{I respond to the invocation of the supplicant when he calls upon Me. So let them respond to Me [by obedience] and believe in Me that they may be [rightly] guided.} (Quran 2:186)
Du’aa is part and parcel of every Muslim’s life. Not only does it please our Lord and save us from arrogance, its goodness extends to our well-being.
{And your Lord said:
‘Invoke Me I will respond to your (invocation).
Verily, those who scorn My worship [i.e. do not invoke Me, and do not believe in My Oneness], they will surely enter Hell in humiliation!’} (40:60)
Du’aa is part and parcel of every Muslim’s life. Not only does it please our Lord and save us from arrogance, its goodness extends to our well-being; as Allah responds to our wishes and concerns.
The Power of Supplication (Du’aa)
They went through tremendous hardships and trials in their da’wah(calling) to the worship of Allah; and were met with atrocities and falsified accusations. In those moments, they would call to Allah for guidance and strength.The Prophets (peace be upon them all) were pioneers in comprehending the significance and power of du’aa in a believer’s life.
Prophet Moses (peace be upon him) invoked Allah to help him in his confrontation with the Pharaoh of Egypt who was known for his vengeance. He did not back off but rather turned to Allah in a du’aa for strength and direction:
{O my Lord! Open for me my chest (grant me self-confidence, contentment, and boldness). And ease my task for me; and make loose the knot (the defect) from my tongue, (remove the incorrectness of my speech) that they understand my speech.} (20:25-8)
Prophet Ayyub (peace be upon him) was tried with numerous hardships in his offspring, health and wealth. However, instead of complaining he turned to Allah:
{Verily distress has seized me and You are the Most Merciful of all those who show mercy.} (21:83)
Prophet Sulaiman (peace be upon him) was aware that Allah alone was the Sustainer and Provider so he supplicated Allah for a kingdom that would never be surpassed; humbly asking Him for forgiveness:
{He said, “My Lord! Forgive me, and bestow upon me a kingdom such as shall not belong to any other after me. Verily, You are the Bestower.}(38:35)
Supplications in Ease & Hardship
If this life was only ease, there would not be any yearning for an afterlife or any motivation to work for it. Allah is all merciful and does not make it all hardship too. A believer is tested with ease andhardship throughout his life; and gratefully praises his Lord at times of ease and humbly asks for patience through hardship.
Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said in his beautiful hadith:
“Indeed amazing are the affairs of a believer! They are all for his benefit. If he is granted ease of living he is thankful; and this is best for him. And if he is afflicted with a hardship, he perseveres; and this is best for him." (Muslim)
Ameen, May You Have Likewise
Supplicating not only for oneself but for others as well is reaching yet a higher level of ihsan (excellence) in manners. Others’ well-being and happiness becomes one’s concern too.
The reward for this is surpassing. Not only is it rewarding to one’s soul, moreover Allah appoints an Angel that will pray for you to have exactly the same that you asked for the person/people in concern.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said:
“The similitude of believers in regard to mutual love, affection, and fellow-feeling is that of one body; when any limb of it aches, the whole body aches, because of sleeplessness and fever.” (Muslim)
The figure of speech in this hadith is amazing. Muslims are akin to “one” person. If any part of his/her body aches the whole body aches because of the pain. That is how we should be as Muslims, if one of us is in distress then the whole Ummahshould be in distress and the latter should find means to alleviate the former.
Ethics of Making Du’aa
1. Supplication should start with, “Bismillah…In the name of Allah, Praise is to Allah, and Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon the Messenger of Allah and should end with (Peace and Blessing be upon the Messenger of Allah).”
2. Supplication should be performed secretly and with a present (sincere) heart. Allah said: {Invoke your Rabb (Cherisher and Sustainer) with humility and in secret, He likes not the aggressors.} (7:55)
3. Supplicate Allah with humility and express your need of Him. He said: {Verily, they used to hasten on to do good deeds, and they used to call on Us with hope and fear, and used to humble themselves before us.} (21:90)
4. Insist to Allah in your supplication by repeating it many times.
5. Invoke Allah by His Names and Attributes. He said: {And (all) the Most Beautiful Names belong to Allah, so call on Him by them.} (7:180)
6. Supplicate Allah by mentioning the righteous deeds you have done. Narrated Abdullah ibn Umar, that he heard Allah’s Messenger, saying:
“Three men, amongst those who became before you set out until night came and they reached a cave, so they entered it. A rock slithered down from a mountain and blocked the entrance of the cave. They said:
“Nothing will save you from this except that you supplicate to Allah by mentioning the righteous deeds you have done, etc.” (Al-Bukhari)
7. Admit your sins during your supplication. Allah said: {Dha-n-Nun (Jonah), when he went off in anger, and imagined that We shall not punish him. But he cried through the darkness (saying): La ilaha illa Anta (none has the right to be worshiped but You) Glorified be You, Truly, I have been of the wrongdoers.} (21:87)
8. Repeat each sentence of your supplication three times. From the longhadith narrated by Ibn Mas’ud, and when the Prophet finished his Salat, he raised his voice and supplicated on them and when he supplicated, he supplicated three times....”
