بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Du’a (دعاء Shariah Supplication) in Times of Trials
At a time that we Muslims are suffering through the entire world, it is important to remember that which makes our Du’a more pleasing to Allah, the Bestower of our rizq (sustenance), the Determiner of our lifespan (ajl), and the Extender of nasr (victorious support).
Firstly; Du’a is worship and Allah (swt) loves the servant who supplicates to Him:
The Du’a (دعاء Shariah supplication) is not only worship but it is the brains of worship due to the saying of Allah (swt) Who said,
[وَقَالَ رَبُّكُمْ ادْعُونِي أَسْتَجِبْ لَكُمْ إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يَسْتَكْبِرُونَ عَنْ عِبَادَتِي سَيَدْخُلُونَ جَهَنَّمَ دَاخِرِينَ]
“And your Lord said: “Make Du’aa to Me for anything, I will respond to your Du’a. Verily! Those who scorn My worship they will surely enter Hell in humiliation!” [TMQ Surah Ghafir:60]. Here Allah (swt) called Du’a worship when He said:
[عِبَادَتِي]
“my worship” after mentioning
[ادْعُونِي]
“Make Du’a to me.” This is similar to the saying of the Messenger (saw) who said, «الدعاء مخ العبادة» “The Du’a is the brains of worship.” (Reported by at-Tirmidhi via Nu’man b. Basheer. At-Tirmidhi said the hadīth is hasan sahīh).
Secondly; adherence to the Commands of Allah (swt) and abstaining from His Prohibition when making Du’a:
Allah (swt) has clarified to us that whilst making Du’a we should respond to His command, adhere to the Shariah and follow His Messenger (saw). Allah said,
[فَلْيَسْتَجِيبُوا لِي وَلْيُؤْمِنُوا بِي لَعَلَّهُمْ يَرْشُدُونَ]
“So let them obey Me and believe in Me, so that they may be led aright.” [TMQ Al-Baqarah:186].
The Messenger (saw) said, «يدعو الله ومأكله من حرام ومشربه من حرام فأنى يستجاب له»“He supplicates to Allah but his food and drink are of Haram. So how can his Du’a be answered?” (Reported by Muslim). Ibn Al-Qayyim said: (وكذلك أكل الحرام يبطل قوته يعني الدعاء ويضعفها) “Thus eating from ill-gotten sources saps the strength of the Du’a and weakens it.”
Thirdly; The fact that Du’a is worship does not mean abandoning the physical deeds under our Shariah obligation:
The Seerah (Prophetic biography) of the Messenger of Allah (saw) shows us how he (saw) prepared in Badr, arranged the soldiers and placed them in their respective positions. He (saw) prepared well for the battle and afterwards he entered the hut beseeching Allah to give victory. He (saw) supplicated to the extent that Abu Bakr (ra) would say to him: (بعض هذا يكفيك يا رسول الله)“Only a part of this Du’a is enough O Messenger of Allah.”
So the one who seeks good earning, must make Dua for blessed rizq (sustenance), whilst seeking work or establishing business. The one who seeks a good spouse, must search for a good spouse according to the good characteristics that the Prophet (saw) clarified. And the one who seeks to change the situation of the Ummah, must work according to the methodology of the Prophet (saw).
Fourthly; Allah (swt) answers the Du’a of the one who calls Him:
Allah (swt) answers the distressed servant when he calls out to Him. He (swt) said,
[وَقَالَ رَبُّكُمْ ادْعُونِي أَسْتَجِبْ لَكُمْ]
“And your Lord said: ‘Invoke Me, (and ask Me for anything) I will respond to your (invocation)’.” [TMQ Surah Ghafir:60]. He (swt) said,
[وَإِذَا سَأَلَكَ عِبَادِي عَنِّي فَإِنِّي قَرِيبٌ أُجِيبُ دَعْوَةَ الدَّاعِي إِذَا دَعَانِ]
“And when My slaves ask you concerning Me, then answer them, I am indeed near. I respond to the invocations of the supplicant when he calls on Me.” [TMQ Surah Al-Baqarah:186]. He (swt) said,
[أَمَّنْ يُجِيبُ الْمُضطَرَّ إِذَا دَعَاهُ وَيَكْشِفُ السُّوءَ]
“Is not He better than your gods Who responds to the distressed one, when he calls Him, and Who removes the evil.” [TMQ An-Naml:62].
