Allah SWT is the creator and sustainer of the entire universe. Every person living on this earth works day and night to fulfill his household needs and earns a living to feed himself and his family with great effort. If he does all these things under the commandments of God and the Sunnah of the Prophet (PBUH), then they all become acts of worship.
But if he does not follow the Islamic rules in these matters and breaks those by adopting illegal methods or starts killing the rights of others in the name of economic struggle, then this effort can become a source of disgrace for him in the hereafter. Islam has guided us in every matter and even Prophet (peace be upon Him) taught us the dua and manners for travelling also.
Why Do We Need to Read Dua for Travelling?
When we travel, we are surrounded by countless dangers. To be safe from these dangers, we can remove the possible dangers by following the commands of the Prophet (peace be upon Him) and the rulings stated by them. It is clear that by doing prayers, giving charity, and many other such things, and by following the rules and precautions, we can keep ourselves safe from every kind of danger. We should not forget to read dua for travelling before leaving our home and after coming back home.
Best Dua for Travelling in English
سُبْحَـٰنَ ٱلَّذِى سَخَّرَ لَنَا هَـٰذَا وَمَا كُنَّا لَهُۥ مُقْرِنِينَ وَإِنَّآ إِلَىٰ رَبِّنَا لَمُنقَلِبُون
English transliteration: Subhan Alladhi Sakh-Khara Lana Hadha Wa Ma Kunna Lahu Muqrinin. Wa Inna Ila Rabbina Lamunqalibun
“So, that you may sit firmly on their backs, and remember your Lord’s blessings once you are settled on them, saying, “Glory be to the One who has subjected these for us, for we could have never done so ˹on our own. And surely to our Lord, we will all return.”
That is, among all the creatures of the earth, only man has been given the authority by Allah SWT to use boats and ships and animals as rides. Should he never wonder who it is that made it possible for him to navigate the great seas and who created some of the innumerable animals that became his slaves? Taking advantage of these blessings and forgetting the benefactor is a sign of a dead heart and a numb conscience.
Because when a person with a lively heart and a sensitive conscience sits on these paths, he will be filled with a sense of blessings and a spirit of gratitude and will cry: ‘Blessed is He who subjugated these things to me. He is purer than that another partakes of His being, attributes, and powers. He is pure and free from the weakness of being helpless to perform his divine functions by himself and dependent on other co-gods. He is pure that I should share these blessings with someone else.
Dua’s for Travelling From Hadith:
1. It was narrated from ‘Abd-Allaah ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) that when the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) mounted his camel to set out on a journey, he would say takbeer three times, then he would say:
Subhanaalladhi sakh-khara lana hadha wa ma kunna lahu muqrineen wa inna ila rabbina la munqaliboon
English Translation: Glory be to the One Who has placed this (transport) at our service and we ourselves would not have been capable of that, and to our Lord is our final destiny.
2. There’s a popular Dua for travelling from [Sunan Abi Dawud 5095] (graded as Sahih by Al-Albani) which we must read after leaving the house. I personally recite this Dua every single time before I start my journey.
English transliteration:
Bismillahi tawakkaltu ‘alallah la hawla wala quwwata illa billah
English translation: In the name of Allah, I trust in Allah; there is no might and no power but in Allah.
Narrated Anas ibn Malik:
The Prophet (ﷺ) said: When a man goes out of his house and says: “In the name of Allah, I trust in Allah; there is no might and no power but in Allah,” the following will be said to him at that time: “You are guided, defended and protected.” The devils will go far from him and another devil will say: How can you deal with a man who has been guided, defended and protected?
You can also check the meaning of this Dua here.
Remembering Allah SWT at all times brings a person even closer to Him. Moreover, it only takes only a few seconds to recite this beautiful Dua that our Prophet (SAWS) taught us to read for traveling. When you recite the Dua, be sure to put all your trust in Him.
How to Start And End Your Travel With Dua?
Narrated Ali ibn Abu Talib: Ali ibn Rabiah said: I was present with Ali while a beast was brought to him to ride. When he put his foot in the stirrup, he said: “In the name of Allah”. Then when he sat on its back, he said: “Praise be to Allah”. He then said: “Glory be to Him Who has made this subservient to us, for we had not the strength, and to our Lord do we return”. He then said: “Praise be to Allah (thrice); Allah is Most Great (thrice): glory be to Thee, I have wronged myself, so forgive me, for only Thou forgivest sins.” He then laughed. He was asked: At what did you laugh? He replied: I saw the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) do as I have done, and laugh after that. I asked: Messenger of Allah, at what are you laughing? He replied: Your Lord, Most High, is pleased with His servant when he says: “Forgive me my sins.” He knows that no one forgives sins except Him.
