The Virtues of Reciting Laa Ilaaha Illallah

One should recite the following zikr abundantly as there are many virtues recorded in the Mubaarak Hadith for the one who recites this zikr:

لَا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا اللهُ

There is none worthy of worship besides Allah Ta’ala

Among the virtues are the following virtues:

1) The Most Virtuous Zikr

عن جابر بن عبد الله قال: سمعت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يقول: أفضل الذكر لا إله إلا الله (سنن الترمذي، الرقم: 3383)

Hazrat Jaabir (radhiyallahu anhu) reports that Rasulullah (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) said, “The most virtuous zikr is the recitation of Laa ilaaha illallah.”

2) Being More Weighty than the Seven Heavens and the Seven Earths

عن أبي سعيد الخدري، عن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم أنه قال: قال موسى: يا رب علمني شيئا أذكرك به، وأدعوك به، قال: قل يا موسى: لا إله إلا الله، قال: يا رب كل عبادك يقول هذا، قال: قل لا إله إلا الله، قال: إنما أريد شيئا تخصني به، قال: يا موسى لو أن أهل السماوات السبع والأرضين السبع في كفة، ولا إله إلا الله في كفة، مالت بهم لا إله إلا الله (صحيح ابن حبان، الرقم: 6218)

Hazrat Abu Saeed Khudri (radhiyallahu anhu) reports that Rasulullah (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) said, “Once Hazrat Moosa (alayhis salaam) made dua to Allah Ta’ala saying, ‘O my Rabb, teach me some form of zikr with which I can remember You and call unto You.’

Allah Ta’ala said to him, ‘O Moosa, recite Laa ilaaha illallah.’ Hazrat Moosa (alayhis salaam) said, ‘O my Rabb! This zikr is recited by all the creation.’ Again, the reply was, ‘Recite Laa ilaaha illallah.’

Hazrat Moosa (alayhis salaam) then said, ‘(O Allah), I want something special, exclusively meant for me.’ Then Allah Ta’ala said, ‘O Moosa! If the seven heavens and the seven earths were placed in one pan of the scale, and the Kalimah Laa ilaaha illallah in the other, the Kalimah will outweigh the seven heavens and earths.”

3) The Most Virtuous of Good Actions

عن أبي ذر قال: قلت: يا رسول الله، أوصني، قال: إذا عملت سيئة فأتبعها حسنة تمحها . قال: قلت: يا رسول الله، أمن الحسنات لا إله إلا الله؟ قال: هي أفضل الحسنات. رواه أحمد، ورجاله ثقات، إلا أن شمر بن عطية حدث به عن أشياخه، عن أبي ذر، ولم يسم أحدا منهم. (مجمع الزوائد، الرقم: 16797)

Hazrat Abu Zar Ghifaari (radhiyallahu anhu) reports that he once asked Rasulullah (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) for some advice. Rasulullah (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) said, “If you commit a sin, then (together with making taubah) carry out a good deed after it (the sin), as the good deed will cause the effect of the sin to be erased.” Hazrat Abu Zar Ghifaari (radhiyallahu anhu) then asked: “O Rasulullah (sallallahu alaihi wasallam), is the recitation of Laa ilaaha illallah among the righteous deeds?” Rasulullah (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) replied, “It is the greatest of all righteous deeds.”

4) A Means of Refreshing One’s Imaan

عن أبي هريرة رضي الله عنه قال: قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم: جددوا إيمانكم قيل: يا رسول الله، وكيف نجدد إيماننا؟ قال:  أكثروا من قول لا إله إلا الله. رواه أحمد، وإسناده جيد، وفيه سمير بن نهار وثقه ابن حبان. (مجمع الزوائد، الرقم: 159)

Hazrat Abu Hurairah (radhiyallahu anhu) reports that Rasulullah (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) said, “Refresh your Imaan.” The Sahaabah (radhiyallahu anhum) enquired, “O Rasulullah (sallallahu alaihi wasallam), how should we refresh our Imaan?” Rasulullah (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) replied, “Increase the recitation of Laa ilaaha illallah (e.g. through reciting it daily many times).”

5) A Means of Forgiveness of Sins

عن أم هانئ، قالت: قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم : لا إله إلا الله لا يسبقها عمل ولا تترك ذنبا (سنن ابن ماجة، الرقم: 3797)

Hazrat Ummu Haani (radhiyallahu anha) narrates that Rasulullah (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) said, “No deed can excel the recitation of Laa ilaaha illallah and it (this Kalimah) does not let any sin remain (without it being forgiven).”

Hazrat Shaikh Moulana Muhammad Zakariyya (rahimahullah) mentions in the explanation of this Hadith:

No deed can excel this Kalimah is quite obvious, because without belief in this kalimah no action carries any reward.  It is a requirement for the acceptance of Salaah, Fasting, Haj and Zakaat, because without Imaan, no action is acceptable. Recitation of Kalimah Tayyibah, which is a declaration of our faith, is not dependent on anything else. If a person has only Imaan and no other virtue in his account, sooner or later he is bound (through the grace of Allah Ta’ala) to get admission into Jannah On the other hand, if a person does not possess Imaan, then no amount of good deeds will be sufficient for his salvation.

The second part of the above-mentioned Hadith is that the Kalimah does not let any sin remain unforgiven. It is unanimously agreed that if a person embraces Islam in his old age and immediately after recitation of the Kalimah he happens to meet his death, then all his sins which he had committed as a disbeliever before his declaration of Imaan are forgiven. However, if recitation of the Kalimah in an earlier stage is implied, then the Hadith means that the Kalimah purifies and polishes the heart and its excessive recitation will cleanse the heart, to such an extent that he must make Taubah, which will result in the forgiveness of his sins.

According to one Hadith, if a person is particular on reciting laa ilaaha illallaah before going to sleep and after getting up, even his worldly affairs will lead to the betterment of his life in the Aakhirah, and he will be guarded against misfortune and trouble.

6) Kalimah Reaching the Arsh of Allah Ta’ala

عن أبي هريرة قال: قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم: ما قال عبد لا إله إلا الله قط مخلصا، إلا فتحت له أبواب السماء، حتى تفضي إلى العرش، ما اجتنب الكبائر. (سنن الترمذي، الرقم: 3590)

Hazrat Abu Hurairah (radhiyallahu anhu) reports that Rasulullah (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) said, “There is no person who recites Laa ilaaha illallah with sincerity, except that the doors of the Heavens are opened until this Kalimah reaches the Arsh (throne of Allah Ta’ala), as long as the person refrains from committing major sins.”

Hazrat Shaikh Moulana Muhammad Zakariyya (rahimahullah) mentions in the explanation of this Hadith:

The excellence and acceptability of this kalimah is proved by it going straight to the Arsh of Allah Ta’ala. It has already been stated that its recitation, even by a person who commits major sins, is not without benefit.

Mulla Ali Qari (rahimahullah) says that the condition of being free from major sins is the key to quick acceptance and for the opening of all the doors of the Heavens. Otherwise, the recitation of the Kalimah is not without reward and acceptance, in spite of major sins.

Some Ulama have explained this Hadith to mean that after the death of such a person, all the doors of the Heavens are opened to welcome and honour his soul. According to another Hadith, there are two special Kalimahs, one does not stop before reaching the Throne of Allah, and the other fills the heaven and earth with its light or reward. One is Laa ilaaha illallah and the other is Allahu Akbar.