O Allah, I ask you for the best through Your knowledge, I seek strength through Your power, and I ask You from Your majestic benevolence. For You are fully able whilst I am not, You know everything whilst I do not know anything, and You are the Knower of the unseen. O Allah, if in Your knowledge, this matter (specify the matter) is good for me in my religion, my livelihood and my ultimate destiny, then decree it for me and make it easy it for me, then bless it for me. But if in your knowledge, this matter (specify the matter) is bad for me in my religion, my livelihood and my ultimate destiny, then turn it away from me, and turn me away from it and decree good for me wherever it may be, then make me pleased with it.

Allāhumma innī astakhīruka bi ʿilmik, wa astaqdiruka bi qudratik, wa as’aluka min faḍlika-l-ʿaẓīm, fa innaka taqdiru wa lā aqdir, wa taʿlamu wa lā aʿlam, wa Anta ʿAllāmu-l-ghuyūb. Allāhumma in kunta taʿlamu an-na hādha-l-amra khayrul-lī fī dīnī wa maʿāshī wa ʿāqibati amrī, faqdurhu lī wa yassirhu lī thumma bārik lī fīhī, wa in kunta taʿlamu anna hādha-l-amra sharrul-lī fī dīnī wa maʿāshī wa ʿāqibati amrī, faṣrifhu ʿannī waṣrifnī ʿanhu waqdur liya-l-khayra ḥaythu kāna thumma arḍinī bih.

Jābir (raḍiy Allāhu ‘anhu) narrated: “The Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to teach us istikhārah (when one seeks Allah’s help in making a decision) for all matters, the same way he taught us Sūrahs from the Qur’ān. He ﷺ said: “When one of you intends to do something, he should offer two rak‘ahs of voluntary Salāh, and then say [the above].” (Bukhārī 6382)

Ibn Abī Jamrah (raḥimahullāh) said: ‘The wisdom of preceding Salāh before the du‘ā’ is that the purpose of istikhārah is to combine the good of this world and the Hereafter. A person needs to knock at the door of the King (Allah), and there is nothing more effective for this than salāh, because it combines the glorification and praise of Allah, and expresses one’s need for Him at all times. (Fath al-Bārī)