Darood e Taj
About the Prayer
Darood e Taj — the Prayer of the Crown — is a celebrated salawat upon the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. It was composed by Shaykh Abu Bakr bin Salim, a scholar and gnostic of the Ba Alawi lineage in Tarim, Hadhramaut (present-day Yemen). Over five centuries it travelled from a single valley in southern Arabia to mosques and homes across more than fifty countries.
- Composer
- Shaykh Abu Bakr bin Salim
- Born
- 13 Jumada al-Thani 919 AH (16 Aug 1513 CE)
- Lineage
- Ba Alawi (Hadhramaut, Yemen)
- Era
- 16th century
- Also known as
- Salat al-Taj, Durood Taj
- Text variants
- Original + expanded versions
Timeline
1513 CE
A scholar is born in Hadhramaut
Abu Bakr bin Salim is born into the Ba Alawi line, a scholarly dynasty descended from the Prophet ﷺ known for scholarship, spirituality and missionary travel across the Indian Ocean world.
16th century
Composition and teaching
Known by the honorific Fakhr al-Wujud ("Pride of Existence"), he composes the prayer later called Salat al-Taj and teaches it to students as part of their daily litanies.
17th century
Spread through Sufi networks
Students and traders carry the text along pilgrimage and trade routes. It reaches North Africa through Shadhili circles and South Asia through Qadiri and Chishti communities, where an expanded recension takes root.
Today
A global daily practice
Darood e Taj is recited daily on every continent. Its Arabic wording has remained remarkably stable across centuries — a sign of careful transmission from teacher to student.
This site presents both textual variants with honest sourcing notes. As with any sacred text, readers are encouraged to learn pronunciation from a qualified teacher where possible.