَمْرِي وَآجِلِهِ - فَاصْرِفْهُ عَنِّي وَاصْرِفْنِي عَنْهُ وَاقْدُرْ لِي الْخَيْرَ حَيْثُ كَانَ ثُمَّ أَرْضِنِي بِهِ

Transliteration

ALLAHUMMA INNI ASTAKHIRUKA BI ILMIKA WA ASTAQDIRIKA BI QUDRATIKA WA AS'ALUKA MIN FADLIKA AL-AZIM, FA INNAKA TAQDIRU WA LA AQDIRU WA TA'LAMU WA LA A'LAMU WA ANTA ALLAM AL-GHUYUB. ALLAHUMMA IN KUNTA TA'LAMU ANNA HADHA AL-AMRA KHAYRUN LI FI DINI WA MA'ASHI WA AQIBATI AMRI - AW QALA: FI AJILI AMRI WA AJILIHI - FAQDIRHU LI WA YASSIRHU LI THUMMA BARIK LI FIHI, WA IN KUNTA TA'LAMU ANNA HADHA AL-AMRA SHARRUN LI FI DINI WA MA'ASHI WA AQIBATI AMRI - AW QALA: FI AJILI AMRI WA AJILIHI - FASRIFHU ANNI WASRIFNI ANHU WAQDIR LI AL-KHAYR HAYTHU KANA THUMMA ARDINI BIHI

Translation

O Allah, I seek Your guidance through Your knowledge, and I seek Your empowerment through Your power, and I ask You from Your great bounty. For You have power and I am powerless, You have knowledge and I am ignorant, and You are the Knower of the unseen. O Allah, if You know that this matter is good for me in my religion, my livelihood, and the outcome of my affairs - or he said: in my immediate and future affairs - then decree it for me and facilitate it for me, then bless me in it. And if You know that this matter is bad for me in my religion, my livelihood, and the outcome of my affairs - or he said: in my immediate and future affairs - then turn it away from me and turn me away from it, and decree for me what is good wherever it may be, then make me satisfied with it

Istihara