9. Face the Qiblah (Makkah) during your supplication. Narrated Abdullah ibn Zaid:
“Allah’s Messenger went out to his praying place to offer the Salat of Istisqa(rain) He invoked Allah for rain and then faced the Qiblah and turned his upper garment inside out.” (Al-Bukhari)
10. Raise your hands while supplicating Allah as in the hadith of Abu Musa: when the Prophet had finished from the battle of Hunain, he said:
“The Prophet asked for water, performed ablution and then raised his hands saying 'O Allah forgive Ubaid Abi Amir.” (Al-Bukhari)
11. Be in the state of purity during your supplication. (See the previoushadith)
12. When making supplication for others, start with yourself first then include others. Allah said about Noah: {My Rabb (Cherisher and Sustainer) forgive me and my parents and him who enters my home as a believer, and all the believing men and women..} (71:28)
13. Do not be aggressive when you are supplicating Allah, such as asking Him to make you a prophet and you know there will not be a prophet after Muhammad (peace be upon him) or make you live forever and you know everyone will die.
14. Remember to include your parents in your supplication (if they are Muslims only or they died on Islam, but if they are alive and they are nonbelievers, you cannot supplicate Allah to have mercy on them or forgive their sins, you are only allowed to ask Allah to guide them to the right path “Islam”).
15. Be patient. Do not expect an immediate response from Allah although this could happen. But if it does not, then you should be patient and continue supplicating Allah until you see the results. Narrated Abu Hurairah: Allah’s Messenger said:
“The invocation of anyone of you is responded to by Allah if he does not show impatience by saying; 'I invoked Allah but my request has not been granted.’”(Al-Bukhari)
What if My Du’aa is Still Not Being Answered?
Prophet Muhammad said:
“There is no Muslim who calls upon Allah with words in which there is no sin or severing of family ties but Allah will give him one of three things: either He will answer his prayer soon, or He will store it up for him in the Hereafter, or He will remove something bad from him that is equivalent to what he is asking for.”
They said:
“Then we should make a great amount of du’aa.”
He said: “Allah is greater.” (At-Tirmidhi)
Words of Wisdom
It was said to Ibrahim ibn Adham: “Why is it that we supplicate and receive no response?”
He said:
“Because you know Allah but you do not obey Him, and you know the Messenger but you do not follow his Sunnah, and you know the Quran but you do not act in accordance with it, and you eat from the blessings of Allah but you do not give thanks for them, and you know Paradise but you do not seek it, and you know Hell but you do not flee from it, and you know the shaytan but you do not fight him rather you agree with him, and you know death but you do not prepare for it, and you have buried the dead but you do not learn a lesson from that, and you ignore your own faults and are preoccupied with other people’s faults.” -onislam.net
‘Invoke Me I will respond to your (invocation).
Verily, those who scorn My worship [i.e. do not invoke Me, and do not believe in My Oneness], they will surely enter Hell in humiliation!’} (40:60)
Du’aa is part and parcel of every Muslim’s life. Not only does it please our Lord and save us from arrogance, its goodness extends to our well-being; as Allah responds to our wishes and concerns.
The Power of Supplication (Du’aa)
They went through tremendous hardships and trials in their da’wah(calling) to the worship of Allah; and were met with atrocities and falsified accusations. In those moments, they would call to Allah for guidance and strength.The Prophets (peace be upon them all) were pioneers in comprehending the significance and power of du’aa in a believer’s life.
Prophet Moses (peace be upon him) invoked Allah to help him in his confrontation with the Pharaoh of Egypt who was known for his vengeance. He did not back off but rather turned to Allah in a du’aa for strength and direction:
{O my Lord! Open for me my chest (grant me self-confidence, contentment, and boldness). And ease my task for me; and make loose the knot (the defect) from my tongue, (remove the incorrectness of my speech) that they understand my speech.} (20:25-8)
Prophet Ayyub (peace be upon him) was tried with numerous hardships in his offspring, health and wealth. However, instead of complaining he turned to Allah:
{Verily distress has seized me and You are the Most Merciful of all those who show mercy.} (21:83)
Prophet Sulaiman (peace be upon him) was aware that Allah alone was the Sustainer and Provider so he supplicated Allah for a kingdom that would never be surpassed; humbly asking Him for forgiveness:
{He said, “My Lord! Forgive me, and bestow upon me a kingdom such as shall not belong to any other after me. Verily, You are the Bestower.}(38:35)
Supplications in Ease & Hardship
| A believer is tested with ease and hardship throughout his life... |
Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said in his beautiful hadith:
“Indeed amazing are the affairs of a believer! They are all for his benefit. If he is granted ease of living he is thankful; and this is best for him. And if he is afflicted with a hardship, he perseveres; and this is best for him." (Muslim)
Ameen, May You Have Likewise
 |
The reward for this is surpassing. Not only is it rewarding to one’s soul, moreover Allah appoints an Angel that will pray for you to have exactly the same that you asked for the person/people in concern.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said:
“The similitude of believers in regard to mutual love, affection, and fellow-feeling is that of one body; when any limb of it aches, the whole body aches, because of sleeplessness and fever.” (Muslim)
The figure of speech in this hadith is amazing. Muslims are akin to “one” person. If any part of his/her body aches the whole body aches because of the pain. That is how we should be as Muslims, if one of us is in distress then the whole Ummahshould be in distress and the latter should find means to alleviate the former.
