Kalima 6 is the last of the six Kalimas in Islamic teachings. It is commonly known as Kalima Radd-al-Kufr (كَلِمَاتْ رَدّْ اَلْكُفْرْ). Radd means “a word of Rejection,” whereas Kufr means “Disbelief. " Hence, this Kalima is about rejecting disbelief.
By dictionary, Kufr means “hide” or “Conceal.” In Islamic ideology, Kafir or Kufr are used for people who “conceal the truth” of the Oneness of Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى. The theme of Sixth Kalima or Kalima Radd-al-Kufr is about the affirmation and request by the reciter before Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى to save them from disbelief. Kufr or disbelief can be of different types, from which the reciter wants protection in the 6th Kalima.
The types of Kufr can be:
Verbal Expression of Disbelief – (Kufr bil-qaul)
Expression of Disbelief by action – (Kufr bil-fa’el)
Disbelief by faith – (Kufr bil-aiteqad)
Further, an act of Disbelief can either be Major or Minor, based on the extent of the disbelief. The reciter of the sixth Kalimah seeks protection from all kinds of disbelief.
Radd Kufr (Word of Rejection of Disbelief)
Allāhumma innī aʿūḏu bika min an usrika bika sayʾaw-wwa-anā aʿlamu bihi wa-staġfiruka limā lā aʿlamu bihi tubtu ʿanhu wa tabarra'tu mina-l-kufri wa-s-sirki wa-l-kiḏhbi wa-l-ġībati wa-l-bidʿati wa-nnamīmati wa-l-fawāḥisi wa-l-buhtāni wa-l-maʿāṣī kullihā wa aslamtu wa aqūlu lā ilāha illā-llāhu Muḥammadu-r-rasūlu llāh
O Allah! I seek protection in You from that I should not join any partner with You and I have knowledge of it. I seek Your forgiveness from that which I do not know. I repent from it (ignorance) and I reject disbelief and joining partners with You and of falsehood and slandering and innovation in religion and tell-tales and evil deeds and the blame and the disobedience, all of them. I submit to Your will and I believe and I declare: There is none worthy of worship except Allah and Muhammad [PBUH] is His Messenger
Allāhumma innī aʿūḏu bika min an usrika bika sayʾaw-wwa-anā aʿlamu bihi wa-staġfiruka limā lā aʿlamu bihi tubtu ʿanhu wa tabarra'tu mina-l-kufri wa-s-sirki wa-l-kiḏhbi wa-l-ġībati wa-l-bidʿati wa-nnamīmati wa-l-fawāḥisi wa-l-buhtāni wa-l-maʿāṣī kullihā wa aslamtu wa aqūlu lā ilāha illā-llāhu Muḥammadu-r-rasūlu llāh
O Allah! I seek protection in You from that I should not join any partner with You and I have knowledge of it. I seek Your forgiveness from that which I do not know. I repent from it (ignorance) and I reject disbelief and joining partners with You and of falsehood and slandering and innovation in religion and tell-tales and evil deeds and the blame and the disobedience, all of them. I submit to Your will and I believe and I declare: There is none worthy of worship except Allah and Muhammad [PBUH] is His Messenger
In a broader sense, all 6 Kalimas have a basic theme in common: the acknowledgment, confirmation, and bearing witness on the Oneness of Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى and Prophet-Hood of Muhammad ﷺ. 6th Kalimah, the last one of the Kalimas, more explicitly reminds us of the same theme, with even more details. It is a request by the reciter, seeking the refuge of Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى from committing any such act that negates the essential element of Islamic ideology, monotheism.
Going forward, the reciter also seeks refuge from Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى from all other wrongful acts that are against the basic teachings of Islam, such as backbiting, slandering, falsehood, and above all, idolatry. By reciting this Kalima, we seek the protection of Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى from all kinds of disbelief, like disbelief due to denial, rejection, arrogance, hypocrisy, and disbelief due to doubts.
The theme of the sixth Kalimah can be summarized as follows:
Seek protection of Allah from committing disbelief (Kufr)
Seek protection of Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى from any act of shirk due to ignorance
Take refuge of Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى against any possibility of committing falsehood, backbiting, idolatry, slandering and lewdness
Confirmation of the reciter having embraced Islam
Confirmation of the reciter, having complete faith in the Oneness of Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى and that none other is worth our worship
Confirmation of the reciter that Muhammad ﷺ is the Messenger
The words of these Kalimas may not be available in the Quran and Hadith in the same sequence and phrases, but we can find many verses and Hadiths that convey the same message as phrased in these Kalimahs.
