بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ
"The closest a servant comes to his Lord is while he is in prostration, so increase your supplication [therein]" — this hadith, recorded in Sahih Muslim (1/350), is the foundation for why sujood carries more authenticated adhkar than almost any other position in prayer. Seven distinct narrations are preserved, ranging from the short obligatory-level tasbih to what many hadith scholars consider the single most comprehensive du'a in the entire prayer.
1. The Basic Tasbih (Said Three Times)
Arabic: سُبْحانَ رَبِّيَ الأَعْلى (ثلاث مرات)
Transliteration: Subḥāna Rabbiya-l-a'lā (three times)
Translation: "Glory is to my Lord, the Most High."
Reference: Hisn al-Muslim 41; Sunan Abu Dawud; Sunan Ibn Majah; Sunan an-Nasa'i; Jami' at-Tirmidhi; Musnad Ahmad.
The counterpart to ruku's "Subhana Rabbiyal-'Azim," this is the tasbih taught first and considered obligatory or emphasized Sunnah, depending on the madhab, in every sujood.
2. The Formula the Prophet ﷺ Said Often
Arabic: سُبْحانَكَ اللّهُمَّ رَبَّنا وَبِحَمْدِكَ، اللّهُمَّ اغْفِرْ لي
Translation: "Glory is to You, O Allah, our Lord, and praise is Yours. O Allah, forgive me."
Reference: Hisn al-Muslim 42; recorded in both Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim.
Identical in wording to the ruku narration covered previously, A'ishah (RA) reported the Prophet ﷺ reciting this abundantly in both positions during the final period of his life, tying it to the Qur'anic command of Surah An-Nasr.
3. Glory to the Lord of the Angels and the Spirit
Arabic: سُبُّوحٌ قُدُّوس، رَبُّ الملائِكَةِ وَالرُّوح
Translation: "Glory (to You), Most Holy (are You), Lord of the angels and the Spirit."
Reference: Hisn al-Muslim 43; Sahih Muslim 1/533.
4. Prostrating the Face to Its Creator
Arabic: اللّهُمَّ لَكَ سَجَدْتُ وَبِكَ آمَنْت وَلَكَ أَسْلَمْت، سَجَدَ وَجْهِي لِلَّذي خَلَقَهُ وَصَوَّرَهُ وَشَقَّ سَمْعَهُ وَبَصَرَه…
Translation: "O Allah, to You I prostrate myself and in You I believe. To You I have submitted. My face is prostrated to the One Who created it, fashioned it, and gave it hearing and sight. Blessed is Allah, the Best of creators."
Reference: Hisn al-Muslim 44; Sahih Muslim 1/534.
This narration is notable for its specificity: it is not the worshipper as a whole who is said to prostrate, but the face particularly (sajada wajhī), the part of the body physically nearest the ground in this position, described in relation to its Creator's specific acts of forming it and granting it hearing and sight.
5. Master of Power, Sovereignty and Majesty
Arabic: سُبْحانَ ذِي الْجَبَروتِ والمَلَكوتِ والكِبْرِياءِ وَالعَظَمَةِ
Translation: "Glory is to the Master of power, sovereignty, of majesty and greatness."
Reference: Hisn al-Muslim 45; Sunan Abu Dawud 1/230; Sunan an-Nasa'i; Musnad Ahmad; graded authentic by Al-Albani, Sahih Abu Dawud 1/166.
6. Comprehensive Forgiveness
Arabic: اللّهُمَّ اغْفِرْ لي ذَنْبي كُلَّه، دِقَّهُ وَجِلَّه، وَأَوَّلَهُ وَآخِرَه، وَعَلانِيَّتَهُ وَسِرَّه
Translation: "O Allah, forgive me all my sins, great and small, the first and the last, those that are apparent and those that are hidden."
Reference: Hisn al-Muslim 46; Sahih Muslim 1/350.
This narration is recorded in the same hadith as the "closest to your Lord" statement quoted at the start of this article, making it one of the direct examples the Prophet ﷺ is reported to have used of the "increased supplication" he encouraged in sujood.
7. The Most Beloved Du'a of Sujood
Arabic: اللّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعوذُ بِرِضاكَ مِنْ سَخَطِك، وَبِمُعافاتِكَ مِنْ عُقوبَتِك، وَأَعوذُ بِكَ مِنْك، لا أُحْصي ثَناءً عَلَيْك، أَنْتَ كَما أَثْنَيْتَ عَلى نَفْسِك
Translation: "O Allah, I seek protection in Your pleasure from Your anger, and I seek protection in Your forgiveness from Your punishment. I seek protection in You from You. I cannot count Your praises. You are as You have praised Yourself."
Reference: Hisn al-Muslim 47; Sahih Muslim 1/352.
This is widely regarded among students of hadith as the most theologically dense of the seven — moving through three successive layers of refuge (in His pleasure from His anger; in His forgiveness from His punishment; in Him from Him), before arriving at the striking admission that the worshipper cannot even enumerate Allah's ﷻ praises adequately, and so defers to how He has praised Himself. Its structure and depth are part of why many scholars consider it the single richest supplication recorded for this position.
Why So Many Are Preserved Here
No other position in prayer carries seven distinct authenticated narrations. This density is a direct reflection of the "closest to your Lord" hadith: because sujood is described as the point of maximum nearness, the Sunnah correspondingly preserves the fullest range of what to say in it — from the minimum required tasbih to a supplication whose depth some scholars spend entire commentary passages unpacking.
Reflection: If closeness to Allah ﷻ is measured, in this hadith, by the position of the body, then sujood is worth treating not as the fastest part of prayer but as the one most deserving of unhurried, deliberate words.
References cited: Hisn al-Muslim 41-47; Sahih al-Bukhari; Sahih Muslim 1/350, 1/352, 1/533, 1/534; Sunan Abu Dawud 1/230; Sunan Ibn Majah; Sunan an-Nasa'i; Jami' at-Tirmidhi; Musnad Ahmad; Al-Albani, Sahih Abu Dawud.
Written by Fahmina Jawed (Aafiya).
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