How do you pray Istikhara?
Istikhara is asking Allah to guide you to what is good. Here is how to pray it, and what to do before and after.
You have a big decision in front of you, and someone has told you to pray Istikhara.
A job in another city. A proposal. Whether to leave, whether to stay. Something you cannot take back once you say yes.
You have asked everyone. You have made the list. You are still stuck.
Most people think Istikhara is one prayer, and then you wait for a dream. Nabi ﷺ taught something bigger than that: a whole way of making a decision. Istikhara sits in the middle of it.
What comes before Istikhara?
First, do your part. A man asked Nabi ﷺ whether he should tie up his camel and trust Allah, or leave it loose and trust Allah. Nabi ﷺ said: tie it, and trust Allah.
So look into it properly. Read the contract. Meet the family. Visit the city. Trusting Allah never meant skipping the homework.
Then, ask people. Allah told Nabi ﷺ, the one person on earth receiving revelation, to consult his companions on their affairs. And Allah describes the believers as people who run their affairs by consulting each other.
If he was told to ask, you can ask too. Ask someone who knows the subject, and someone who truly wants good for you. The best advice comes from someone who is both.
So what is Istikhara?
Istikhara means asking Allah for the good. You are not asking for a sign, and you are not handing Him the decision. You are asking Him to steer you to whatever is actually good for you, and away from whatever only looks good.
A companion said Nabi ﷺ taught them Istikhara for every matter, the same careful way he taught them a surah of the Quran.
How do you pray it?
1. Make wudu.
2. Pray two rakahs, separate from the five daily prayers. Any time, except the times when voluntary prayer is disliked.
3. When you finish, say the dua. Where it says this matter, name your actual decision, out loud or in your heart.
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 فَاقْدُرْهُ لِي وَيَسِّرْهُ لِي ثُمَّ بَارِكْ لِي فِيهِ، وَإِنْ كُنْتَ تَعْلَمُ أَنَّ هَذَا الْأَمْرَ شَرٌّ لِي فِي دِينِي وَمَعَاشِي وَعَاقِبَةِ أَمْرِي فَاصْرِفْهُ عَنِّي وَاصْرِفْنِي عَنْهُ وَاقْدُرْ لِيَ الْخَيْرَ حَيْثُ كَانَ ثُمَّ أَرْضِنِي بِهِ
Allahumma inni astakhiruka bi'ilmik, wa astaqdiruka biqudratik, wa as'aluka min fadlikal-'adhim, fa-innaka taqdiru wa la aqdir, wa ta'lamu wa la a'lam, wa anta 'allamul-ghuyub. Allahumma in kunta ta'lamu anna hadhal-amra khayrul-li fi dini wa ma'ashi wa 'aqibati amri faqdurhu li wa yassirhu li thumma barik li fih. Wa in kunta ta'lamu anna hadhal-amra sharrul-li fi dini wa ma'ashi wa 'aqibati amri fasrifhu 'anni wasrifni 'anhu, waqdur liyal-khayra haythu kan, thumma ardini bih.
O Allah, I ask You to choose for me by Your knowledge, and I ask You for strength by Your power, and I ask You from Your great generosity. You are able and I am not. You know and I do not. You know what is hidden.
O Allah, if You know this matter is good for me, in my religion, my life and how things end for me, then make it happen for me, make it easy for me, and put blessing in it for me.
And if You know this matter is bad for me, in my religion, my life and how things end for me, then turn it away from me, and turn me away from it, and make good happen for me wherever it is, and make me content with it.
You are able and I am not. You know and I do not.
Is it only for the big decisions?
No. After her marriage ended, Nabi ﷺ sent a message proposing to a woman. A proposal from the Messenger of Allah himself. She said she would not do anything until she had asked her Lord, and she went to her place of prayer.
If anyone could have said yes on the spot, it was her. She asked Allah first anyway.
And when Nabi ﷺ died, the companions did not know which way to dig his grave. Two men in Madinah dug graves two different ways. They prayed Istikhara, sent for both, and let whoever arrived first do it.
That was the hardest day of their lives, and they still asked Allah about the details. Istikhara is for every matter, big and small.
Do I need to see a dream?
No. Nabi ﷺ never mentioned a dream in any of this. Plenty of people pray Istikhara and dream nothing, and that is normal.
So how do I know the answer?
Scholars explain it as what happens next. The door opens easily, or it keeps closing. Sometimes your heart settles toward one side after you have asked. Sometimes something new comes up that you did not know before.
You do not need to feel certain. You asked Allah to steer you. Now keep walking and let Him steer.
Then what do I do?
You decide. The same verse that tells Nabi ﷺ to consult people ends like this: once you have decided, put your trust in Allah.
Istikhara is what you do right before you choose. It is not a way of putting the choice off forever. And Allah says whoever puts their trust in Him, He is enough for them.
What if it goes wrong?
This is the part people forget.
Nabi ﷺ said the strong believer is better and more loved by Allah. Go after what benefits you, ask Allah for help, and do not give up. And if something goes wrong, do not say if only I had done it differently. Say: Allah decreed it, and He did what He willed. That if only opens the door to Shaytan.
You did your homework. You asked people. You asked Allah. If it still turns out hard, that does not mean you chose wrong. Allah says you may dislike something that is good for you, and like something that is bad for you. Allah knows and you do not.
Quick questions
Can I pray it more than once? Yes. Pray it again as long as the decision is still open.
Can someone pray it for me? Scholars differ. The hadith speaks to the person making the decision, so pray it yourself. Anyone can still make dua for you.
What if I cannot pray right now, like during my period? Many scholars say you can say the dua on its own, or pray the two rakahs later if the decision can wait.
Before or after the salam? The hadith says after the prayer, so say it once you have finished.
What to do
- Do the homework and ask good people before you pray it.
- Pray it before you decide, not after you have already made up your mind.
- Name the actual decision when you get to this matter.
- Pray it again as long as the decision is still open.
What not to do
- Do not wait for a dream.
- Do not use Istikhara as a way to never decide.
- Do not treat every small obstacle as Allah saying no.
- Do not say if only when a choice you asked Allah about turns out hard.
One last thing
Read the end of the dua again. You do not ask Allah to make you sure. You ask Him to make good happen for you wherever it is, and then to make you content with it.
If a decision is sitting with you this week, pray the two rakahs tonight. Not certainty before you choose. Peace after you do.
Source: Sahih al-Bukhari 1162; Sahih al-Bukhari 6382; Sahih Muslim 1428; Sunan Ibn Majah 1557; Jami` at-Tirmidhi 2517; Sahih Muslim 2664; Quran 3:159; Quran 42:38; Quran 65:3; Quran 2:216
SM
The teaching in this post comes from the Quran and the hadith listed above. I only put it in plain words. The tips on what to do and what not to do are my own advice. If you want to talk about anything in this post, write to me at salam@sunnahdaily.com.
For a ruling on your own situation, please speak to a qualified local scholar. You are welcome to email me about it as well, and I will help if I can, or point you to someone who can.