The Short Answer
Yes. Collective dhikr (gathering to remember Allah together) is not only permissible — it is explicitly praised in multiple authentic hadiths from Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim. The Prophet ﷺ described group dhikr gatherings as surrounded by angels, covered in mercy, and granted divine forgiveness. The claim that group dhikr is forbidden directly contradicts the two most authenticated hadith collections in Sunni Islam.
The Quranic Foundation for Dhikr
Before examining the specific hadiths on group dhikr, it is important to understand the extraordinary status the Quran gives to dhikr itself.
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اذْكُرُوا اللَّهَ ذِكْرًا كَثِيرًا
“O you who believe, remember Allah with much remembrance.”
The command is kathiran — abundantly, excessively, without limit. Allah does not restrict the mode, the posture, or whether it is done individually or collectively.
الَّذِينَ يَذْكُرُونَ اللَّهَ قِيَامًا وَقُعُودًا وَعَلَىٰ جُنُوبِهِمْ
“Those who remember Allah standing, sitting, and lying on their sides.”
وَالذَّاكِرِينَ اللَّهَ كَثِيرًا وَالذَّاكِرَاتِ أَعَدَّ اللَّهُ لَهُم مَّغْفِرَةً وَأَجْرًا عَظِيمًا
“And the men who remember Allah often and the women who remember — Allah has prepared for them forgiveness and a great reward.”
فَاذْكُرُونِي أَذْكُرْكُمْ
“Remember Me, and I will remember you.”
This last verse contains one of the most extraordinary promises in the entire Quran: Allah Himself remembers those who remember Him. The hadiths below explain how He remembers those who gather for dhikr — He mentions them to the angels, and forgives their entire gathering.
The Six Prophetic Hadiths
Hadith 1: Four Rewards for the Dhikr Gathering
مَا اجْتَمَعَ قَوْمٌ يَذْكُرُونَ اللهَ إِلَّا حَفَّتْهُمُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ وَغَشِيَتْهُمُ الرَّحْمَةُ وَنَزَلَتْ عَلَيْهِمُ السَّكِينَةُ وَذَكَرَهُمُ اللهُ فِيمَنْ عِنْدَهُ
“No people gather to remember Allah but the angels surround them, mercy covers them, tranquility descends upon them, and Allah mentions them to those who are with Him.”
This hadith establishes four specific rewards for group dhikr:
- Angelic surrounding (haffathum al-mala'ika) — the angels physically encircle the gathering
- Mercy covering (ghashiyathum al-rahma) — divine mercy descends and envelops them
- Tranquility descending (nazalat 'alayhim al-sakina) — the same sakina that descended on the Prophet ﷺ in the cave (Quran 9:40)
- Allah mentions them (dhakarahum Allah fiman 'indahu) — Allah speaks of them to the angels in the highest assembly
The Arabic phrase ma ijtama'a qawm ("no people gather") is unambiguously describing a collective activity. There is no way to read this hadith as referring to individual dhikr.
Hadith 2: Angels Roaming the Earth for Dhikr Gatherings
إِنَّ لِلَّهِ مَلَائِكَةً يَطُوفُونَ فِي الطُّرُقِ يَلْتَمِسُونَ أَهْلَ الذِّكْرِ فَإِذَا وَجَدُوا قَوْمًا يَذْكُرُونَ اللهَ تَنَادَوْا هَلُمُّوا إِلَى حَاجَتِكُمْ
“Allah has angels who roam the roads seeking out the people of dhikr. When they find a group remembering Allah, they call out to each other: 'Come to what you are looking for!' and they enfold them with their wings up to the lowest heaven.”
The full narration in Sahih Muslim continues with an extraordinary dialogue between Allah and the angels:
Allah asks: "What are My servants saying?" The angels reply: "They are glorifying You (subhanAllah), declaring Your greatness (Allahu Akbar), praising You (al-hamdulillah), and extolling You."
Allah asks: "Have they seen Me?" The angels reply: "No, by Allah, they have not seen You."
Allah asks: "What if they saw Me?" They reply: "They would be even more intense in worship and praise."
Allah asks: "What do they ask of Me?" They reply: "They ask for Paradise." Allah asks: "Have they seen it?" They reply: "No." Allah asks: "What if they saw it?" They reply: "They would be even more eager."
Allah asks: "From what do they seek refuge?" They reply: "From the Fire." Allah asks: "Have they seen it?" They reply: "No." Allah asks: "What if they saw it?" They reply: "They would flee even more."
