Q 1: In most Masjids (mosques), particularly in villages, the people offering Salah (Prayer) conclude the Salah with Adhkar (invocations and remembrances said at certain times on a regular basis) in a loud voice. When I told them that it is better to recite the Adhkar subvocally, some argued that some of the people who offer Salah do not memorize Ayat-ul-Kursy (the Qur’anic Verse of Allah’s Chair, Surah Al-Baqarah, 2:255) or can not recite the Adhkar by themselves. I hope Your Eminence will highlight this point. Is concluding the Salah in a loud voice Bid‘ah (innovation in religion) that should be abandoned, or is it permissible? Kindly inform us of the Adhkar reported in the Sunnah (whatever is reported from the Prophet).

A: The Adhkar prescribed by Islam after the Faridah (obligatory prayer) should be pronounced individually. Each individual should recite the permissible Adhkar by himself in a loud voice, but not in congregation, as the Sahabah (Companions of the Prophet) used to do. It was authentically reported in the Two Sahih (authentic) Books of Hadith (i.e. Al-Bukhari and Muslim) on the authority of Ibn ‘Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him and his father) that Dhikr (Remembrance of Allah) was recited in a loud voice when people concluded the Faridah at the time of the Prophet (peace be upon him). Ibn ‘Abbas said: "I would know that they finished the Salah when I heard that (Dhikr)." In the Two Sahih Books of Hadith, Al-Mughirah ibn Shu‘bah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated some other reports to the same effect. A Hadith was reported in Sahih Muslim on the authority of Ibn Al-Zubayr to the same effect. Reciting Dhikr in a loud voice helps remind people and teach the ones who do not know. However, this should not be in a collective voice, because this is Bid‘ah.May Allah grant us success. May peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and Companions.