First Night of Sha’ban: Moon Sighting Dua & Complete Amaal Guide

The Moon of Sha’ban Has Appeared

Sha’ban — the eighth month of the Islamic calendar and the month the Prophet (s) called his own — has begun. Its crescent signals not a mere calendar change but the opening of the second stage in the three-month spiritual arc: Rajab for repentance, Sha’ban for deepening devotion, Ramadan for the harvest.

The Prophet (s) said: “Rajab is the month of Allah, Sha’ban is my month, and Ramadan is the month of my Ummah.” Entering a month named for the Prophet (s) is an invitation — to send more salawat, to fast more, to draw closer to what he represented and what the Ahlul Bayt (as) carried after him.

This guide covers the first night and first day. The most time-sensitive act is also the first: reciting the moon-sighting dua the moment the crescent is confirmed.

The Moon-Sighting Dua of Sha’ban

This supplication — preserved in Iqbal al-A’mal (Sayyid Ibn Tawus) and Mafatih al-Jinan (Shaykh Abbas Qumi) — is recited upon sighting the crescent of Sha’ban. It asks Allah to make the month a means of blessing, forgiveness, and purification, and to deliver the believer through it to Ramadan in a state of worthiness:

اللَّهُمَّ إِنَّ هَذَا هِلَالُ شَهْرِ شَعْبَانَ وَقَدْ وَرَدَ

وَأَنْتَ أَعْلَمُ بِمَا فِيهِ مِنَ الْإِحْسَانِ فَاجْعَلْهُ هِلَالَ بَرَكَاتٍ

وَسَعَادَاتٍ كَامِلَةَ الْأَمَانِ وَالْغُفْرَانِ وَالرِّضْوَانِ وَمَاحِيَةَ الْأَخْطَارِ

وَحَامِيَةً مِنْ أَذَى أَهْلِ الْعِصْيَانِ وَالْبُهْتَانِ وَشَرِّفْنَا بِامْتِثَالِ مَرَاسِمِهِ

وَإِحْيَاءِ مَوَاسِمِهِ وَأَلْحِقْنَا بِشُمُولِ مَرَاحِمِهِ وَمَكَارِمِهِ وَطَهِّرْنَا فِيهِ

تَطْهِيرًا نَصْلُحُ بِهِ لِلدُّخُولِ عَلَى شَهْرِ رَمَضَانَ مُظَفَّرِينَ

بِأَفْضَلِ مَا ظَفِرَ بِهِ أَحَدٌ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْإِسْلَامِ وَالْإِيمَانِ

بِرَحْمَتِكَ يَا أَرْحَمَ الرَّاحِمِينَ

Translation: “O Allah, this is the crescent of Sha’ban, and it has appeared. You know best the goodness within it, so make it a crescent of blessings and happiness, complete with safety, forgiveness, and pleasure, erasing dangers, and protecting from the harm of the disobedient and the slanderous. Honour us with the observance of its rites and the reviving of its seasons. Include us in the fullness of its mercies and generosities. Purify us within it — a purification that makes us worthy to enter the month of Ramadan, victorious, with the best achieved by any person of Islam and faith. By Your mercy, O Most Merciful of all those who show mercy.”

After this dua, pause for personal supplication. You are standing at the opening of the Prophet’s (s) own month. Use its first moments to address Allah about what you need from it.

The First Night: Specific Prayers from Iqbal al-A’mal

The Covenant Prayer

Offer two rak’aat. In each rak’at, recite Surah al-Fatiha followed by Surah al-Ikhlas three times. After completing the prayer, recite the following:

اللَّهُمَّ هَذَا عَهْدِي عِنْدَكَ إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ

Transliteration: “Allahumma hadha ‘ahdi ‘indaka ila yawmi al-qiyamah” — “O Allah, this is my covenant with You until the Day of Resurrection.”

The narration describes this as a commitment that Allah honours by protecting the believer from the influence of Satan and granting the rewards of the truthful. (Iqbal al-A’mal, Sayyid Ibn Tawus)

The Twelve-Rak’at Prayer

Offer twelve units of prayer in sets of two. In each rak’at, recite Surah al-Fatiha followed by Surah al-Ikhlas fifteen times. This prayer, with its concentrated repetition of the surah of pure monotheism, is among the recommended acts specifically for the opening night of Sha’ban in the classical devotional tradition. (Iqbal al-A’mal)

The Three-Day Fast with Nightly Prayers

Observing a fast for the first three days of Sha’ban — the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd — and pairing each night with a specific prayer is a practice narrated from the Prophet (s) through Sayyid Ibn Tawus. On each of those three nights, offer two rak’aat with Surah al-Fatiha and Surah al-Ikhlas eleven times per rak’at. The fast and the prayer together form a three-day opening act for the month. (Iqbal al-A’mal, Sayyid Ibn Tawus)

The First Day: Fasting, Ghusl, and Continuing

Imam al-Sadiq (as) is reported to have said that whoever fasts on the first day of Sha’ban is assured of Paradise. Fast this day. Perform Ghusl — the ritual bath of purification that opens many of the sacred month’s significant days. The first day of Sha’ban sets the tone for the month that follows; a day begun with fasting, purification, and the consciousness of whose month this is carries that momentum into what follows.

Throughout the day, continue the general Sha’ban worship: salawat upon the Prophet (s) and his household, Munajat Sha’baniyah recited in the evening, and istighfar. Imam Zayn al-Abidin (as) told his companions that the Prophet (s) used to fast the entirety of Sha’ban, seeking nearness to Allah. Whoever fasts even part of the month with that intention draws from the same well.

The Month’s Rhythm: Weekly and Daily Practices

For the full guide to the general amaal of Sha’ban — istighfar formulas, the daily salawat, Munajat Sha’baniyah, the 4-unit prayer, and fasting through the month — see our dedicated Sha’ban worship guide. Here is the weekly rhythm specifically:

Every Thursday in Sha’ban: fast, and offer a two-rak’at prayer in which each rak’at contains Surah al-Fatiha followed by Surah al-Ikhlas one hundred times. After the prayer, send salawat one hundred times. Every Friday: recite Ziyarat Jami’ah al-Kabira, perform Tahajjud and the nawafil, and visit the graves if possible. Daily at noon: the special salawat taught by Imam Zayn al-Abidin (as) for Sha’ban.

After the 15th of Sha’ban, add this supplication each night for the remaining days of the month:

اللَّهُمَّ إِنْ لَمْ تَكُنْ غَفَرْتَ لَنَا فِيمَا مَضَى مِنْ شَعْبَانَ فَاغْفِرْ لَنَا فِيمَا بَقِيَ مِنْهُ

Transliteration: “Allahumma in lam takun ghafarta lana fima mada min Sha’bana faghfirlana fima baqiya minhu” — “O Allah, if You have not forgiven us in what has passed of Sha’ban, then forgive us in what remains of it.”

(Mafatih al-Jinan, Shaykh Abbas Qumi)

Beginning the Month Well

How you begin Sha’ban shapes how you live it, and how you live it shapes what you carry into Ramadan. The moon-sighting dua asks Allah to make this month a purification worthy of entering Ramadan. That request is answered by the acts that follow it — the fasting, the prayer, the salawat, the charity, the Munajat — done with presence rather than habit throughout the weeks ahead.

For those who wish to spend the Prophet’s (s) month at the shrines of his household in Iraq — the family whose love Sha’ban calls us to deepen — our 2026–2027 Iraq Ziyarat Packages are open throughout Sha’ban. Karbala, Najaf, Kadhimiya, and Samarra welcome those who arrive in the month named for the one whose family they hold.

Visit: www.ziaratplanner.com