Duʿāʾ al-Qunūt (Witr)
[The Supplication of Humble Devotion]
• The Prayer of Sanctified Reliance: Seeking guidance, wellness, and protection through Divine patronage.
[1a] O Allah, guide me (ٱللَّهُمَّ ٱهْدِنِي, Allāhumma ihdinī, আল্লাহুম্মা ইহদিনি; h-d-y, ‘to guide’ → divine direction, [request for Hidayah; spiritual navigation]) [1b] among those You guided (فِيمَنْ هَدَيْتَ, fī-man hadayta, ফি-মান হাদাইতা; — → companionship of the righteous, [joining the company of prophets/saints])
[2a] And grant me wellness (وَعَافِنِي, wa-ʿāfinī, ওয়া-আফিনি; ʿ-f-w, ‘to efface/restore’ → holistic health, [ʿāfiyah; safety from physical disease and spiritual sin]) [2b] among those You granted wellness (فِيمَنْ عَافَيْتَ, fī-man ʿāfayta, ফি-মান আফাইতা; — → precedent of grace, [seeking the protection given to the elect])
[3a] And take me as a friend (وَتَوَلَّنِي, wa-tawallanī, ওয়া-তাওয়াল্লানি; w-l-y, ‘to be near/manage’ → patronage/care, [Wilayah; requesting Allah to manage one's affairs]) [3b] among those You befriended (فِيمَنْ تَوَلَّيْتَ, fī-man tawallayta, ফি-মান তাওয়াল্লাইতা; — → special guardianship, [entering the circle of Awliya])
[4a] And bless me (وَبَارِكْ لِي, wa-bārik lī, ওয়া-বারিখ লি; b-r-k, ‘kneeling camel/stability’ → increase/continuance, [Barakah; divine augmentation of the little]) [4b] in what You have given (فِيمَا أَعْطَيْتَ, fī-mā aʿṭayta, ফি-মা আ’তাইতা; ʿ-ṭ-w, ‘to give’ → provision/lifespan, [contentment with Qadr; sanctification of gifts])
[5a] And protect me (وَقِنِي, wa-qinī, ওয়া-ক্বিনি; w-q-y, ‘to shield’ → safeguarding, [Wiqayah; shielding from harm]) [5b] from the evil (شَرَّ, sharra, শাররা; sh-r-r, ‘sparks/evil’ → harm, [negative outcomes]) [5c] of what You decreed (مَا قَضَيْتَ, mā qaḍayta, মা ক্বাদাইতা; q-ḍ-y, ‘to decide/execute’ → judicial decree, [protection from the harshness of fate; not fleeing God but fleeing to God])
[6a] For indeed You decree (فَإِنَّكَ تَقْضِي, fa-innaka taqḍī, ফা-ইন্নাকা তাক্বদি; q-ḍ-y, ‘judgment’ → sovereignty, [affirmation of active Divine Will]) [6b] and none decrees upon You (وَلَا يُقْضَىٰ عَلَيْكَ, wa-lā yuqḍā ʿalayka, ওয়া-লা ইউক্বদা আলাইকা; — → supreme authority, [immunity from external laws; God as the Uncaused Cause])
[7a] Indeed he is not humiliated (إِنَّهُ لَا يَذِلُّ, innahu lā yadhillu, ইন্নাহু লা ইয়াযিল্লু; dh-l-l, ‘low/abject’ → disgrace, [negation of shame for the believer]) [7b] whom You befriend (مَنْ وَالَيْتَ, man wālayta, মান ওয়ালাইতা; w-l-y, ‘ally’ → support, [dignity via Divine association])