Allah says: "I call you to witness that I have forgiven them."
One angel says: "Among them is so-and-so who is not one of them — he only came for a personal need."
Allah says: "They are the people in whose company no one suffers."
This is one of the most detailed descriptions of a spiritual gathering in all of hadith literature. Allah sends angels specifically to search for dhikr gatherings. When they find one, the angels call their companions. Allah then engages in a dialogue about the gathering and concludes by forgiving everyone present — including a person who was not even there for dhikr but happened to sit with them.
If group dhikr were bid'a, why would Allah send angels to seek it out, and why would He forgive everyone present?
Hadith 3: "I Am With Him When He Remembers Me"
أَنَا عِنْدَ ظَنِّ عَبْدِي بِي وَأَنَا مَعَهُ إِذَا ذَكَرَنِي فَإِنْ ذَكَرَنِي فِي نَفْسِهِ ذَكَرْتُهُ فِي نَفْسِي وَإِنْ ذَكَرَنِي فِي مَلَأٍ ذَكَرْتُهُ فِي مَلَأٍ خَيْرٍ مِنْهُمْ
“I am as My servant expects Me to be, and I am with him when he remembers Me. If he remembers Me within himself, I remember him within Myself. And if he remembers Me in a gathering, I remember him in a gathering better than theirs.”
This is a hadith qudsi — the words of Allah conveyed by the Prophet ﷺ. It explicitly distinguishes between two modes of dhikr:
- Individual: "If he remembers Me within himself" → Allah remembers him within Himself
- Collective: "If he remembers Me in a gathering (mala')" → Allah remembers him in a gathering better than theirs — i.e., among the angels
The hadith not only permits group dhikr but assigns it a higher reward than individual dhikr: being remembered by Allah among the heavenly assembly, rather than by Allah within Himself alone.
Hadith 4: Dhikr Is the Best of All Deeds
أَلَا أُنَبِّئُكُمْ بِخَيْرِ أَعْمَالِكُمْ وَأَزْكَاهَا عِنْدَ مَلِيكِكُمْ وَأَرْفَعِهَا فِي دَرَجَاتِكُمْ وَخَيْرٌ لَكُمْ مِنْ إِنْفَاقِ الذَّهَبِ وَالْوَرِقِ وَخَيْرٌ لَكُمْ مِنْ أَنْ تَلْقَوْا عَدُوَّكُمْ فَتَضْرِبُوا أَعْنَاقَهُمْ وَيَضْرِبُوا أَعْنَاقَكُمْ
“Shall I not tell you of the best of your deeds, the purest of them in the sight of your Sovereign, the most exalted of them in your ranks, better for you than spending gold and silver, and better for you than meeting your enemy and striking their necks and them striking yours? They said: 'Yes, O Messenger of Allah.' He said: 'The remembrance of Allah (dhikr Allah).'”
The Prophet ﷺ ranks dhikr above charity and jihad. When combined with the hadiths above that describe group dhikr as attracting angels and divine forgiveness, the status of collective remembrance becomes extraordinary.
Hadith 5: "The Gardens of Paradise"
إِذَا مَرَرْتُمْ بِرِيَاضِ الْجَنَّةِ فَارْتَعُوا قَالُوا وَمَا رِيَاضُ الْجَنَّةِ قَالَ حِلَقُ الذِّكْرِ
“When you pass by the gardens of Paradise, graze in them. They asked: 'What are the gardens of Paradise?' He said: 'The circles of dhikr (halaq al-dhikr).'”
The Prophet ﷺ describes dhikr circles — halaq al-dhikr — as the gardens of Paradise on earth. The word halaq (حلق) specifically means circles, rings, or groups sitting together. This is as explicit as it gets: the Prophet ﷺ himself used the term "circles of dhikr" and called them gardens of Paradise.
Hadith 6: Dhikr After Prayer Was Audible and Collective
كُنْتُ أَعْرِفُ انْقِضَاءَ صَلَاةِ رَسُولِ اللهِ ﷺ بِالتَّكْبِيرِ
“I used to know that the prayer of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ had ended by the takbir (Allahu Akbar).”
Ibn Abbas was a young boy at the time — and he could tell the prayer had ended because he heard the collective dhikr from outside the mosque. This means:
- Dhikr after prayer was done out loud — not silently
- It was done collectively — loud enough for a boy outside to hear it as a unified sound
- This was the standard practice (kana) — the Arabic indicates habitual, recurring action
Is Reciting Dhikr Out Loud Together Permissible?
