Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "O Messenger of Allah, teach me some words to recite in the morning and in the evening." He said: "Say: 'O Allah, Creator of the heavens and the earth, Knower of the hidden and the apparent, Lord of everything and its Possessor. I bear witness that there is no god but You. I seek refuge in You from the evil of my own self and from the evil of the devil and the evil of polytheism to which he calls, and from incurring any sin upon myself or upon any other Muslim.'" He added: "Recite them in the morning, in the evening, and when you go to bed."
GradingAuthentic hadith
AttributionNarrated by At-Termedhy - An-Nasaa’i - Narrated by Abu Daoud - Narrated by Ahmad
Explanation
This Dhikr is one of the supplications that are recited in the morning and in the evening, which the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) taught Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: "Teach me!" So, the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) taught him a Dhikr and a supplication that he could recite every morning and every evening. He ordered him to say: O Allah, the Creator of the heavens and the earth in an unprecedented manner, Who originated them and brought them into existence from non-existence. Knower of what is hidden from the creatures and what is apparent to them, because Allah, the Almighty, knows the present, the past, and the future. Lord of everything and its Possessor, as Allah, the Almighty, is the Lord of everything and the Owner of everything. I testify with my tongue and heart that there is no god but You. Everything worshiped other than Allah is a false deity that has no right to be worshiped, and none has the right to be worshiped but Allah alone, may He be Glorified. I seek refuge in You from the evil of my own self, because the self has evils, as a verse reads: {And I do not acquit myself. Indeed, the soul is a persistent enjoiner of evil, except those upon whom my Lord has mercy} [Yusuf: 53]. So, if Allah does not protect you from the evils of your own self, then it will harm you and order you to do evil things. If He protects you from its evil, then He has guided you to all goodness. The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) concluded his supplication with: and from the evil of the devil and the evil of polytheism to which he calls, or from the evil of his trap which he sets for people through desires, doubts, or other means of temptation. The completion of the supplication is to say: I seek refuge in Allah from committing evil against myself or causing evil to another Muslim. This supplication is what the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) taught Abu Bakr to say in the morning, evening, and before going to bed.