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Fatwa CenterExcellence of two narrations on the mention of Allaah
Question
Which is better to say "Subhaanallaah wabihamdihi" or "Subhaanallaah, walhamdulillaah, la ilaaha illallaah wallaahu akbar"?
Answer
All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger. We ask Allaah to exalt his mention as well as that of his family and all his companions.
Many Prophetic narrations have been reported on the excellence of سُبٌحَانَ اللَّهِ وَالٌحَمٌدُ لِلَّهِ لاَ إِلَهَ إِلاَّ اللَّهُ وَاللَّهُ أَكٌبَرُ
"Subhaanallaah, walhamdulillaah, la ilaaha illallaah wallaahu Akbar."
‘How perfect Allaah is, and all praise is for Allaah. None has the right to be worshipped except Allaah, and Allaah is the Greatest.’ In some narrations, it is stated that this is the most beloved mention to Allaah. For instance, the Prophet 
said: "The most beloved words to Allaah are: سُبٌحَانَ اللَّهِ، وَالٌحَمٌدُ لِلَّهِ، لاَ إِلَهَ إِلاَّ اللَّهُ وَاللَّهُ أَكٌبَرُ"Subhaanallaah, walhamdulillaah, la ilaaha illallaah wallaahu Akbar."
‘How perfect Allaah is, and all praise is for Allaah. None has the right to be worshipped except Allaah, and Allaah is the Greatest', and it does not matter from which one you start." [Muslim] It is also reported that the above words are more beloved to the Prophet than the whole world and whatever it contains. Moreover, At-Tirmithi
reported that these words are the seeds (the sowing) of taught these words to a man, and when this man departed, he said about him: "This man has really filled his hands with goodness." [Abu Daawood, An-Nasaa'ee, and Al-Albaani classified it as authentic] There are other excellences for the above terms. So this is evidence that these four terms (when said together) are more rewarding in comparison to
سُبٌحَانَ اللَّهِ وَبِحَمٌدِهِ "Subhaanallaah wabihamdihi"
‘How perfect Allaah is and the praise is His.' This is because the second form of mention is restricted to glorifying and praising Allaah, whereas the first form of mention comprises glorification, praise, Tahleel (i.e. saying 'La ilaaha illallaah' [None has the right to be worshipped except Allaah] and Takbeer (i.e. saying 'Allaahu Akbar', Allaah is the Greatest). Nonetheless, this does not mean that "Subhaanallaah wabihamdihi'' [‘How perfect Allaah is and the praise is His.'] is not of great excellence. Rather, it is confirmed that the Prophet said: "There are two words which are very easy to say, and which are heavy on the scale (i.e. there is a great reward for them) and which are beloved to Allaah, and they are:
سُبٌحَانَ اللَّهِ وَبِحَمٌدِهِ سُبٌحَانَ اللَّهِ العَظِيم. "Subhaanallaah wabihamdihi, Subhaanallaah Al-'Atheem."
‘How perfect Allaah is and the praise is His. How perfect Allaah is, The Supreme.’ [Al-Bukhari and Muslim] The Prophet used to utter this mention abundantly. To conclude, it is better for a Muslim to vary the confirmed mentions reported in Prophetic narrations, namely to say one form of mention sometimes and another form of mention at some other times; therefore he would say all the different forms of mention.
Allaah Knows best.
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