About the edition

01. The essence of dua in the Quran and the Arabic language

Allah says in the Holy Quran: “Your Lord has said: ‘Call upon Me, and I will respond to you’” (Ghafir 40:60). In Arabic, the root d-‘-w (د ع و) denotes a call, an address and a request. This root occurs in the Quranic text 207 times, and 205 of those verses relate directly to supplication. Imam Abu Sulayman al-Khattabi defined the essence of dua as the servant’s expression of deep spiritual need (iftiqar — إِفْتِقَارٌ) before the Creator, and a complete disavowal of his own strength and power (at-tabarri min al-hawl wa al-quwwa — التَّبَرِّي مِنَ الْحَوْلِ وَالْقُوَّةِ).

Qadi Abu Bakr ibn al-Arabi defined it as the servant’s seeking of his Lord’s care and assistance (istidʿāʾ al-ʿabd rabbahu al-ʿināya wa istimdāduhu al-maʿūna).

02. Duʿāʾ al-masʾala and duʿāʾ al-ʿibāda

Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah and Imam Ibn al-Qayyim explained that Quranic supplications fall into two categories. Duʿāʾ al-masʾala (دُعَاءُ الْمَسْأَلَةِ) is a request: a specific petition for good or for the removal of harm — forgiveness, guidance, health, provision, or deliverance from the Fire. Duʿāʾ al-ʿibāda (دُعَاءُ الْعِبَادَةِ) is worship: praise, affirming the Oneness of Allah, tasbīḥ, and prayer. By the act of worship itself, a person asks for reward and protection.

Ibn Taymiyyah noted the wisdom in the fact that most Quranic supplications begin with the name “ar-Rabb” (الرَّبّ): it points to creation, provision, care, the setting right of one’s affairs, and protection — all of which correspond to the essence of seeking help.

03. The superiority of the transmitted supplications

The Most High Allah says in the Quran: “He taught Adam the names of all things…” (Al-Baqarah 2:31). The supplications revealed in the Quran and transmitted from the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) (al-ad‘iyya al-ma’thura — الْأَدْعِيَةُ الْمَأْثُورَةُ) possess absolute superiority over any prayers composed by man on his own. They are distinguished by comprehensiveness of meaning (jami‘ al-kalim — جَوَامِعُ الْكَلِمِ), perfection of supplicatory etiquette and a guaranteed absence of excess or error. We call upon every Muslim to memorise these Quranic duas, to turn to the Lord with them and to teach them to their families and children.

04. Five grammatical and rhetorical forms of supplication

In Arabic rhetoric (balāgha), speech addressed from creation to the Creator loses its imperative force and becomes humble supplication. In the Quran, duʿāʾ is expressed through five forms.

• The imperative (fiʿl al-amr — فِعْلُ الْأَمْرِ). “Grant,” “Forgive,” “Make firm” — more than 230 contexts.
• Prohibitive constructions (asālīb al-nahy — أَسَالِيبُ النَّهْيِ). A plea for the removal of evil: “Do not punish us,” “Do not let our hearts deviate.”
• The substitute maṣdar (al-maṣdar al-nāʾib — الْمَصْدَرُ النَّائِبُ). Concise formulae of contrition, such as “Ghufrānaka” (2:285).
• Describing one’s need (lisān al-ḥāl — لِسَانُ الْحَالِ). The words of Mūsā: “My Lord, I am in need of whatever good You send down”; the words of Ayyūb: “Affliction has touched me.”
• The rhetorical question (asālīb al-istifhām — أَسَالِيبُ الِاسْتِفْهَامِ). The words of Mūsā: “Will You destroy us for what the foolish among us have done?”

05. Why the collection contains 60 supplications out of more than 230

If we consider the strict grammatical form, the imperative (fi‘l al-amr — فِعْلُ الْأَمْرِ), directed upward from creation to the Creator, occurs in the Quran more than 230 times. Yet this academic collection includes exactly 60 canonical supplications, selected according to the following criteria of Islamic law and method.

• The subject. The collection includes only the blessed addresses of the Prophets and Messengers (peace be upon them), the righteous believers and the angels who bear the Throne. The cries of the inhabitants of Hell, the supplications of the wicked and Iblis’s request for respite are excluded, because they appear in the Quran as eschatological admonition rather than as an example for practice.
• Unified passages. Multi-verse prayer texts (for example 2:127–128, 2:285–286, 3:191–194, 25:65–74) are combined into complete formulas rather than split into separate phrases.
• The dua of request. The selection focuses on ready-made supplications that contain a direct or indirect request for good and salvation, ideally suited to memorisation and recitation in prayer (dua al-mas’ala — دُعَاءُ الْمَسْأَلَةِ).