This is the specific objection most people encounter: "Group dhikr where people recite together out loud is bid'a." The evidence directly refutes this.
The Prophet ﷺ Approved of Loud Collective Dhikr
The Ibn Abbas hadith above (Bukhari 841, Muslim 583) proves that audible, collective dhikr was the standard practice in the Prophet's ﷺ own mosque. But there is more:
إِنَّ لِلَّهِ مَلَائِكَةً سَيَّاحِينَ فِي الْأَرْضِ فُضُلًا عَنْ كُتَّابِ النَّاسِ فَإِذَا وَجَدُوا أَقْوَامًا يَذْكُرُونَ اللهَ تَنَادَوْا هَلُمُّوا إِلَى بُغْيَتِكُمْ
“Allah has traveling angels who are surplus to the recording angels. They roam the earth, and when they find groups of people remembering Allah, they call out to each other: 'Come to what you seek!' And they surround them with their wings.”
At the end of this hadith, Allah asks the angels: "What were My servants doing?" The angels reply: "They were glorifying You (yusabbihunaka), declaring Your greatness (yukabbirunaka), praising You (yahmadunak), and extolling You (yumajjidunaka)."
The angels could hear what the people were saying and report the specific words to Allah. This means the dhikr was audible — not silent. If the gathering had been doing silent, internal dhikr, the angels would not have been able to describe their specific words to Allah.
The Prophet ﷺ Corrected His Companions' Volume — Not Their Practice
يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ ارْبَعُوا عَلَى أَنْفُسِكُمْ فَإِنَّكُمْ لَا تَدْعُونَ أَصَمَّ وَلَا غَائِبًا إِنَّهُ مَعَكُمْ إِنَّهُ سَمِيعٌ قَرِيبٌ
“O people, be easy on yourselves. You are not calling upon one who is deaf or absent. He is with you. He is the All-Hearing, the Near.”
The context: the Companions were reciting takbir and tahlil loudly during a journey. The Prophet ﷺ told them to lower their voices — but he did not tell them to stop doing it collectively or to do it silently. He corrected the excessive volume, not the collective practice. This is a crucial distinction: if collective, audible dhikr were bid'a, the Prophet ﷺ would have prohibited it entirely, not merely adjusted the volume.
Allah Himself Distinguishes Individual from Collective Dhikr
وَإِنْ ذَكَرَنِي فِي مَلَأٍ ذَكَرْتُهُ فِي مَلَأٍ خَيْرٍ مِنْهُمْ
“If he remembers Me in a gathering, I remember him in a gathering better than theirs.”
In this hadith qudsi, Allah distinguishes between someone who remembers Him privately ("within himself") and someone who remembers Him in a gathering (fi mala'). The one who does it in a gathering gets a higher reward — Allah remembers him among the angels. For dhikr in a gathering to be identifiable as such, it must be audible. Silent, individual dhikr done while sitting near other people is not "dhikr in a gathering" — it is individual dhikr that happens to occur near others.
What the Scholars Say About Loud Dhikr
“In this hadith is evidence that dhikr after the prayer was done out loud (jahr). The scholars have differed on whether loud or silent dhikr is preferred. The correct position is that it varies by situation. If there is a benefit to loudness — such as teaching others, reminding the heedless, or strengthening one's focus — then loud is preferred. Otherwise, silent is preferred.”
Al-Nawawi does not say loud dhikr is forbidden. He says it is sometimes preferred and sometimes not, depending on the context. This is the mainstream scholarly position — not a blanket prohibition on audible dhikr.
“The hadith of Ibn Abbas indicates that raising the voice with dhikr after prayer was the practice in the time of the Prophet ﷺ. This was the preferred position of a group of scholars, and Ibn Hajar al-Haytami permitted it specifically in mosques when done after the prayer.”
How Loud Collective Dhikr Is Done Today
In traditional Muslim communities worldwide, collective dhikr takes many forms:
- After each obligatory prayer: The imam leads the congregation in subhanAllah (33 times), al-hamdulillah (33 times), Allahu Akbar (34 times) — done audibly together. This is practiced across all four madhabs.
- Dhikr circles (halaq al-dhikr): Groups sit together and recite la ilaha ill'Allah, salawat upon the Prophet ﷺ, and other adhkar. This is the practice the Prophet ﷺ called "the gardens of Paradise" (Tirmidhi 3510).
- The wird/litany: Sufi orders practice collective recitation of specific litanies (awrad) composed by their shaykhs — such as the Wird al-Latif of Imam al-Haddad or the Hizb al-Bahr of Abu al-Hasan al-Shadhili.
