Hazrat Abu Bakr Siddique has narrated that Rasulullah
(SAW) said : “Shirk in my Ummah is much more hidden than the pace of an ant
crawling upon a black stone.” Shirk is very hidden. It enters the heart
very silently and very few are saved from it.
Upon hearing this, Hazrat Abu
Bakr Siddique asked : “How can one be protected from Shirk?”
Rasulullah
said : “ Should I not show you such a supplication (dua) that if you recite it,
you will be free from minor and major Shirk.”
Hazrat Abu Bakr requested him
to do so. Rasulullah (SAW) instructed him to say :
“Allahumma innee a’oozu bika min an
ushrika bika shay-a`w wa-ana a’alam wa-astaghfiruka limaa laa
a’alam.”
“O Allah, I seek protection in You from
that I ascribe partners to You knowingly and I seek forgiveness from You for
those things which I do not know.”