Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah.
The attribute of hearing is established for Allah, Glorified and Exalted be He, in the Qur’an and Sunnah, and the scholars have agreed that it is an attribute of Allah.
Allah’s hearing includes two meanings:
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah, may Allah have mercy on him, explained that Allah hears all the speech of His servants and hears their supplications with the hearing of response, while He hears everything they say with the hearing of knowledge and complete awareness. Nothing of their voices is hidden from Him.
Among the evidence for the vastness of Allah’s hearing and His encompassing all the voices of His servants is His saying:
“It is the same whether any of you conceals his speech or declares it, whether he hides by night or goes forth openly by day.” [Al-Ra'd 13:10]
Allah also says:
“My Lord knows every word spoken in the heavens and the earth, and He is the All-Hearing, the All-Knowing.” [Al-Anbiya 21:4]
Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, said:
“Praise be to Allah whose hearing encompasses all voices.”
This was said regarding the woman who came to complain to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him. Allah then revealed:
“Allah has certainly heard the statement of the woman who argued with you concerning her husband and complained to Allah, and Allah hears your dialogue.” [Al-Mujadilah 58:1]
This demonstrates that Allah hears all voices and encompasses them, and nothing of them is hidden from Him.
The other meaning is hearing in the sense of responding and accepting, and this meaning appears in numerous texts.
Allah says concerning Ibrahim and Ismail, peace be upon them:
“Our Lord, accept from us. Indeed, You are the All-Hearing, the All-Knowing.” [Al-Baqarah 2:127]
Allah also says concerning the wife of Imran:
“My Lord, indeed I have vowed to You what is in my womb, devoted to Your service, so accept it from me. Indeed, You are the All-Hearing, the All-Knowing.” [Aal Imran 3:35]
And He says:
“So his Lord responded to him and turned away their plan from him. Indeed, He is the All-Hearing, the All-Knowing.” [Yusuf 12:34]
In the hadith of Abu Musa al-Ash'ari, may Allah be pleased with him, the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, taught his Companions during prayer:
“When he says, ‘Allah hears whoever praises Him,’ then say: ‘O Allah, our Lord, to You belongs all praise.’ Allah will hear you.”
Imam al-Nawawi, may Allah have mercy on him, explained that “Allah hears whoever praises Him” means that Allah responds to the supplication of the one who praises Him, and “Allah will hear you” means that He will respond to your supplication.
The intended meaning of hearing in the expression under discussion is hearing in the sense of responding and answering, rather than merely hearing the sound.
Thus, when someone says to a person who has supplicated for him:
“May my Lord hear you,”
the usual intended meaning is:
“We ask Allah to answer your supplication and grant what you have asked for.”
As for the basic meaning, Allah certainly hears the supplications of His servants with complete perception and awareness. However, what is intended here is that He hears the supplication with the hearing of response and acceptance.
Accordingly, there is no objection to saying “May my Lord hear you” or “May our Lord hear you” when the intention is to ask Allah to answer the supplicant’s prayer and grant what he has asked for.
The Sunnah also contains seeking refuge from a supplication that is not “heard.” Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, reported that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, used to say:
“O Allah, I seek refuge in You from four things: beneficial knowledge, a heart that does not humble itself, a soul that is never satisfied, and a supplication that is not heard.”
A narration in Muslim explains this as:
“A supplication that is not answered.”
This indicates that “not heard” may be used with the meaning of “not answered.”
It is permissible to say to someone who has supplicated for another person:
“May my Lord hear you” or “May our Lord hear you,”
because the intended meaning is:
“We ask Allah to answer your supplication and grant what you have asked for.”
This meaning has a basis in the Islamic texts, and there is no objection to using the expression with this intention.
And Allah knows best.