At a Glance

The Dua in Arabic

Word-by-Word Breakdown

Arabic	Transliteration	Meaning
رَّبِّ	Rabbi	My Lord
ارْحَمْهُمَا	irhamhuma	Have mercy upon them both (mother and father)
كَمَا	kama	Just as, in the same way as
رَبَّيَانِي	rabbayani	They raised me, brought me up, nurtured me
صَغِيرًا	sagheera	When I was small, when I was a child

Two details in the Arabic carry the whole weight of the dua. First, the word irhamhuma uses the dual pronoun: it asks mercy for both parents at once, mother and father together, even if only one of them is still alive. Second, the word rabbayani comes from the same root as Rabb, Lord. The dua draws a quiet parallel: just as your Lord nurtured you with His mercy, your parents nurtured you with theirs. Now you ask Him to return the favor to them.

The Context: Kindness Commanded, Then the Words

This dua does not appear on its own. It comes at the end of one of the strongest passages in the Quran about parents. In verse 17:23, Allah decrees that we worship none but Him, and immediately joins that with the command to treat parents with excellence. If one or both of them reach old age with you, do not say to them so much as “uff,” do not repel them, and speak to them a noble word.

Then comes the image: “And lower to them the wing of humility out of mercy.” Like a bird folding its wings over its young, a child is told to fold his pride before his aging parents, gently and out of love, not duty alone. And then, after all that instruction on how to treat them, Allah gives us the words to say for them: “My Lord, have mercy upon them both, as they raised me when I was small.”

That order matters. First comes the behavior, then the dua. Allah is showing us that praying for our parents is part of how we honor them, not a replacement for it. The dua itself is in the form of a command: wa qul, “and say.” We are not only allowed to ask mercy for our parents, we are told to.

Virtues and Benefits

The first virtue is the source. Most duas in the Quran were made by prophets and believers, and we repeat their words. This one is different: Allah Himself is telling us what to say. When the command comes in the form “and say,” the dua carries the weight of an instruction, not just an example. A child who says it is doing exactly what his Lord asked him to do.

The second virtue is its reach. Tafsir Ibn Kathir notes that this dua covers parents in their lifetime and after their death. Whether your parents are sitting across from you or resting in their graves, the words reach them. And the Prophet (peace be upon him) told us that a person’s deeds end at death except for three things: ongoing charity, beneficial knowledge, and a righteous child who supplicates for him (Sahih Muslim 1631). This dua is one of the purest forms of that continuing charity.

The third virtue is its honesty. The dua does not ask Allah to reward our parents because they were perfect. It asks for mercy because they raised us when we were small, helpless, and demanding. Every sleepless night, every meal, every worry they carried for a child who could give nothing back: the dua gathers all of that into one sentence and asks Allah to repay it with His mercy.

There is a companion dua worth knowing alongside this one. In Surah Ibrahim (14:41), the Quran teaches: “Rabbi ighfir li wa liwalidayya wa lil-mu’minina yawma yaqumul-hisab”, “My Lord, forgive me and my parents and the believers on the Day the account is established.” Where 17:24 asks for mercy, 14:41 asks specifically for forgiveness. Many recite them back to back so the request covers both.

When and How to Recite

There is no restricted time for this dua, which makes it one of the easiest to keep as a habit. The most common practice is to recite it after every obligatory prayer, so it becomes a daily gift to your parents five times a day. Others say it in sujood, in the last third of the night, or quietly before sleeping.

It is also a natural dua to teach children. Its words are short, its meaning is clear, and it plants the habit of gratitude early. A child who learns to ask mercy for his parents every day grows into an adult who remembers them even after they are gone. Pair it with other Quranic duas in your family’s daily routine, and keep it among the duas you say whenever your parents cross your mind, which, if you are honest, should be often.

FAQ

Final Thoughts

They carried you before you could walk, fed you before you could ask, and stayed awake before you knew what worry was. You will never repay them, and Allah never asked you to. He only asked you to lower the wing of humility before them, and to say one sentence: “My Lord, have mercy upon them both, as they raised me when I was small.” Say it while they are with you, and keep saying it after they are gone. It is the one debt you can keep paying forever.