- Mawlid and devotional gatherings: Collective salawat, Quran recitation, and poetry in praise of the Prophet ﷺ.
- After funerals and during vigils: Collective recitation of Quran and dhikr for the deceased.
All of these are practiced across the Muslim world and have been for centuries.
The Companion Practice
During the Prophet's ﷺ Lifetime
The hadiths above establish that the Prophet ﷺ was aware of dhikr gatherings happening in Medina, praised them, and said angels sought them out. The Ibn Abbas hadith proves collective, audible dhikr after prayer was standard practice in the Prophet's mosque.
After the Prophet's ﷺ Death
“Abu Hurayra (رضي الله عنه) used to go to the marketplace and say: 'I see you here while the inheritance of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ is being distributed in the mosque!' The people would rush to the mosque and then return saying: 'We did not find any inheritance being distributed.' Abu Hurayra would say: 'What did you find?' They would say: 'We found people remembering Allah (doing dhikr).' He would say: 'That is the inheritance of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.'”
Abu Hurayra — one of the most prolific hadith narrators — called dhikr gatherings in the mosque "the inheritance of the Prophet ﷺ." He did not call them bid'a. The people in the marketplace could see the gatherings when they went to the mosque — meaning these were visible, audible, collective events.
What the Classical Scholars Say
“Know that dhikr is recommended for groups, based on the well-known hadiths. The evidence for this is overwhelming and well-established.”
Al-Nawawi — the most authoritative voice in the Shafi'i school — dedicates entire chapters of al-Adhkar to the merits of group dhikr, citing the hadiths above and others. He expresses no reservation whatsoever about collective remembrance.
“In this hadith is evidence for the merit of gatherings of dhikr, for sitting with the people of dhikr, for the merit of dhikr itself, and for the merit of gathering for it.”
“In the hadith is evidence for the merit of assemblies of dhikr, and that attending them is one of the means of attaining the forgiveness of Allah.”
“The hadiths on group dhikr are mutawatir (mass-transmitted). They prove that it is prescribed to gather for dhikr, and they refute whoever claims it is bid'a.”
Al-Shawkani — a scholar often cited by Salafi-leaning scholars themselves — declared the hadiths on group dhikr to be mutawatir (transmitted by so many chains that they are impossible to fabricate) and explicitly refutes those who call it bid'a.
Forms of Group Dhikr in the Tradition
The scholarly tradition recognizes several forms of collective remembrance:
1. Dhikr After the Obligatory Prayer
The Ibn Abbas hadith (Bukhari 841, Muslim 583) proves that audible, collective dhikr after prayer was practiced during the Prophet's lifetime. This remains the most common form today — subhanAllah, al-hamdulillah, Allahu Akbar recited aloud after each prayer.
2. Circles of Dhikr (Halaq al-Dhikr)
The Prophet ﷺ himself called these "the gardens of Paradise" (Tirmidhi 3510). These are gatherings where people sit together specifically for the purpose of remembering Allah — through tasbih, tahmid, tahlil, and other forms of remembrance.
3. Dhikr with Poetry and Devotional Singing
Hassan ibn Thabit recited poetry in the Prophet's mosque. The Companions sang devotional songs while building the mosque, and the Prophet ﷺ joined them (Sahih al-Bukhari, no. 428). Devotional gatherings that combine dhikr with poetry praising the Prophet ﷺ are well-attested.
4. Loud vs. Silent Dhikr
Both are established. The Quran recommends remembrance "within yourself, humbly and with fear" (7:205), which some scholars take as preference for silent dhikr. However, the hadiths explicitly describe audible group dhikr (Ibn Abbas heard it from outside the mosque), and the Prophet ﷺ praised gatherings where people were vocally glorifying Allah. The relied-upon position is that both are valid, and the appropriate mode depends on context and intention.
The Conditions for Proper Group Dhikr
SeekersGuidance and traditional scholars specify conditions for group dhikr to remain praiseworthy:
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The content must be established words of dhikr — subhanAllah, al-hamdulillah, Allahu Akbar, la ilaha ill'Allah, salawat upon the Prophet ﷺ, Quran recitation, or similar. Invented phrases falsely attributed to the Prophet ﷺ are not permitted.
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It should not disturb those praying, sleeping, or studying — excessive volume that prevents others from worship or rest is blameworthy.
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One must not treat a specific organized format as a binding prophetic sunnah — the act of group dhikr is praiseworthy, but claiming that a particular method (counting with pebbles to a specific number, standing in a specific formation, etc.) was prescribed by the Prophet ﷺ, when it was not, is a different matter.
