Duʿāʾ al-Istikhāra
اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَسْتَخِيرُكَ بِعِلْمِكَ وَأَسْتَقْدِرُكَ بِقُدْرَتِكَ، وَأَسْأَلُكَ مِنْ فَضْلِكَ الْعَظِيمِ، فَإِنَّكَ تَقْدِرُ وَلاَ أَقْدِرُ وَتَعْلَمُ وَلاَ أَعْلَمُ وَأَنْتَ عَلاَّمُ الْغُيُوبِ، اللَّهُمَّ إِنْ كُنْتَ تَعْلَمُ أَنَّ هَذَا الأَمْرَ [mention decision here] خَيْرٌ لِي فِي دِينِي وَمَعَاشِي وَعَاقِبَةِ أَمْرِي فَاقْدُرْهُ لِي وَيَسِّرْهُ لِي ثُمَّ بَارِكْ لِي فِيهِ، وَإِنْ كُنْتَ تَعْلَمُ أَنَّ هَذَا الأَمْرَ شَرٌّ لِي فِي دِينِي وَمَعَاشِي وَعَاقِبَةِ أَمْرِي فَاصْرِفْهُ عَنِّي وَاصْرِفْنِي عَنْهُ، وَاقْدُرْ لِي الْخَيْرَ حَيْثُ كَانَ ثُمَّ أَرْضِنِي بِهِ
Translation:
Oh Allah, I’m asking You for goodness through Your [Infinite] Knowledge, and I’m asking You for strength through Your Divine Ability, and I’m asking You from Your Infinite Grace. Because You’re completely able to do, while I simply cannot. You know everything, and I do not, and You know everything that’s unseen. Dear God, if You know that this decision [mention decision here] is good for me in terms of my religiosity, my worldly life, and afterlife, then decree it, facilitate it for me with ease, and bless me through it. But if You know that this has bad consequences on my religiosity, my worldly life, and afterlife, then get it away from me and get me away from it, and [instead of that] decree what’s better for me, whatever it may be, and make me content with it.
Transliteration
Allāhumma innī astakhīruka biʿilmika wa astaqdiruka biqudratika, wa asʾaluka min faḍlika (a)l-ʿaẓīm fainnaka taqdiru walā aqdiru wa taʿlamu wala aʿlamu wa anta ʿallāmu (a)l-ghuyūb. Allāhumma, in kunta taʿlamu anna hadha (a)l-amra [mention decision here] khayrun lī fī dīnī wa maʿāshī waʿāqibati amrī faqdurhu lī wa ya (a)s-sirhu lī thumma barik lī fīhi. Wa in kunta taʿlamu anna hadha (a)l-amra sharrun lī fī dīnī wa maʿāshī wa ʿāqibati amri faṣrifhu ʿannī wa (a)ṣrifni ʿanhu waqdir lī(ya) (a)l-khayra haythu kāna thumma arḍīnī bihi.
