What is Dua Iftitah?

Dua Iftitah is recited daily during the nights of the
holy month of Ramadhan but do we really appreciate
the concept behind this dua? Although the English
translation of the dua is readily available in many
dua books and even on powerpoint presentations,
the core understanding isn’t.

Our beloved Twelfth Imam (ajfs) taught this dua to
the Shias in order that we can better our attitude
towards our Lord, and what better month for one
to do so than the Holy Month of Ramadhan. The
dua can be split into two parts (i) man’s relationship
with his Lord and (ii) divine leaders.

MAN’S RELATIONSHIP WITH HIS LORD
• Here we firstly glorify and praise Allah (swt) so
as to remind us of the magnitude of his greatness
and also to instil a sense of fear and hope into our
hearts

• As the dua the develops we now focus on the
oneness of Allah (swt), in order that the supplicant
realises that it is only Him that we can rely and turn
to.

• Subsequently Allah’s generosity is now described
which reminds the supplicant of how much
we have been given but yet still we are ungrateful,
we still complain and we still turn away.

The attention now turns to the relationship between
man and his Lord. One can notice how ironic
it is that it is our Lord who is lovingly and mercifully
inviting us to him, yet it is us, the needy insignificant
man, who requires him. Allah (swt) has love for his
creatures and this is why he treats us better than we
deserve. It is up to man to realise this and respond
and return this love to our Lord.

DIVINE LEADERS


• Once we have acknowledged the greatness of
Allah (swt), the dua swiftly moves on to the recognition
of our divine leaders. Naturally our first blessings
are sent to the greatest human being of all, the Holy
Prophet(pbuh). With our salwaats we strengthen our
remembrance of the Holy Prophet (pbuh) and the
inspiration to follow his path.

• The m’asumeen are now in our thoughts and
prayed for. These are the true successors of the
Holy Prophet, of whom the Shia have true faith in as
they were divinely appointed by Allah (swt)

• The final part of the dua reflects on the Twelfth
Imam and his reappearance. The supplicant is praying
for the help and victory for the Twelfth Imam in an
effort to remind him of his responsibilities and his
preparation whilst he waits for the return of the
Imam.

Dua Iftitah is a supplication for our needs and a teaching
of the roots of faith. This dua can help to plan a
way of life but it remains on us to act upon it as we
recite it during the nights of the Holy month of Ramadhan.