(3x) أَصْبَحْتُ أُثْنِيْ عَلَيْكَ حَمْدًا ، وَأَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَّا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا اللّٰهُ
I have entered the morning praising You, and I bear witness that there is no god worthy of worship but Allah.
Aṣbaḥtu uthnī ʿalayka ḥamdā, wa ash-hadu al-lā ilāha illāl- Allāh.
Abū Hurayrah (raḍiy Allāhu ‘anhu) narrated that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “When one of you enters the morning, they should say [the above] three times. And when they enter the evening, they should say the same.” (Nasā’ī)
Brief Commentary
• There is no better way to start our morning or evening than to start by praising Allah and thank Him.
• The word ‘Ḥamd’ includes:
(1) Gratitude for what Allah (ʿazza wa jall) has blessed us with; īmān, life, health etc and
(2) Praise: Allah (ʿazza wa jall) is worthy of every possible praise on account of His very existence, His mercy, beauty, generosity and all of His other Noble Attributes and Names. All of His Attributes are perfect; be they of His majesty (jalāl) or beauty (jamāl). Even if none of His slaves praised Him, He would still be worthy of all praise.
• Our praise of Him emanates from our love and reverence of Him. Our praise of Him is, in fact, a blessing from Him which deserves even more praise.
• Even if we were to spend our entire life praising Him, this would not be enough.
• We then go on to affirm the most important belief: the first pillar of Islam, which is the testimony of faith: “There is no god worthy of worship but Allah.”
• The testimony of faith is no light utterance. لَا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا الله is the greatest statement ever uttered, the foundation of faith and the cornerstone of existence itself. For it, the heavens and the earth were created. For it, thousands of messengers were sent. For it, the final hour will occur, the creation will be gathered and questioned, and then driven either into Hell or Paradise.
Action Points
• This dhikr is not commonly known as it is not mentioned in many compilations of morning and evening adhkār, though it is an authentic narration. Thus, ensure you say this dhikr to be from the select few who revive the forgotten sunnahs of our beloved Prophet ﷺ.
• Mindfully recite this dhikr by pondering over the many blessings you receive from Allah.
• Every time you say or repeat this dhikr, try and think of a different reason why He is deserving of praise to ensure that you praise Him with a present and conscious heart.
• When saying the second part of the dhikr, remind yourself that Allah alone is worthy of worship: He Alone is worthy of your utmost love, fear, and hope. You are his humble servant and He is your Lord.
• Acknowledging and thanking Allah for the blessings He bestows upon us leads to the preservation and increase in these blessings, as He ﷻ says: “And (remember) when your Lord proclaimed, ‘If you are grateful, I will certainly give you more (14:7)”.
