Whenever the Messenger of Allah ﷺ mounted his camel to set out on a journey, he would say "Allah is greatest" three times, then say, "Glory be to Him who has subjected this to us, for we could never have subdued it ourselves. And to our Lord we shall surely return" [Zukhruf 43:13–14]."Allah, we ask You on this journey of ours for righteousness and mindfulness of You, and for deeds that please You. Allah, make this journey easy for us and fold up its distance before us. Allah, You are the Companion on the journey and the Guardian of the family left behind. Allah, I seek refuge in You from the hardship of travel, from a sight that brings sorrow, and from an evil return affecting my wealth and my family."And when he returned, he would say these same words, adding to them, "We return, we repent, we worship, and we praise our Lord."
أن رسول الله ﷺ كان إذا استوى على بعيره خارجا إلى سفر، كبر ثلاثا، ثم قال: {سبحان الذي سخر لنا هذا وما كنا له مقرنين وإنا إلى ربنا لمنقلبون}، اللهم إنا نسألك في سفرنا هذا البر والتقوى ومن العمل ما ترضى، اللهم هون علينا سفرنا هذا، واطو عنا بعده، اللهم أنت الصاحب في السفر والخليفة في الأهل، اللهم إني أعوذ بك من وعثاء السفر وكآبة المنظر وسوء المنقلب في المال والأهل. وإذا رجع قالهن، وزاد فيهن: آيبون تائبون عابدون لربنا حامدون.
This was narrated by Muslim in the Hajj chapter (1342), from Harun bin Abdullah, who said, Hajjaj bin Muhammad narrated to us, who said, Ibn Jurayj said, Abu Zubayr informed me that Ali the Azdi informed him that Ibn Umar informed him, and he mentioned the hadith.As for His saying "muqrinin" [Zukhruf 43:13], it means "able," that is, we would not have been able to master it and put it to use had Allah not subjected it to us.