What is the authenticity of attributing the supplication, "O Allah, to You I complain of my weakness, my lack of stratagem, and my insignificance before people," to the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, when he departed from Ta'if?
The Hadith narrated by Abdullah ibn Ja'far (may Allah be pleased with him) with the wording: "O Allah, to You I complain of my weakness..." has a weak chain of narration due to the 'an'anah (reporting with "on the authority of") of Muhammad ibn Ishaq, who was a mudallis (one who narrates in a way that conceals a weakness in the chain). It was weakened by Al-Haythami, the Permanent Committee, and Shaykh Al-Albani. Although the weakness in its chain of narration is minor, and scholars may tolerate narrating it in chapters concerning biographies (siyar) and virtues (fada'il), and some scholars, such as Ibn Taymiyyah and Ibn al-Qayyim, cited it, this does not mean it is authentic. Rather, it is permissible to find solace in it when discussing biographies and virtues, using a weakened (passive) form of narration.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
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