18/03/2026
What to Do After Completing the Quran (Khatm al-Quran) - According to the Salaf
1. Make Du'a - This Is the Core Practice
Making du'a upon completing the Quran is the central act established from the Salaf. There is no single fixed du'a prescribed by the Prophet ﷺ specifically for this moment. Rather, scholars including Shaykh Ibn Baz stated that a person may make du'a as they wish, choosing beneficial supplications - seeking forgiveness, Paradise, protection from the Fire, help in understanding and acting upon the Quran, and steadfastness in memorisation.
(Majmu' Fatawa Ibn Baz, 11/358; IslamQA, answer 37683)
2. Gather Your Family for Du'a - Practice of Anas ibn Malik (رضي الله عنه)
عَنْ ثَابِتٍ قَالَ: كَانَ أَنَسُ بْنُ مَالِكٍ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ إِذَا خَتَمَ الْقُرْآنَ جَمَعَ وَلَدَهُ وَأَهْلَ بَيْتِهِ فَدَعَا لَهُمْ
Thabit reported: Anas ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him), when he completed a reading of the entire Quran, would gather his children and his household and supplicate to Allah for them.
References:
Al-Darimi, al-Sunan, Kitab Fada'il al-Quran, Bab fi Khatm al-Quran, Hadith no. 3517 (also cited as 3477 in some editions)
Al-Firyabi, Fada'il al-Quran, article 83
Al-Tabarani, al-Mu'jam al-Kabir. Imam al-Haythami stated in Majma' al-Zawa'id that its narrators are sound (rijal al-isnad thiqqat)
Al-Bayhaqi, Shu'ab al-Iman, no. 1907
Grading: Shaykh al-Albani authenticated one of its chains as Sahih. (See: Marwiyyat Du'a Khatm al-Quran, article 12)
Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani graded it Mawquf Sahih (authentically traced to the Companion). (Nata'ij al-Afkar, 3/173)
3. Ibn Abbas (رضي الله عنه) Would Attend Others' Completions
Imam al-Darimi relates that Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) used to appoint a man to watch over those reciting the Quran in the masjid. When someone was near completion, that man would inform Ibn Abbas, and Ibn Abbas along with those in his company would go to attend the completion and be present for the du'a.
(Al-Darimi, al-Sunan, cited in SeekersGuidance fatwa on khatm al-Quran)
And Mujahid (a leading Tabi'i and Imam of Quranic sciences in Makkah) once sent for someone and said:
إِنَّمَا دَعَوْنَاكَ أَنَّا أَرَدْنَا أَنْ نَخْتِمَ الْقُرْآنَ وَإِنَّهُ بَلَغَنَا أَنَّ الدُّعَاءَ يُسْتَجَابُ عِنْدَ خَتْمِ الْقُرْآنِ
"We called you because we wanted to complete the Quran, and it has reached us that du'a is accepted at the completion of the Quran." Then he said: "So supplicate, all of you, with many supplications."
(Al-Darimi, al-Sunan, cited in Imam al-Nawawi's al-Adhkar and SeekersGuidance)
4. The Du'a Is Accepted (Mustajab) at This Moment
Imam al-Tabarani narrates that the Prophet ﷺ said: "Whoever completes a reading of the Quran has an accepted supplication."
(Al-Tabarani, cited in SeekersGuidance fatwa on khatm al-Quran)
Imam al-Bukhari himself used to make khatm during Ramadan, saying: "There is an accepted du'a after every complete recitation of the Quran."
(Al-Bayhaqi, Shu'ab al-Iman, 2/416)
5. Recite Al-Fatihah and the Opening of Al-Baqarah Before Du'a
The practice of the Quran reciters of Makkah, mentioned by Ibn 'Allan al-Bakri in his commentary on Imam al-Nawawi's al-Adhkar, was that upon completing the Quran, they would begin again from al-Fatihah and the first five verses of Surah al-Baqarah, then pause their recitation before making du'a. This was so that they would always be counted among those who had set out on a fresh journey through the Book of Allah.
(Ibn 'Allan al-Bakri, Futuhat al-Rabbaniyya, commentary on al-Adhkar of Imam al-Nawawi)
It is also reported from Ubayy ibn Ka'b (رضي الله عنه) that the Prophet ﷺ did this so the Quran would not be left in an abandoned state.
(Cited in: al-Suyuti, al-Itqan, 1/313; al-Qurtubi, Tafsir, 1/30)
6. The Recommended Du'a at Khatm
There is no single obligatory du'a, but scholars have transmitted the following widely-used supplication:
اللَّهُمَّ ارْحَمْنِي بِالْقُرْآنِ، وَاجْعَلْهُ لِي إِمَامًا وَنُورًا وَهُدًى وَرَحْمَةً. اللَّهُمَّ ذَكِّرْنِي مِنْهُ مَا نَسِيتُ، وَعَلِّمْنِي مِنْهُ مَا جَهِلْتُ، وَارْزُقْنِي تِلَاوَتَهُ آنَاءَ اللَّيْلِ وَأَطْرَافَ النَّهَارِ، وَاجْعَلْهُ لِي حُجَّةً يَا رَبَّ الْعَالَمِينَ
Translation: "O Allah, have mercy on me through the Quran. Make it for me a guide, a light, a source of guidance, and a mercy. O Allah, remind me of what I have forgotten of it, teach me what I do not know of it, grant me the ability to recite it throughout the nights and the edges of the day, and make it a proof for me, O Lord of all the worlds."
7. What to Avoid
The following have no basis in the Sunnah and should be avoided: treating khatm al-Quran as a formal religious ceremony with specific rituals, reciting du'a over food and distributing it in connection with khatm (this is bid'ah), and any innovated format not established from the Prophet ﷺ or his Companions.
(IslamQA, answers 37683 and 12032, referencing Abu Dawud 4607 and Muslim 1718)
Summary of the way of the Salaf:
Al-Fatihah and the opening of al-Baqarah, then raise hands, praise Allah, send Salawat on the Prophet ﷺ, make sincere open du'a for yourself, your family, and the Ummah, then begin al-Fatihah again.
May Allah accept your tilawah, make the Quran light in your chest, and a companion for you in the grave. Ameen.
