Salat and du’a' for memory improvement

I came across this dua today in the Masjid, whilst reading a Hafs verison of the Qur'an (1 of 6 authentic version, and the most popular version in that).



This dua helps with memory towards the verses from the Qur'an. SubhanAllah.



Which translates as:



For those who cannot read the text fully especially the Adhadith pertaining to dua for Memory Improvement, here is an extract below:

Salat and du’a' for memory improvement

Here we would like to mention one tradition recorded by al-Tirmidhi in his Sunan, and is connected to 'Ali, r.a. Once, when he was in the presence of the Prophet (saws) he complained about the problem with remembering. The Prophet (saws)recommended to him to offer a special Salat and taught him a supplication which can be recited for improvement of hifz. We are presenting this tradition in its entirety:

It has been recorded by al-Tirmidhi with sanad of Ibn 'Abbas that he said: “Once, when we were with the Prophet of Allah, (saws), 'Ali ibn Abi Talib came and said:

O prophet of Allah, to me you are like a father or mother. This Qur`an is slipping out of my chest so that it is becoming very hard to me to keep it in my memory.

The Prophet (saws) responded:

Would you like me to teach you words (a supplication),which will, by the help of Allah, benefit you and those whom you teach? That way you will, by the help of Allah, make lasting in you chest (memory)what you memorized?

Ali (RA) said:

Yes, teach When the night of me, o prophet of Allah

The Prophet (saws) responded:

When the night of Friday starts (Lailatul-Jumu’ah), if you manage to get up in the last third of that night – get up, because that time is blessed and in it Allah accepts supplications. My brother Ya’qub told his sons: - I will surely supplicate to my Lord for you; and he was intending to do that in the Jumu’ah night. If you can not get up in its last third, then try in its half. And if you do not manage even in that part, get up at the beginning of that night and offer 4 rak’ahs. During the first rak’ah read sura al-Fatihah and the sura Yasin, during the second read suras al-Fatihah and al-Dukhan, during the third rak’ah surahs al-Fatiha and al-Sajdah, and on qiyam of the fourth rak’ah read suras al-Fatihah and al-Mulk. Upon completion of the fourth rak’ah, thank Allah and nicely express yourself about Him, then bring Salawat on me and do that nicely. Also, bring Salawat on other prophets of Allah and seek forgiveness for believing men and women and your brothers who surpassed you in religion.

At the end, he said:“O Allah, have mercy on me so that I stay away from sinning for as long as I live! Have O Allah, the Creator of the heavens and the earth, the Glorious and Honorable and Almighty, I beg you, the most Merciful, calling upon Your Glory and the Light of Your Face, to oblige my heart to remember Your Book the way You taught me. Bless me to read it the way that will please You!
My Lord, the Creator of the heavens and the earth, You Who are absolute in Your might, I implore You the most Merciful, calling upon Your Glory and Light of Your Face, to illuminate with you Qur`an my sight, to move with it my tongue and make it easy on my heart. With it make my chest wide and clean my body. Truly, on the path of Truth only You can help me and only You are able to give me the Truth. There is no might no power except with Allah, the most High, and the most Glorious!”

“O Abu al-Hasan, you will do that on three, five or seven Friday (Jumu’ah) nights, and it will be accepted from you with the permission of Allah. By the One Who sent me with the Truth, this has not yet left unaffected any (true) Muslim!

Abdullah ibn 'Abbas narrates: “By Allah, not five or seven Fridays passed by and 'Ali again came to the prophet and said:

O Prophet of Allah, earlier I used to memorize four verses at once, and each time I wanted to repeat them they would disappear. Now I memorize more than forty verses, and when I repeat them I feel as if the Book of Allah is wide open in front of me.

Also, when I now hear your sayings and pass them on later, I do not omit one letter from them.”The prophet of Allah said on that occasion:

“You are the believer, by the Lord of Ka’bah, o Abu al-Hasan!

See: al-Tirmidhi, Abu ‘Isa: Sunan, Dar al-hadith,
Cairo, vol. 5, pp. 563-565, hadith #3570. Sanad (chain of transmitters) of this hadith is as follows: Al-Tirmidhi reports from Ahmad ibn al-Hasan, and Ahmad from
Sulaiman ibn ‘Abdurrahman al-Dimishqi, and Sulaiman from al-Walid ibn Muslim, al-Walid from ibn Juraij, Ibn Juraij from ‘Ata` ibn Abi Rabah and ‘Ikrimah, and finally
these two from Ibn ‘Abbas. Imam al-Tirmidhi values this sanad as hasan-gharib.

Analysing the mentioned sanad according to the principles of the methodology of hadith which deals with the critique of transmitters of tradition (al-jarh wa al-ta’dil), we concluded the following:

a) The chain of transmition is connected (muttasil) and every rawi (transmitter) in it did heard it from the rawi that had preceded it;
b) The well known authority on hadith Ibn Hajar al-‘Asqalani, in his famous work Tahdhib al-Tahdhib and its resume Taqrib al- Tahdhib, gives to the majority of the mentioned transmitters high marks (thiqatun, hafiz, faqih), and only to al-Walid he gives a mark saduq, which is also considered a positive qualification. The scholars in the field of the science of hadith take the narrations with such marks as valid evidence for (hasan narrations).

In connection with the mentioned marks and qualifications consult: Ibn Hajar al-‘Asqalani: Tahdhib al-Tahdhib, Dar al-kitab al-islami, Cairo, 1993, and Taqrib al-Tahdhib, Dar al-kutub al-‘ilmiyyah, Bairut, 1993. The names of rawis in the mentioned works are listed in alphabetical order.