Students, here are duas for studying

Summer’s over and back-to-school is back! This time is usually charged with emotions for students – from excitement to sadness that the holiday is over to nerves. September is proof of some of the endings that took place in July for those moving forward to secondary school or college, but it’s also a time to relish new beginnings.

September can also be hard for first-time parents saying bye to their children who start nursery, or those who have grown up and are leaving for university.

Whatever your situation, it’s best to start it with taqwa (God-consciousness) to align our intentions of a good year with the blessings that Allah can shower upon us. Here are some duas to use before starting school and throughout the school year.

Come back to this page and share it with others for sadaqah jaariyah. If others recite the duas that you directed them too, you will also reap rewards. The first dua is very short and general and one that you can easily memorise.

General duas for studying

رَبِّ زِدْنِىْ عِلْمًا

Rabbi zidni ilmaa

Oh my Lord, Increase me in knowledge.

اَللّٰهُمَّ اَخْرِجْنِيْ مِنْ ظُلُمَاتِ الْوَهْمِ وَ اَكْرِمْنِيْ بِنُوْرِ الْفَهْمِ

Allhumma Akhrijni min zulumatil wahmi ,wa akrimni be nuril fahmi .

Oh Allah, please bring me out of the darkness of doubt and bless me with the light of understanding.

للَّهُمَّ انْفَعْنِي بِمَا عَلَّمْـتَنِي وَ عَلِّمْنِي مَا يَنْفَعُنِي

Allahumma infa’ani bima alamtuni wa a’limni ma yenfaa’ni

Oh Allah! Make useful for me what you have taught me and teach me knowledge that will be useful to me.

.اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَسْأَلُكَ فَهْمَ النَّبِيِّينَ وَ حِفْظَ الْمُرْسَلِينَ الْمُقَرَّبِينَ

Allahumma ini asulak fahmal-nabiyyen wa hifzal mursaleen al-muqarrabeen.

Oh Allah! I ask you for the understanding of the prophets and the memory of the messengers, and those nearest to you.

اللَّهُمَّ اجْعَلْ لِسَانِي عَامِرًا بِذِكْرِكَ وَ قَلْبِي بِخَشْيَتِك.

Allahumma ijal leesani amira bi dhikrika wa qalbi bi khashyatika.

Oh Allah! Make my tongue full of your remembrance and my heart with awe of you.

Dua while Studying Something Difficult

اللَّهُمَّ لاَ سَهْلاً إِلّاَ مَا جَعَلّتَهٌ سَهْلاً وَأَنّتَ تَجّعَلَ الحَزَنَ إِذَا شِئتَ سَهْلاً

Allâhumma lâ sahla illâ mâ ja‘altahu sahlâ wa anta taj‘alu al-hazana idhâ shi’ta sahlâ.

Oh Allah! Nothing is easy except what You have made easy. If You wish, You can make the difficult easy.

Dua For Increasing Knowledge

اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَسْألُكَ عِلْماً نَافِعاَ وَعَمَلاً صَالِحاً وَحِفْظاً قَوِيّاً وَفَهْماً كَامِلاً وَعَقْلاً سَالِماً بِرَحْمَتِكَ يَا اَرْحَمَ ٱلرَّاحِمِينَ

Allāhumma inni asaluka ‘amalan nāfi‘ā Wa ‘amalan swālihā hifzan qawiyyā wa fahman kāmilā wa aqlan sālimā birahmatika yā arhamar rāhimeen

Oh Allah I ask You for beneficial knowledge and good deeds and a strong memory and a perfect understanding and a sound intellect by Your mercy, O the most Merciful of the merciful ones.

Dua before a presentation, debate, interview, or any difficult conversation

رَبِّ اشْرَحْ لِي صَدْرِي وَيَسِّرْ لِي أَمْرِي وَاحْلُلْ عُقْدَةً مِنْ لِسَانِي يَفْقَهُوا قَوْلِي

Rabbi ishrah li sadri wa yassirli amri wah lul uqdatan min lisaani, yaf kahu kauli

My Lord! Open my heart, and make my task easy for me, loosen the knot in my tongue, so that they may understand my speech

School has its ups and downs and it’ll never be a perfect experience. We study, we pass, we fail, we’re naughty, we’re good, we make mistakes, we have to learn to forgive others for their own mistakes; it’s messy and annoying but beautiful in its own way.

Study hard, pray hard and learn to love and forgive yourself through this process. Repent to Allah regularly (the Prophet Muhammad PBUH himself used to seek forgiveness from Allah between 70 to 100 times a day – the easiest way you can do this is by reciting ‘Astaghfur Allah’) and keep your heart pure regardless of what happens.

Remember, a pure heart isn’t a doormat for bullies, a pure heart is a strong heart that doesn’t hurt others and does everything with Ihsan (excellence).

Not every child is lucky enough to go to school. Some can’t go to school because of war, others because of poverty and some are even prevented from studying simply because they’re girls. Currently, over 250 million children across the world lack basic literacy skills, which we at Muslim Aid find unacceptable.

Read more about our life-changing Community-Based Child Sponsorship programme here.

Sign up to our child sponsorship programme now and expand your sadaqah jaariyah.