Back to search

What is the ruling on supplicating for disbelievers to be guided to Islam, and what is the ruling on supplicating for a disbelieving friend that Allah may bless him with children?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

The apparent guidance of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, regarding supplicating for disbelievers, is to differentiate between aggressors and those who cause harm, against whom he would supplicate, and those whose hearts are hoped to be reconciled, for whom he would supplicate. As Al-Bukhari titled a chapter, "Chapter on Supplicating for Guidance for Polytheists to Reconcile Their Hearts." Ibn Hajar mentioned that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, would supplicate against them when their power became strong and their harm increased, and he would supplicate for them when their malice was secure and their reconciliation was hoped for, like the story of Daws. As for supplicating for the general guidance of disbelievers, it is mentioned in his, peace and blessings be upon him, saying: "O Allah, guide my people, for they do not know." And supplicating for a disbeliever with a worldly matter—such as supplicating for him to be blessed with children—is permissible for a non-belligerent disbeliever.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

Read the full answer on Ftawy