Fifthly; answering the Du’a has forms of response:
The Messenger of Allah (saw) said, «ما من مسلم يدعو الله عزّ وجلّ بدعوة ليس فيها إثم ولا قطيعة رحم إلا أعطاه الله بها إحدى ثلاث خصال إمّا أن يعجل الله له دعوته، وإمّا أن يدخرها له في الآخرة، وإمّا أن يصرف عنه من السوء مثلها. قالوا إذن نكثر. قال الله أكثر»“Any Muslim who makes a supplication containing nothing that is sinful and nothing that involves breaking ties of blood relationships, will be given for it by Allah one of these three things: He may accept his request, or save its reward for him in the next world, or turn away from him an equivalent amount of evil.” Those who heard it said, “We would, then, make many supplications.” The Prophet (saw) replied, “Allah is more than ready to answer what you ask” (Reported by Ahmad and al-Bukharī in al-Adāb al-Mufrad).
We trust in Allah (swt) and submit to His Will. Perhaps, He (swt) will answer our Du’a as we asked it in Dunya, or perhaps He will grant reward for it in the Hereafter or perhaps He (swt) will ward of evil through it.
Sixthly; the Du’a must not be asking for the forbidden and must be persistent:
The Prophet (saw) said, «لا يزال يستجاب للعبد ما لم يدعُ بإثم أو قطيعة رحم ما لم يستعجل. قيل يا رسول الله، وما الاستعجال؟ قال: يقول قد دعوت وقد دعوت فلم أرَ يستجاب لي فيتحسر عن ذلك ويدع الدعاء»“The Du’a of the servant will be answered if he does not ask for the cutting of blood ties and is not impatient, It was asked: O Messenger of Allah, what is impatience? He said: impatience is when the servant says, ‘I supplicated but my Du’a was not heard’ and so he becomes distressed and leave making supplication.” (Reported by Muslim).
Seventhly; Du’a is made whilst thinking good of Allah, and remembering Him often by words and by deeds:
In the hadith of Abu Hurayrah (ra) who narrated that the Messenger of Allah (saw) said, «يقول الله أنا عند ظن عبدي بي وأنا معه إذا ذكرني، فإن ذكرني في نفسه ذكرته في نفسي، وإن ذكرني في ملأ ذكرته في ملأ خير منهم، وإن تقرب إلي شبراً تقربت إليه ذراعاً، وإن تقرب إلي ذراعاً تقربت إليه باعاً، وإن أتاني يمشي أتيته هرولة»“Allah says; ‘I am just as My servant believes me to be and I am with him when He remembers Me. So if he remembers Me within himself, I too remember him within Myself. If he remembers Me in a group of people then I remember him in a group that is better than them. If he comes one span nearer to Me then I go one cubit nearer to him; if he comes one cubit nearer to Me then I go a distance of two outstretched arms nearer to him; and if he comes to Me walking then I go to him running.” (This hadīth is agreed upon).
Also Muslim reported on the authority of Abu Hurayrah (ra) who said, «كان رسول الله يسير في طريق مكة، فمر على جبل يقال له جمدان، فقال: سيروا، هذا جمدان سبق المفرِّدون، قالوا وما المفرِّدون يا رسول الله قال: الذاكرون الله كثيراً» “The Messenger of Allah (saw) was journeying along the way to Makkah when he (saw) came upon a mountain, which was called Jumdan. He (saw) said that do journey of this Jumdan. The Mufarridoon have excelled. The Sahabah (ra) asked: O Messenger of Allah (saw) Who are the Mufarridoon? Said: Those men and women who remember Allah all of the time.”
Al-Qarafi (القرافي) said in his az-Zakhirah (الذخيرة) that: «وقال الحسن: الذكر ذكران ذكر اللسان، فذلك حسن، وأفضل منه ذكر الله عند أمره ونهيه» “al-Hasan said: zikr (remembrance) is of two types; the zikr of the tongue which is good, but what is better is the zikr (remembrance) of Allah when He commands you and forbids you.”
