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Allah says in Holy Qur'an
“say (to the Rejecters): “What does my Lord care for you if you worship Him not!” Al Furqan 77 On the authority of Anas ra who said I heard the Messenger of Allah swt saying, “Allah I the Almighty has said: O son of Adam, so long as you call upon Me and ask of Me, I shall forgive you for what you have done, and I shall not mind. O son of Adam, were your sins to reach the clouds of the sky and were you then to ask forgiveness of Me, I would forgive you. O son of Adam, were you to come to Me with sins nearly as great as the earth and were you then to face Me, ascribing no partner to Me, I would bring you forgiveness as great as it.” DU’A (SUPPLICATION) Praise be to Allah I, we thank Him, seek His help and His forgiveness. We seek refuge in Allah Ifrom the evils of ourselves and that of our bad deeds. He whom Allah Iguides, is truly guided, and he whom Allah I leaves astray, none can guide him. I bear witness that there is no god but Allah I, and I bear witness that Muhammad saw is His Messenger. When one is in suffering and catastrophe befalls him, when one is entangled and despondent and ultimately frustrated, then one unconsciously seeks the One Whose mercy is all-embracing. He is the One Who is More Merciful than a mother to her child. To Whom we seek refuge. It is He Who hears the weeping of the oppressed and accepts those who repent to Him. He showers His bounties and His blessing upon them. Thus, a believer should earnestly invoke and submit himself to Allah Ias stated in the following ayah:
“He, Who responds to the cry of the distressed when he calls to Him and (Who) removes the distress, and (Who) has made you the successors (of the formers) in the earth? Is there any Other god besides Allah? You reflect but very little.” An Naml 62 He should also humbly supplicate to Allah Iwith devout words and in determination. The soul then enjoys the light of its Lord and a believer feels ease and safety that permeates his veins and throughout his body. He feels close to Allah the Ever-Lasting Power. Thus, du’a constitutes worship as the Prophet �has expressed. That is because du’a means servility, humbleness, and is an expression of a need for the One in Whose Hand is the authority over everything. It is also a response to the Order of Allah Ithe Almighty as He says:
“And your Lord has said: “Call to Me, I shall answer your prayer.” Verily those who are too proud to worship Me, will soon enter Hell despised and disgraced.” Ghafir 60 By making du’a, success becomes a reality, wishes and aims are achieved. That is because, when the servant truly believes that Allah Iis the only One Who is the Most Deserving to be asked and sought, he will shun all sources of help other than Allah I. He will approach the Door of his Lord, seek His protection, entreat Him for His Mercy of treasures and His generosity. This is the essence of worship and the secret of obedience. On the authority of Nu’man Ibn Bashir ra who said that the Prophet saw said, “Du’a is worship.” Then he recited the saying of Allah Ithe Almighty. And Allah Isays: “Call on Me, I will answer your (prayer).” Therefore, du’a is a form of worship, in fact it is one of the most honorable and glorious forms of worship. It is also amongst the most honorable ways of repose. The Prophet saw gave glad tidings to a man who was inspired with du’a so that he would be among those who would receive the Mercy of Allah I: He said, “If the gate of du’a are opened before a man, the gates of mercy will be opened before him. And the most beloved thing with which Allah loves to be asked is safety.” The supplicant also received glad tidings from the Prophet saw that Allah Iwould keep him safe and he would have a special patronage which would be a weapon to fight the enemies and defend himself with: “Du’a is a weapon of a Believer, a pillar of religion, and a light of the heavens and the earth.” The Prophet saw said, “Do not feel hopeless with du’a since nobody is to be perished with du’a.” Ibn Hibban The Prophet saw also said, “Would I guide you to what would protect you against your enemies and bring you provision?” ‘Supplicate to Allah by day and night for supplication is the weapon of a believer.” The Prophet saw also gave glad tidings to the person who supplicates to Allah I so that his supplication would be answered and that his approach towards Allah Iwould be accepted: “Allah is Ever-Merciful and Ever-Generous to the extent that when man lifts his hands skyward (invoking Allah), He dislikes to reply without rewarding Him.” The Prophet saw explained also how the answer can be achieved. The answer, whether simultaneously or delayed, is good for the supplicant. Thus his affair, whether he knows or not, is altogether good for him. The Prophet saw said, “If a Muslim invokes Allah I anything besides sin or severing relations, Allah Iin turn responds to his du’a in one of three cases; either to accept it, delay his reward in the Hereafter or removes a calamity from him that equals his du’a. The Companions said, “We will then supplicate a lot.” The Prophet saw replied. “Allah will reward you greatly.” Then the Prophet saw illustrated how the answer of a du’a is good in all its forms when a man sees the fruits of his du’a which he thought was not answered. In another ahadith Prophet saw said, “On the Day of Judgement, Allah Iwill call a believer until he stands before Him. Allah I will say, ‘O My servant, I have commanded you to call upon Me and have promised to answer you. Did you truly call upon Me?’ He (the servant) will say, ‘Yes, my Lord.’ Allah I will say, ‘Whenever you called upon Me I answered you. Did you not call upon Me on the day of such and such to relieve your calamity and I did?’ The servant will say, ‘Yes my Lord.’ Allah I will say, ‘I gave it to you in worldly life, Allah Iwill add, ‘Did you not call on Me on the day of such and such to relieve your calamity but it seemed that I did not reply to you.’ The servant will say, ‘Yes my Lord.’ Allah I will say, ‘I compensated such and such for you in Paradise.’ Allah I will say, ‘Did you not call on Me to meet your need and I did.’ The servant will say, ‘Yes my Lord,’ Allah Iwill add, “I gave it to you in worldly life.’ ‘Did you not call on Me on the day of such and such to meet your need but it seemed that I did not reply to you.’ The servant will say, ‘Yes my Lord.’ Allah I will say, ‘I compensated such and such for you in Paradise.” The Messenger of Allah swt said, “Allah Iwill never leave out any supplication of a believer unless He will expound this for him through the following; either He will give it to him in worldly life or delay it in the Hereafter. Thereupon, the believer will say, ‘I wish I was given nothing of my du’a in this world,” One should bear in mind that for the awraad and wazaif to be effective and for du`a to be accepted, it is necessary that the following 11 principles are adhered to: A person’s food, drink and clothing should be from Halal means. Rasulullah saw is reported as saying regarding that person who lifts his hands praying to Allah I, saying “O Lord! O Lord! How will his du`a be accepted when his food, drink and clothing are haram?” He must abstain from shirk. He must honour and sanctify the SHA`�’IRUL-L�H (Major sanctities of Allah). He should focus his entire attention to Allah Iwhenever he is praying to Allah Ior making Du`a.
He should abstain from committing any sin openly or secretly. He should also abstain from pomp and show.
He should make it a habit to seek Allah’s Iforgiveness for himself and all other Muslims, especially his parents and shuyukh. He should do some good deeds prior to making du`a. He should begin with Allah’s Ipraises and end the du`a with salawat upon Rasulullah saw . He should not become despondent if there is delay in the acceptance of his du`a, thus discontinuing the du`a. He should never make du`a for any wrong or something that is haram. Nor for that which is practically impossible to happen ordinarily. He should lift both hands when making du`a. On completion he should say ameen and recite the durud and pass his hands over his face. |
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