– [Abu Dawood:2602, Grade: Sahih (Al-Albani)]
Follow These Steps To Recite This Traveling Dua
- Bismillah
- Alhamdulillah
- Then read main dua of travelling (Subhan Alladhi Sakh-khara Lana Hadha Wa Ma Kunna Lahu Muqrinin. Wa Inna Ila Rabbina Lamunqalibun)
- Say Alhamdulillah and Allahu Akbar 3 times in between your traveling.
- Then at the last, read Subhanaka Inni Qad Zalamtu Nafsi Faghfirli Fa-Innahu La Yaghfirudh-Dhunuba Illa Ant.
Authentic Dua to be Recited When Beginning a Journey
اللهُمَّ إِنَّا نَسْأَلُكَ فِي سَفَرِنَا هَذَا الْبِرَّ وَالتَّقْوَى، وَمِنَ الْعَمَلِ مَا تَرْضَى، اللهُمَّ هَوِّنْ عَلَيْنَا سَفَرَنَا هَذَا، وَاطْوِ عَنَّا بُعْدَهُ، اللهُمَّ أَنْتَ الصَّاحِبُ فِي السَّفَرِ، وَالْخَلِيفَةُ فِي الْأَهْلِ، اللهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ وَعْثَاءِ السَّفَرِ، وَكَآبَةِ الْمَنْظَرِ، وَسُوءِ الْمُنْقَلَبِ فِي وَالْأَهْلِ الْمَالِ
English Transliteration: Allahumma inna nas-aluka fi safarina hadhal birra wat taqwa, waminal ‘amali ma tarda. Allahumma hawwin ‘alayna safarana hadha wat wi ‘anna bu’dah. Allahumma antas Sahibu fis safar, wal Khalifatu fil ahl. Allahumma inni a’uzu bika min wa’th-is safar, wa ka-abatil manzar, wa su-il munqalabi fil ahli wal mal
Translation: Ibn Umar (Allah be pleased with them) reported that whenever Allah’s Messenger ( صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم ) mounted his camel while setting out on a journey, he glorified Allah (uttered Allah-o-Akbar) thrice, and then said: Hallowed is He Who subdued for us this (ride) and we were not ourselves powerful enough to use It as a ride, and we are going to return to our Lord. O Allah, we seek virtue and piety from Thee in this journey of ours and the act which pleaseth Thee. O Allah lightens this journey of ours and makes its distance easy for us. O Allah, Thou art (our) companion during the journey, and guardian of (our) family. O Allah, I seek refuge with Thee from hardships of the journey, the gloominess of the sights, and finding of evil changes in property and family on return. And he (the Holy Prophet) uttered (these words), and made this addition to them: We are returning, repentant, worshipping our Lord and praising Him.
[Sahih Muslim – Reference]
Gather all the blessings and avail forgiveness through dua for traveling: How blessed we are as Muslims. Even when we travel, we have been taught such prayers by which we can receive the blessings of Allah SWT. We can ask Allah SWT to forgive our sins. Traveling may bring some kind of difficulties. The above dua will make our traveling easy and take away all the difficulties of traveling.
Dua When You Return From Traveling
أَعُوذُ بِكَلِمَاتِ اللَّهِ التَّامَّاتِ مِنْ شَرِّ مَا خَلَقَ
English transliteration: A`ūdhu bikalimāti ‘llāhit-tāmmāti min sharri mā khalaq.
Translation: Khaula bint Hakim Sulamiyya reported: I heard Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) as saying: When anyone lands at a place and then says:” I seek refuge in the Perfect Word of Allah from the evil of what He has created,” nothing would harm him until he marches from that stopping place.
Dua of Protection
We may not know who has stayed before or what events have occurred in our staying place before that may affect our stay. To read the above supplication is actually useful to protect ourselves from any harm. Likewise, this dua after reaching the destination is the protection from all evil and bad things.
Conclusion
Traveling gives an excitement to the soul of man and gives joy to his heart. And in the Holy Qur’an, God Almighty has called consideration of the living conditions of the past people as an example and a reason to learn a good lesson from them. The prophet (peace be upon him) has given great consideration to this important movement of human life and has given special importance to traveling. It was the blessed habit of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) that he used to read dua for travelling when he starts his traveling and end his traveling with dua.