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It should not replace obligatory worship — dhikr gatherings should not cause people to miss prayers or neglect family obligations.
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The gathering should maintain proper Islamic decorum — no free-mixing, no showing off, no affected spiritual states.
Responding to Common Objections
Common Claim
Group dhikr is bid'a because the Prophet ﷺ only did dhikr individually.
What Scholars Actually Say
The hadiths in Sahih al-Bukhari (no. 6408) and Sahih Muslim (no. 2700) explicitly describe groups of people sitting together doing dhikr, with the Prophet ﷺ praising this practice and describing extraordinary divine rewards for it. In the hadith qudsi (Bukhari 7405, Muslim 2675), Allah Himself distinguishes between individual and group dhikr — and assigns group dhikr a higher reward: being remembered by Allah among the angels. Saying the Prophet ﷺ "only did dhikr individually" requires ignoring the two most authenticated books in Sunni Islam.
Common Claim
Abdullah ibn Mas'ud prohibited group dhikr, so it must be forbidden.
What Scholars Actually Say
Even if the narration about Ibn Mas'ud is accepted at face value (its chain has been questioned by hadith scholars), a foundational principle of usul al-fiqh applies: a Companion's personal action cannot override explicit Prophetic hadiths in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim. The Prophet ﷺ described group dhikr gatherings as surrounded by angels and granted divine forgiveness — this evidence is in the highest tier of authentication. A Companion's objection to one specific group does not abrogate the Prophet's universal praise. For a detailed analysis, see our FAQ on the Ibn Mas'ud narration.
Common Claim
Loud dhikr is forbidden — the Quran says 'remember your Lord within yourself.'
What Scholars Actually Say
The verse (7:205) recommends remembrance "within yourself, humbly and with fear, and without raising the voice." But this is about the general attitude of humility during dhikr — not a prohibition on audible group dhikr. The Prophet ﷺ himself participated in audible dhikr: Ibn Abbas could hear the collective dhikr from outside the mosque (Bukhari 841, Muslim 583). The Prophet ﷺ praised gatherings where angels heard people "glorifying, praising, and declaring the greatness of Allah" (Bukhari 6408) — these were clearly audible. The scholars reconcile the verse and the hadiths: silent dhikr is superior in some contexts, audible dhikr in others. Neither is prohibited.
Common Claim
The Prophet ﷺ said 'the best dhikr is the hidden one' — so public group dhikr is wrong.
What Scholars Actually Say
This hadith (narrated in Musnad Ahmad) speaks to the virtue of sincerity — hidden worship is protected from showing off. But this applies equally to prayer, charity, and fasting — yet no one says congregational prayer is wrong because "hidden prayer is better." The Prophet ﷺ himself praised public group dhikr in the hadiths above. The two are reconciled the same way we reconcile "hidden charity is best" with the fact that zakat is paid publicly and some sadaqa is given openly to encourage others. The "best" mode depends on the person's spiritual state and the context.
The Significance of This Evidence
The combined evidence is not marginal — it is among the strongest bodies of evidence on any single topic in hadith literature:
- Sahih al-Bukhari — hadiths 841, 6408, 7405
- Sahih Muslim — hadiths 583, 2675, 2689, 2700
- Sunan al-Tirmidhi — hadiths 3377, 3510
- A hadith qudsi — the words of Allah Himself (Bukhari 7405, Muslim 2675)
These are not isolated, weak narrations. They are among the most rigorously authenticated hadiths in existence, from multiple narrators, in multiple collections, transmitted through independent chains. Al-Shawkani declared them mutawatir — the highest level of authentication, reserved for narrations transmitted by so many independent chains that fabrication is impossible.
Any position that contradicts this body of evidence needs extraordinarily strong counter-evidence. The Ibn Mas'ud narration — a single report from a secondary source with a questioned chain — does not meet this threshold.
For the full evidence with the hadra discussion and Ibn Mas'ud analysis, see our detailed topic page on Dhikr.
Is Collective Dhikr Permissible?
SeekersGuidance
Scholarly explanation with full hadith evidence for collective remembrance of Allah.
Etiquettes of Gatherings of Remembrance
SeekersGuidance
The proper etiquettes and conditions for both individual and group remembrance.
Did Ibn Mas'ud Prohibit Group Dhikr?
SeekersGuidance
SeekersGuidance's detailed analysis of the Ibn Mas'ud narration and its proper context.