Allahumma ba‘id bayni wa bayna khatayaya kama ba‘adta baynal-mashriqi wal-maghrib. Allahumma naqqini minal-khataya kama yunaqqath-thawbul-abyadu minad-danas. Allahummagh-sil khatayaya bil-ma’i wath-thalji wal-barad.
O Allah, distance me from my sins as You have distanced east from west. O Allah, cleanse me of sins as a white garment is cleansed of dirt. O Allah, wash away my sins with water, snow and hail.
Source and meaning
Sahih al-Bukhari 744 records the Prophet’s response when asked about the pause before recitation. The selected prayer uses images of distance and cleansing in its request concerning sins.
Read that meaning alongside the Arabic rather than treating the language as a literal instruction about physical washing during salah. It belongs to supplication within the prayer setting.
Sunni wording differences
A learner may know another opening text from a Hanafi, Shafii, Maliki or Hanbali lesson. The fact that one wording is selected here does not make every other transmitted or school-taught form the same quotation.
Keep the wording’s reference and learn its use through the school guidance followed. Do not paste a familiar alternative under Bukhari 744 simply because both occur near the start of prayer.
Practising before salah
Read the meaning, learn a short portion and have pronunciation checked. Study the prayer sequence so you understand the difference between takbir, an opening supplication and Quran recitation.
Questions about what is required, recommended or omitted in a particular circumstance need an actual prayer lesson. This short text page does not determine the validity of an individual’s prayer.
Common questions
Is this the only Sunni opening dua? No; this page presents one sourced wording. Is it the same as Qunoot? Its source occasion is different. Can I mix another formula into the quotation? Preserve each reference separately. Where can I continue? The salah guide places opening remembrance within the larger prayer sequence.