Ethics of Making Du’aa
1. Supplication should start with, “Bismillah…In the name of Allah, Praise is to Allah, and Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon the Messenger of Allah and should end with (Peace and Blessing be upon the Messenger of Allah).”
2. Supplication should be performed secretly and with a present (sincere) heart. Allah said: {Invoke your Rabb (Cherisher and Sustainer) with humility and in secret, He likes not the aggressors.} (7:55)
3. Supplicate Allah with humility and express your need of Him. He said: {Verily, they used to hasten on to do good deeds, and they used to call on Us with hope and fear, and used to humble themselves before us.} (21:90)
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5. Invoke Allah by His Names and Attributes. He said: {And (all) the Most Beautiful Names belong to Allah, so call on Him by them.} (7:180)
6. Supplicate Allah by mentioning the righteous deeds you have done. Narrated Abdullah ibn Umar, that he heard Allah’s Messenger, saying:
“Three men, amongst those who became before you set out until night came and they reached a cave, so they entered it. A rock slithered down from a mountain and blocked the entrance of the cave. They said:
“Nothing will save you from this except that you supplicate to Allah by mentioning the righteous deeds you have done, etc.” (Al-Bukhari)
7. Admit your sins during your supplication. Allah said: {Dha-n-Nun (Jonah), when he went off in anger, and imagined that We shall not punish him. But he cried through the darkness (saying): La ilaha illa Anta (none has the right to be worshiped but You) Glorified be You, Truly, I have been of the wrongdoers.} (21:87)
8. Repeat each sentence of your supplication three times. From the longhadith narrated by Ibn Mas’ud, and when the Prophet finished his Salat, he raised his voice and supplicated on them and when he supplicated, he supplicated three times....”
9. Face the Qiblah (Makkah) during your supplication. Narrated Abdullah ibn Zaid:
“Allah’s Messenger went out to his praying place to offer the Salat of Istisqa(rain) He invoked Allah for rain and then faced the Qiblah and turned his upper garment inside out.” (Al-Bukhari)
10. Raise your hands while supplicating Allah as in the hadith of Abu Musa: when the Prophet had finished from the battle of Hunain, he said:
“The Prophet asked for water, performed ablution and then raised his hands saying 'O Allah forgive Ubaid Abi Amir.” (Al-Bukhari)
11. Be in the state of purity during your supplication. (See the previoushadith)
12. When making supplication for others, start with yourself first then include others. Allah said about Noah: {My Rabb (Cherisher and Sustainer) forgive me and my parents and him who enters my home as a believer, and all the believing men and women..} (71:28)
13. Do not be aggressive when you are supplicating Allah, such as asking Him to make you a prophet and you know there will not be a prophet after Muhammad (peace be upon him) or make you live forever and you know everyone will die.
14. Remember to include your parents in your supplication (if they are Muslims only or they died on Islam, but if they are alive and they are nonbelievers, you cannot supplicate Allah to have mercy on them or forgive their sins, you are only allowed to ask Allah to guide them to the right path “Islam”).
15. Be patient. Do not expect an immediate response from Allah although this could happen. But if it does not, then you should be patient and continue supplicating Allah until you see the results. Narrated Abu Hurairah: Allah’s Messenger said:
“The invocation of anyone of you is responded to by Allah if he does not show impatience by saying; 'I invoked Allah but my request has not been granted.’”(Al-Bukhari)
What if My Du’aa is Still Not Being Answered?
 |
“There is no Muslim who calls upon Allah with words in which there is no sin or severing of family ties but Allah will give him one of three things: either He will answer his prayer soon, or He will store it up for him in the Hereafter, or He will remove something bad from him that is equivalent to what he is asking for.”
They said:
“Then we should make a great amount of du’aa.”
He said: “Allah is greater.” (At-Tirmidhi)
Words of Wisdom
It was said to Ibrahim ibn Adham: “Why is it that we supplicate and receive no response?”
He said:
“Because you know Allah but you do not obey Him, and you know the Messenger but you do not follow his Sunnah, and you know the Quran but you do not act in accordance with it, and you eat from the blessings of Allah but you do not give thanks for them, and you know Paradise but you do not seek it, and you know Hell but you do not flee from it, and you know the shaytan but you do not fight him rather you agree with him, and you know death but you do not prepare for it, and you have buried the dead but you do not learn a lesson from that, and you ignore your own faults and are preoccupied with other people’s faults.” -onislam.net
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