When the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is walking by and he’s listening to the prayer of a pious Bedouin man, even the Prophet (peace be upon him) does not know who he is.
This was a dua that would amaze the Prophet (peace be upon him). And you have to understand that the Prophet (peace be upon him) is more connected to his Lord than anyone else.
So, he senses that connection when he hears it from other people; and he appreciates that genuine connection that someone might have with Allah; even if they don’t call upon Him in the most perfect ways, but they call upon Him knowing how perfect He is and how capable He is.
The Dua
Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) heard this man calling out to Allah with this mind-blowing dua; and this is truly a mind-blowing dua, I might even have difficulty translating it to be honest with you. But this man calls upon Allah and he says:
Oh He whom the eyes do not see, nor can be mixed with doubts, nor can be described by any of those who describe; nor can be changed by any events, nor fears any oppressor or any person of perceived power; He knows the weights of the mountains, and He knows the measurements of the seas; and He knows the precise number of the rain drops, and He knows the number of leaves on the trees…
If you see how he’s encompassed thus far in this dua, all of the elements of nature, but he also understands that there are certain things that are not even perceived in terms of nature to him.
So, he continues after mentioning the amount of leaves that are on the trees. He says:
And He knows the number of whatever is shrouded in the darkness of the night and brightened by the light of the day; for whom no heaven or earth is concealed, nor a sea in its depths, nor a mountain in its ruggedness…
Praise Him
So this man has brought the entire creation into his dua, and he hasn’t even asked of Allah yet. And this teaches us that the praise of your Lord can never be exaggerated. So you praise and you praise and you praise…
Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is blown away by this man’s dua as he encompasses everything around him in that supplication. And then he makes this dua:
And make the best of my life the end of it; the best of my deeds the last of them; and the best of my days the day that I meet you.
It is pretty much verbatim dua of Abu Bakr Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him).
The Prophet has he heard this dua, he actually appoints a man in the narration to stay with him and to wait for him to finish his prayer, meeting this Bedouin is just getting started, and to inform the Prophet (peace be upon him) when he’s done.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) comes back to him and he asks him who he is and where he’s from. So he says I’m just a man from Bani Amr tribe and the Prophet (peace be upon him) gives him a gift and he says to him:
Do you know why I’m giving you this gift?
He said:
“Maybe we’re related!”
The Prophet knows. He says:
It’s because of the beauty of your praise of Allah.
A person doesn’t have to be a poet to call upon Allah with beautiful praise. You’d be surprised how poetic you can be when you’re sincere.
And I think that’s the beauty of this particular dua of the simple Bedouin man who amazed the Prophet and whose supplication would find itself on the tongue of Abu Bakr Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him).