Witr is the night prayer the Prophet ﷺ said he would never miss — not in travel, not in sickness, not in any state. In its final rak'ah, after the recitation of Surah al-Fatihah and a surah, the Sunnah is to raise the hands and recite the Dua Qunoot. The most well-known wording was taught by the Prophet ﷺ to his beloved grandson, Hasan ibn Ali (RA).
The Dua Qunoot in Witr
اللَّهُمَّ اهْدِنِي فِيمَنْ هَدَيْتَ، وَعَافِنِي فِيمَنْ عَافَيْتَ، وَتَوَلَّنِي فِيمَنْ تَوَلَّيْتَ، وَبَارِكْ لِي فِيمَا أَعْطَيْتَ، وَقِنِي شَرَّ مَا قَضَيْتَ، فَإِنَّكَ تَقْضِي وَلَا يُقْضَى عَلَيْكَ، وَإِنَّهُ لَا يَذِلُّ مَنْ وَالَيْتَ، وَلَا يَعِزُّ مَنْ عَادَيْتَ، تَبَارَكْتَ رَبَّنَا وَتَعَالَيْتَ
Allahumma-hdini fiman hadayt, wa 'afini fiman 'afayt, wa tawallani fiman tawallayt, wa barik li fima a'tayt, wa qini sharra ma qadayt, fa innaka taqdi wa la yuqda 'alayk, wa innahu la yadhillu man walayt, wa la ya'izzu man 'adayt, tabarakta Rabbana wa ta'alayt.
O Allah, guide me among those You have guided, grant me well-being among those You have granted well-being, take me into Your protection among those You have taken into Your protection, bless me in what You have given me, and protect me from the evil You have decreed — for indeed, You decree and none can decree against You. The one You take as an ally is never abased, and the one You take as an enemy is never honoured. Blessed are You, our Lord, and exalted.
(Sunan Abi Dawud 1425 — narrated by Hasan ibn Ali (RA), graded Sahih)
How to pray Qunoot in Witr — the method
- Pray the Witr (one or three rak'ahs — both are Sunnah).
- In the last rak'ah, after reciting al-Fatihah and a surah, before going into ruku', raise your hands and recite the dua.
- It is permissible to recite Qunoot after ruku' as well — both methods are authentic.
- After the dua, send salawat upon the Prophet ﷺ before completing the rak'ah.
- If you forget Qunoot entirely, the prayer is still valid — Qunoot is Sunnah, not fard.
Adding salawat at the end
Many scholars recommend ending the Qunoot with: 'Wa sallallahu 'ala an-Nabiyyi Muhammad' — 'May Allah send peace on the Prophet Muhammad' — based on the addition reported in some narrations. Then go into ruku' and complete the prayer.
Hadith reference
The dua is recorded in Sunan Abi Dawud (1425), Jami at-Tirmidhi (464) and Sunan an-Nasa'i (1746) on the authority of Hasan ibn Ali (RA), the Prophet's ﷺ grandson. Imam at-Tirmidhi said: 'This is a Hasan hadith, and we know nothing better than it from the Prophet ﷺ regarding the Qunoot of Witr.'