You recite Attahiyat (the Tashahhud) in every sitting of every salah — at least nine times a day in the five daily prayers. Yet many Muslims were never taught its origin: these are the words exchanged between the Prophet ﷺ and Allah on the night of Mi'raj, with the angels' reply joined at the end. Here is the full Arabic, transliteration, English meaning, and how to memorize it properly.
Attahiyat full — Arabic, transliteration & English
التَّحِيَّاتُ لِلَّهِ وَالصَّلَوَاتُ وَالطَّيِّبَاتُ، السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكَ أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ وَرَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهُ، السَّلَامُ عَلَيْنَا وَعَلَىٰ عِبَادِ اللَّهِ الصَّالِحِينَ، أَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَأَشْهَدُ أَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا عَبْدُهُ وَرَسُولُهُ
At-tahiyyatu lillahi wa-s-salawatu wa-t-tayyibat. As-salamu 'alayka ayyuha-n-nabiyyu wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh. As-salamu 'alayna wa 'ala 'ibadillahi-s-salihin. Ash-hadu an la ilaha illallah, wa ash-hadu anna Muhammadan 'abduhu wa rasuluh.
"All greetings, prayers and pure words are for Allah. Peace be upon you, O Prophet, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings. Peace be upon us and upon the righteous servants of Allah. I bear witness that none has the right to be worshipped except Allah, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger."
The beautiful story behind Attahiyat
Many scholars relate that these words echo the exchange of the Mi'raj: the Prophet ﷺ greeted Allah with "At-tahiyyatu lillahi…", Allah replied with "As-salamu 'alayka ayyuha-n-nabiyyu…", and the Prophet ﷺ — refusing to keep the greeting for himself alone — responded "As-salamu 'alayna wa 'ala 'ibadillahi-s-salihin", including every righteous servant until the Day of Judgment. When you sit in Tashahhud, you join that conversation.
When exactly to recite it in salah
| Prayer | Sittings with Attahiyat |
|---|---|
| Fajr (2 rakats) | 1 — final sitting (+ Durood and dua) |
| Dhuhr, Asr, Isha (4 rakats) | 2 — after 2nd rakat (Attahiyat only) and final sitting |
| Maghrib (3 rakats) | 2 — after 2nd rakat and final sitting |
In the final sitting, follow Attahiyat with Durood Ibrahim and a closing dua before salam. Full prayer walkthrough: how to pray salah step by step.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Rushing the words — Tashahhud has no time pressure; recite each phrase clearly.
- Merging words like "wasalawatu-wattayyibatu" into a blur — learn word-by-word once with a teacher and it stays correct for life.
- Skipping the finger movement — raise the index finger at ash-hadu an la ilaha illallah (methods vary by madhab; follow your teacher).
- Wrong pronunciation of ط and ص — heavy letters in tayyibat and salawat change meaning if softened. A quick Tajweed session fixes this permanently.
How to memorize Attahiyat (kids & new Muslims)
- Split it into 4 lines (greeting → salam to Prophet → salam to believers → Shahada).
- Learn one line per day with audio repetition — 10 minutes daily.
- Recite it aloud in every practice salah for a week.
- Have a teacher listen once for pronunciation before it becomes habit — kids classes and adult classes both cover salah recitation with live correction.