[8a] [And he is not honored] ([وَلَا يَعِزُّ], [wa-lā yaʿizzu], [ওয়া-লা ইয়া’ইজ্জু]; ʿ-z-z, ‘might’ → power, [negation of true power for enemies; often added in varying riwayat]) [8b] [whom You oppose] ([مَنْ عَادَيْتَ], [man ʿādayta], [মান আদাইতা]; ʿ-d-w, ‘enemy’ → hostility, [futility of opposing the Divine])
[9a] Blessed are You (تَبَارَكْتَ, tabārakta, তাবারাকতা; b-r-k, ‘blessed’ → abundance, [self-magnification; source of all good]) [9b] our Lord (رَبَّنَا, Rabbanā, রাব্বানা; r-b-b, ‘sustainer’ → nurturer, [intimacy of lordship]) [9c] and Exalted (وَتَعَالَيْتَ, wa-taʿālayta, ওয়া-তা‘আলাইতা; ʿ-l-w, ‘high’ → transcendence, [Al-Mutaʿāl; far above comparison])
Comments:
[Sunan Abī Dāwūd 1425: The Instruction to Al-Hasan]:
Classical jurists [Al-Shāfiʿī, Abū Ḥanīfah, Aḥmad] establish [standard Witr supplication]. Connects to [The Verse of Wilayah 2:257] (Allah is the ally of those who believe), [The Verse of Decree 54:49] (creation by measure), and [Prophetic Medicine] (seeking ʿāfiyah). [Al-Hasan ibn ʿAlī (ra)] states “The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) taught me words to say in the Witr...” ([Jāmiʿ at-Tirmidhī]). Historical/literary context: [Specifically recited in the last rakʿah of Witr prayer (standing before or after rukuʾ); distinct from Qunūt Nāzilah which is for calamities]. Parallels [Psalm 31] declaring [In You, O Lord, I have taken refuge], echoes [The Lord's Prayer] stating [Deliver us from evil], and mirrors [Ibrahim’s Prayer 26:80] depicting [When I am sick, He heals me].
Linguistic Archeology
qunut ‹Q‑N‑T› = Proto‑Semitic *qnt “to stand/remain” (~2500 BCE) → AnchorTrad AR √Q‑N‑T “devout obedience/standing” · Anchor: sustained submissiveness · Chain: standing still (*qnt) → silence in prayer (abrogation of talk) → spiritual humility → prolonged devotion (Qunūt), Forms: AR: qunūt, qānitīn, aqnuta; HB: (rare cognates); ARAM: qnṭ (to be firm/stable) · Counts: QUR ×13; LITURGY ×Title of Duʿāʾ · CONTEXT — QUR ① 2:238 — qūmū lillāhi qānitīn → Stand before Allah in devout obedience (silence/stillness) ② 3:17 — wa-l-qānitīn → The devoutly obedient (virtue list) ③ 39:9 — amman huwa qānitun ānā’a al-layli → One who is devoutly obedient during the hours of the night (prostration/standing) ; LITURGY ① Duʿāʾ al-Qunūt → The specific supplication of standing/devotion in Witr/Fajr · ≈ CONVERGE: Root implies “stability/constancy”; QUR evolves this into “spiritual constancy in worship” · ≠ DIVERGE: Unlike mere “prayer” (salah), Qunūt implies a specific internal state of humbleness manifested in prolonged standing or silence · ∴ AnchorTrad distills Qunūt not just as a prayer, but as the act of standing in silent, humble expectation of Divine Grace.
• The sealing of the supplication through the invocation of divine grace upon the Prophet.