Eighthly; there are preferred times and states in which to make supplication:
The best times in which to make Du’a are during the prostration (sujud), in the middle of the night at the time of Tahajjud, in the obligatory prayers.
Muslim narrates on the authority of Abu Hurayrah (ra) that the Messenger of Allah (saw) said: «أقرب ما يكون العبد من ربه وهو ساجد، فأكثروا الدعاء» “The closest a servant be to his Lord is when he is in sujūd (prostration), so make Du’a frequently.”
At-Tirmidhi reported hadith, which he said is hasan, on the authority of Abu Umaamah who said: The Messenger (saw) was asked: which Du’a is heard most? He replied: «جوف الليل، ودبر الصلوات المكتوبات»“Du’a in the middle of the night and at the end of the obligatory prayers.”
Also the Du’a in the month of Ramadan carries immense reward. At-Tirmidhi reported a hadīth, which he said is hasan that the Messenger of Allah (saw) said: «ثَلاثَةٌ لا تُرَدُّ دَعْوَتُهُمْ الصَّائِمُ حَتَّى يُفْطِرَ وَالإمام الْعَادِلُ وَدَعْوَةُ الْمَظْلُومِ يَرْفَعُهَا اللَّهُ فَوْقَ الْغَمَامِ وَيَفْتَحُ لَهَا أَبْوَابَ السَّمَاءِ وَيَقُولُ الرَّبُّ وَعِزَّتِي لأَنصُرَنَّكِ وَلَوْ بَعْدَ حِينٍ»“The supplications of three people are not rejected: the supplication of a fasting person at the time of breaking fast, of a just ruler, and of a person who is wronged. Allah causes their supplications to rise above the clouds, and gates of heaven are opened for them, and Allah says, ‘By My Majesty, I will help you, even if it is after a while.”
Ninthly; companionship of the good and pious who make Du’a for us:
It is Sunnah also upon a Muslim to make Du’a for his brother or sister in their absence due to what Muslim narrated from Umm Dardaa (ra) who said: My husband reported that he heard Allah’s Messenger (saw) as say: «من دعا لأخيه بظهر الغيب، قال الملك الموكل به: آمين، ولك بمثل»“He who supplicates for his brother in his absence, the Angel commissioned (for carrying supplication to his Lord) says: Āmīn, and the same is for you also.”
It has also been reported by Ahmad and Muslim with a sound Isnad (chain) on the authority of Umm Dardaa. The text of Muslim is as follows: Safwan reported: “I visited Abu Dardaa’s house in Syria. I did not find him there but Umm Dardaa.” She said: “Do you intend to perform Hajj during this year?” I said: “Yes.” She said: “Do supplicate Allah for blessings upon us, for Allah’s Messenger (saw) used to say: «دعوة المرء المسلم لأخيه بظهر الغيب مستجابة، عند رأسه ملك موكل، كلما دعا لأخيه بخير، قال الملك الموكل به: آمين، ولك بمثل»“The supplication of a Muslim for his brother in his absence is accepted and the commissioned Angel says: Ameen, and says: The same is for you too,” He said: I went to the bazar and met Abu Dardaa (ra) and he narrated like this from Allah’s Messenger (saw).
It is also Sunnah to ask a brother to make Du’a due to what Abu Dawud and at-Tirmidhi narrated with a sound Isnad (chain) from ‘Umar b. al-Khattab (ra). I sought leave from the Prophet (saw) to go to ‘Umrah. The Prophet (saw) gave me permission and said to me, «لا تنسنا يا أخي من دعائك»“Do not forget us in your Du’a, O my brother.” Thus, he said a word which I do not wish I have the dunya in its place. And in another narration, he (saw) said: «أشركنا يا أخي في دعائك» “Include us in your Du’a, O my brother.”
In conclusion: O Allah (swt) guide us, strengthen us and forgive us, for you are the Most Merciful of the merciful. O Allah (swt) grant us abundant and blessed Rizq. O Allah (swt) grant us long and healthy lives in sincere obedience of You. O Allah (swt) grant us pious wives and children who accompany us in Jannah. O Allah (swt) relieve the Ummah from the oppression of tyrants. O Allah (swt) grant nasr to the Islamic Ummah, with tamkeen (empowerment) of the Deen, and istikhlaaf (succession in authority).