The Kalimas, which are mostly recited in Pakistan and India, are the basic knowledge imparted to the Muslims right from the very beginning. Mostly these are taught from the early years of Schooling. But these are recited by Muslims of South Asian Countries throughout their life. These are very effective phrases for keeping a person on the right path, as these are based on the essential ideologies of Islam.
While every Kalima is important, the sixth Kalima holds a very special status, as it deals with the rejection of disbelief of all types. Hence, reciting it regularly may bring huge benefits.
The 6th Kalima can be recited wherever one wants to. It can be part of daily supplications, recited at home, Masjid, and workplace. Remember, supplications, duas, and worship are not restricted to any particular place except for Hajj and Umrah, which have to be performed at Masjid Al-Haram in Mecca. Muslims can perform all prayers and supplications, irrespective of any particular place. The same applies to the sixth Kalima.
As explained above, worship, supplication, dua, and regular prayers can be offered anywhere. Similarly, all these religious activities are also free of any time restrictions. Specifically, the Kalimahs, including the sixth Kalimah, can be recited irrespective of any fixed period. You can recite it during the day or night at your convenience. However, it is considered better to recite this Kalimah at night, before sleeping, as it needs a bit of concentration, being a very important subject matter. Otherwise, it can be recited whenever you have time.
As there is no specific time or place for the recitation of the sixth Kalimah, the same is true regarding the number of times it has to be recited. The sixth Kalima is relatively lengthy compared to all the other five Kalimahs, so it might be difficult to memorize it easily. But we should try to memorize it for instant recitation, as and when required. Try reciting it at least for a couple of times daily.
The main theme of this Kalimah is Oneness of Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى. The reciter seeks the protection of Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى from committing any such action that negates this concept. Additionally, he seeks protection from other wrongful acts, such as falsehood and backbiting.
If we deeply analyze the message of this Kalimah, we may realize that it is aimed at making a person perfect Muslim. All the requests in this Kalimah pertain to the personal life of a Muslim. Seeking refuge from Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى from disbelief (Kufr) forms the baseline of being a believer or a true Muslim. That’s something very personal for a person. Additionally, seeking protection against wrongful deeds has an impact on both his personal life and on the community as a whole. Hence, the impact of this Kalimah is enormous. It starts with a person's personal life and ends with the formation of a complete Muslim Society.
Hence, we should try to implement the message of this Kalimah in our personal lives as the first thing and then promote it in society so that a perfect Muslim culture can evolve.
As mentioned above, reciting Kalima Radd-al-Kufr saves us from committing all types of disbelief. Different verses of the Quran also substantiate this. 34th Verse of Surah Al-Baqarah points towards disbelief due to arrogance.
Translation - And ˹remember˺ when We said to the angels, “Prostrate before Adam,”1 so they all did—but not Iblîs,2 who refused and acted arrogantly,3 becoming unfaithful.
146th verse of Surah Al-Baqarah speaks about the disbelief due to denial and rejection and their concealment of the truth, which makes them “Kafir”.
Translation - Those We have given the Scripture recognize this ˹Prophet˺ as they recognize their own children. Yet a group of them hides the truth knowingly.
Similarly, the 14th verse of Surah An-Naml also speaks about the denial and arrogance of the disbelievers.
Translation - And, although their hearts were convinced the signs were true, they still denied them wrongfully and arrogantly. See then what was the end of the corruptors!
Hadith number 3067 of Jami At-Tirmidhi is about the “Shirk.”
Translation - "When (the following) was revealed: It is those who believe and confuse not their belief with Zulm (wrong) (6:82) - That bothered some Muslims, so they said: 'O Messenger of Allah! Which of us has not wronged himself?' He said: 'It is not that, it is only Shirk, have you not heard what Luqman said to his son: O my son! Do not commit Shirk with Allah. Verily Shirk is a tremendous Zulm (wrong) (31:13).'"
So, the benefits of reading the sixth Kalima (Kalima Radd-al-Kufr) are well-established from the Quran and Hadith. Keep reciting this Kalima and make it a habit to help strengthen your faith and keep you on the righteous way of life.