Dua for Worrying: The Prophetic Remedy for Anxiety

Worry arrives uninvited. It sits with you at the end of a long day, in the quiet before sleep, and in the brief pauses between tasks. The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ knew this experience intimately — not because he was weak, but because he was human. And in one of the most comprehensive duas he ever taught, he addressed it directly.

What Is the Dua for Worrying in Islam?

The Prophetic dua for worrying is narrated in Sahih al-Bukhari 6369: "Allahumma inni a'udhu bika min al-hammi wal-hazan" — "O Allah, I seek refuge in You from worry and grief." The dua continues with six additional paired burdens, making it one of the most complete supplications in the Sunnah. Anas ibn Malik reported that the Prophet ﷺ used to say this dua regularly, not only in moments of crisis.

The Complete Dua: Arabic, Transliteration, and Meaning

Arabic:

اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنَ الْهَمِّ وَالْحَزَنِ وَالْعَجْزِ وَالْكَسَلِ وَالْجُبْنِ وَالْبُخْلِ وَضَلَعِ الدَّيْنِ وَغَلَبَةِ الرِّجَالِ

Transliteration:

Allahumma inni a'udhu bika minal-hammi wal-hazan, wal-'ajzi wal-kasal, wal-jubni wal-bukhl, wa dala'id-dayn wa ghalabatir-rijal.

Meaning:

"O Allah, I seek refuge in You from worry and grief, from incapacity and laziness, from cowardice and miserliness, from the burden of debt and from being overpowered by men." — (Sahih al-Bukhari 6369)

Anas ibn Malik رضي الله عنه narrated that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ frequently said this dua. It is not a formula for emergencies — it is a daily declaration that every burden the human self carries can be brought directly to Allah.

Understanding Hamm and Hazan: The Prophetic Vocabulary of Worry

Classical Islamic scholars distinguished between the two opening words precisely:

• Hamm (الْهَمِّ) — worry directed at the future. The unsettled anticipation of what might go wrong. The heart running through scenarios that have not happened.
• Hazan (الْحَزَنِ) — grief directed at the past. Sadness over what has already occurred. The weight of loss, regret, and what cannot be changed.

The Prophet ﷺ placed both in the same dua because the troubled heart rarely experiences only one. A person who has suffered loss (hazan) often develops worry (hamm) about the future simultaneously. By naming both, the dua addresses the complete landscape of a heavy heart.

The Eight Burdens This Dua Addresses

The breadth of this list is deliberate. The Prophet ﷺ understood that worry rarely stands alone — it arrives with companions. A person crushed by debt also knows cowardice and incapacity. Someone overpowered by others also experiences grief and helplessness. One dua covers the whole cluster.

What Tawakkul Teaches About Worry

The Quran's antidote to worry is not distraction or denial but tawakkul — active, reasoned reliance on Allah ﷻ. Surah At-Talaq 65:3 promises: "Whoever relies upon Allah — He is sufficient for him." This is not passive resignation. It is the recognition that after a person has done what they can, the outcome belongs entirely to Allah — and that is enough.

The Prophet ﷺ made this concrete: "Tie your camel, then put your trust in Allah." (Sunan al-Tirmidhi 2517) Tawakkul is not doing nothing; it is doing everything within your power and then releasing the worry that comes from trying to control what you cannot.

The dua for worrying is the verbal expression of this release. When you say "Allahumma inni a'udhu bika min al-hammi," you are not denying the reality of your worry. You are refusing to carry it alone.

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Surah Ad-Duha and Ash-Sharh: Quranic Comfort for the Worried Heart

Two short surahs were revealed specifically as consolation for the Prophet ﷺ during a period of worry and silence — and their comfort extends to every believer.

Surah Ad-Duha (93) opens with an oath by the morning light and the stillness of night, affirming: "Your Lord has not abandoned you, nor has He become displeased." (93:3). It reminds the worried heart that difficulty is not a sign of abandonment.

Surah Ash-Sharh (94) follows directly: "Indeed, with every hardship comes ease — indeed, with every hardship comes ease." (94:5-6). The repetition is deliberate. Scholars note that "the hardship" uses the definite article (al-'usr) while "ease" is indefinite — suggesting a single difficulty is paired with multiple forms of relief.

Both surahs are recommended as recitations during distress across the four major madhabs.

Building the Daily Practice Against Worry

The most powerful thing about the dua for worrying is that it functions as both prevention and cure. Recited consistently in the morning and evening, it trains the heart toward trust rather than rumination. Made in a moment of acute worry, it interrupts the cycle of anxious thought and redirects it toward Allah.

A practical sequence:

1. In your morning adhkar, recite the dua once with intention
2. When a worry surfaces during the day, say it again in Arabic or your own language
3. In the evening adhkar, recite it again as a closing of the day
4. Before sleep, follow it with Ayat al-Kursi (Quran 2:255) and the three Quls

For the complete morning and evening practice this dua fits into, see morning and evening adhkar in Islam. For the broader Islamic understanding of anxiety and how Islam addresses it spiritually, dua for anxiety covers the Prophetic prescriptions in full. The concept of tawakkul that underlies the dua for worry is explored deeply in what is tawakkul in Islam.

For the Quranic perspective on difficulty and ease that complements this dua, Surah Ash-Sharh is hosted in full at quran.com Surah Ash-Sharh with multiple scholarly translations, and Surah Ad-Duha is at quran.com Surah Ad-Duha.

Deen Back's guide on Islamic mental wellbeing practices offers a broader look at how consistent Islamic practice builds psychological resilience. DemiManifest's reflection on living with tawakkul in daily life connects the spirit of this dua to practical daily decisions.

For the original Arabic hadith with full chain of narration, the dua appears in Sahih al-Bukhari's chapter on supplications.

The Prophet's Own Example

One of the most powerful aspects of this dua is that the Prophet ﷺ said it regularly — not only when teaching it, but as a personal practice. Anas ibn Malik, who served the Prophet ﷺ for a decade, reported it from direct observation. This means the person whom the Quran describes as having been given relief from distress (Surah Ash-Sharh 94:1) still turned to this supplication consistently.

If the Prophet ﷺ — whose every matter was under Allah's direct care — still maintained this practice, then for the rest of us, it is not optional discipline. It is an act of following the best example we have.

The worried heart is not a heart that has failed at faith. It is a human heart — and the Prophet ﷺ left us a dua for exactly this.

Do you feel your duas are unanswered?

Have you read the dua properly? Learn authentic duas, understand their meanings, and call upon Allah with greater confidence through DeenUp.

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