[1a] And may Allah send blessings (وَصَلَّى ٱللَّهُ, Wa-ṣallā Allāhu, ওয়া সাল্লাল্লাহু; ṣ-l-w, ‘to bless/connect’ → divine benediction, [liturgical seal; request for mercy and honor]) [1b] upon the Prophet (عَلَى ٱلنَّبِيِّ, ʿalā an-nabiyyi, ‘আলা আন্-নাবিয়্যি; n-b-ʾ, ‘to inform’ / n-b-w, ‘to be high’ → the exalted informer, [recipient of grace; medium of guidance; often followed by wa-sallam])
Comments:
[Duʿāʾ al-Qunūt: The Sealing Benediction]:
Classical commentators [Al-Nawawī, Ibn Ḥajar] establish [acceptance mechanism]. Connects to [Q 33:56] (emphasizes [divine command to bless]), [Hadith of Umar] (adds [dua is suspended without it]), [Fiqh al-Witr] (shows [liturgical requirement]). [Al-Nawawī] states “[The Qunūt should conclude with ṣalawāt upon the Prophet to ensure the prayer ascends]” ([al-Majmūʿ]). Historical/literary context: [Late Madinan period; liturgical standardization in Shāfiʿī/Hanafi rites]. Parallels [Tashahhud] declaring [greeting of peace], echoes [Khutbah closing] stating [call to blessings], and mirrors [Christian Doxology] depicting [sealing praise]. Use tradition‑specific variants: Quranic (tafsīr‑centered): The phrase often continues wa-ʿalā ālihi wa-ṣaḥbihi wa-sallam (and upon his family and companions and peace); al-nabiyy here implies al-ummiyy (the unlettered) in some narrations to emphasize the miracle of revelation.
Linguistic Archeology
nabiyy ‹N-B-ʾ› = Proto-Semitic *nbʾ “to call/announce” (~2500 BCE) + *nbw “to be high/elevated” → AnchorTrad AR √N-B-ʾ “prophet/informer” · Anchor: recipient of divine news · Chain: calling out (*nbʾ) → passive ‘one called’/active ‘one calling’ (*nabi) → spokesman for deity → Final Messenger, Forms: AR: nabiyy, anbiya’, nubuwwah; HB: navi, nevi’im; ARAM/SYR: nbiya; GK: prophetes (calque); Skt: rishi (conceptual equiv) · Counts: QUR ×75; HB ×300+; GNT ×144 (prophetes); SYR ×freq · CONTEXT — QUR ① 33:40 — ma kana Muhammadun ... wa-lakin rasula Allahi wa-khatama an-nabiyyina → Distinction between messenger (Rasul) and Prophet (Nabi); seal of the line ② 3:68 — inna awla an-nasi bi-Ibrahima ... wa-hadha an-nabiyyu → Connection of Muhammad to Abrahamic legacy ; HB ① Deut 18:18 — navi aqim lahem → Promise of a prophet like Moses ② Jer 1:5 — navi la-goyim → Prophet to the nations (Jeremiah/Type) ; SYR ① Matt 13:57 — layt nbiya d-ṣaʿr → A prophet is not without honor except in his own town · ≈ CONVERGE: QUR+HB+SYR converge on the Nabi as the mouthpiece of God, distinct from a soothsayer (kahin), bearing a moral burden · ≠ DIVERGE: QUR emphasizes the Nabi as human and non-divine, whereas HB allows for wide range of ecstatic states; GNT focuses on fulfillment of prophecy in Christ · COGNATES: Heb navi · Akk nabu (to name/call) · Uga nby · Eth nabiya · CONTRAST Cf.: rasul — messenger (carries a specific law/book) vs. nabiyy (reviver/warner); wali — saint/friend (closeness without legislation) · ∴ AnchorTrad distills nabiyy as the chosen vessel of news from the Unseen, whose status warrants the invocation of ṣalawāt (blessings) as a gratitude for guidance.
আল্লাহুম্মাহ্ দিনী ফীমান হাদাইত।
ওয়া ‘আফিনী ফীমান ‘আফাইত।
ওয়া তাওয়াল্লানী ফীমান তাওয়াল্লাইত।
ওয়া বারিক লী ফীমা আ‘তাইত।
ওয়া ক্বিনী শাররা মা ক্বাদাইত।
ফা-ইন্নাকা তাক্বদী ওয়া লা ইউক্বদা ‘আলাইক।
ইন্নাহু লা ইয়াযিল্লু মান ওয়ালাইত।
ওয়া লা ইয়া‘ইযযু মান ‘আদাইত।
তাবারাকতা রব্বানা ওয়া তা‘আলাইত।
ওয়া সাল্লাল্লাহু ‘আলা আন্-নাবিয়্যি