Is there any valid duaa that may be recited during the exams?

- 69759 What is the ruling on reciting some duaas before exams and afterwards, such as the duaa said when starting to revise, O Allaah I ask You for the understanding of the Prophets and the memory of the Messengers and angels who are close to You, make my tongue fresh with Your remembrance and my heart humble to You and obedient Y ou, for You are sufficient for me and You are the best disposer of affairs. And w hen going out of the house and heading towards the exam, can I say, O Allaah, in You I have put my trust and I submit my affairs to You, and there is no refuge f rom You except with You. And at the end of the exam: Praise be to Allaah Who has g uided us and we could not have been guided had not Allaah guided us. And when stu mbling over an answer: There is no god but You, glory be to You, verily I was one of the wrongdoers. O Ever-Living, O Sustainer, by your mercy I seek help, and ma ny others. Praise be to Allaah. There is no report in the Sunnah which suggests what can be said during the exam s. The duaas that are widespread among students and are said during revision or wh en receiving the exam papers or when stumbling over an answer or when handing in the paper, etc., all have no basis in the Sunnah, either in saheeh reports or d aeef reports. Rather they are all fabricated and are falsely attributed to the Pr ophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). Attributing any such thing to the Sunnah when one knows that it is not part of t he Sunnah makes a person one of those who tell lies against the Prophet (peace a nd blessings of Allaah be upon him). It was narrated that al-Mugheerah ibn Shubah (may Allaah be pleased with him) sai d: I heard the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) say: Telling a lie against me is not like telling a lie against anyone else. Whoever tells a l ie against me deliberately, let him take his place in Hell. Narrated by al-Bukhaa ri, 1229; Muslim, 4. Whoever spreads these false ahaadeeth and other like them, knowing that they can not be soundly attributed to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) is telling lies against the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and his sin is the same as the sin of the one who fabricated them. It was narrated from al-Mugheerah ibn Shubah (may Allaah be pleased with him) tha t the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: Whoev er narrated from me a hadeeth which he thinks is false is one of the liars. Narra ted by Muslim in the Introduction to his Saheeh. There is a proven duaa for leaving the house, but it is not as described by the qu estioner. The phrase is Yaa Hayyu yaa Qayyoom bi rahmatika astagheeth (O Ever Liv ing, O Sustainer, by Your mercy I seek help). There are ahaadeeth which indicate that this is to be said at times of hardship and difficulty. All of that include s exams and other difficulties. There follow the ahaadeeth which have been narra ted concerning that: 1 It was narrated that Anas ibn Maalik (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: Th e Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: Whoever s ays when leaving his house Bismillaah, tawakkaltu ala Allaah, laa hawla wa laa qu wwata illa Billaah (In the name of Allaah, I put my trust in Allaah, there is no power and no strength except with Allaah), it will be said to him: You are take n care of and you are protected, and the Shaytaan will keep away from him. Narrat ed by Abu Dawood, 5095; al-Tirmidhi, 3426; classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Sa heeh Abi Dawood. 2 It was also narrated that Anas ibn Maalik (may Allaah be pleased with him) sai d: If something upset him, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon hi m) would say: Yaa Hayyu yaa Qayyoom bi rahmatika astagheeth (O Ever Living, O Sus tainer, by Your mercy I seek help). Narrated by al-Tirmidhi, 3524; classed as has an by al-Albaani in al-Silsilah al-Saheehah, 3182. 3 It was also narrated from Anas (may Allaah be pleased with him) that the Proph et (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: O Allaah, nothing is easy bu t that which You make easy and You can make hardship easy if You will. Narrated b y Ibn Hibbaan, 3/255; classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in al-Silsilah al-Saheehah , 2886.

4 It was narrated that Sad ibn Abi Waqqaas (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: The prayer of DhulNoon when he was in the belly of the fish: Laa ilaaha illa Anta, subhaanaka inni kuntu min al-zaalimeen (There is no god but You, glory to You, verily I was one of the wrongdoers). A Muslim never calls upon his Lord with these words concernin g any matter, but his prayer is answered. Narrated by al-Tirmidhi, 3505; classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in al-Silsilah al-Saheehah, 1644. Conclusion: It is not permissible to invent duaas and attribute them to Islam. Wha t has been narrated in the ahaadeeth that may be said during times of hardship a nd difficulty is sufficient.