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Relief through Supplication
Shaykh Saalih bin Muhammad Al Talib
[(Muharram 18, 1424 (March 21, 2003)]
All praise is
due to Allaah, Lord of all the worlds. Peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon the Prophet, his household and companions.
Fellow Muslims!
Fear Allaah and be dutiful to Him. Stay away from sins. For sins destroy.
Know that you have a Lord Whom you are going to meet and a house in which
you are going to live after your death. Seek the pleasure of your Lord
before you meet Him and properly build your house before you move into it.
Fellow Muslims!
We are the ummah of Qur’aan and Sunnah, the ummah of divine
guidance. We are the ummah of the right path but we did not stay on
this path.
Brethren in
faith! All hardships and tribulations that afflict the Muslims are just
like whips that drive them back to Eemaan and Tawheed. They remind them of
Allaah the Almighty; they encourage them to turn back to Him in repentance
and to fear the Day of Judgement. Allaah says:
“See they
not that they are tried once or twice every year (with different kinds of
calamities, disease, famine)? Yet, they turn not in repentance, nor do
they learn a lesson (from it).”
(At-Tawbah
9:126)
Materialism has
prevailed over the hearts of many people, and as a result they see nothing
except in the light of materials. It is when man keeps away from the light
of Eemaan and his relationship with Allaah becomes weak that his soul
lives in spiritual isolation and his heart becomes hardened. He then lives
a disturbed and fearful life. All this is a result of his abandonment of
the real source of life and his forgetfulness of Allaah. He forgets that
it is Allaah Who created the soul and Who knows the means by which it
lives. The life is not that of the body but of the soul. Allaah says,
“Is
he who was dead (without Faith by ignorance and disbelief) and We gave him
life (by knowledge and Faith) and set for him a light (of Belief) whereby
he can walk amongst men - like him who is in the darkness (of disbelief,
polytheism and hypocrisy) from which he can never come out?”
(Al-An‘aam
6:122)
Hence, belief
in Allaah is the source of security and peace. And the hearts that are
devoid of Eemaan are always far from Allaah and are full of fright and
confusion.
Fellow Muslims!
When a man’s heart is full of Eemaan, he knows his place of refuge and the
remedy for his ailments. For this life is based on toil and man is seldom
free from dangers. He suffers ailments and calamities; sorrows and wars;
injustice and transgression and all kinds of tribulations. However, Allaah
is Ever Compassionate with His slaves. He always provides for them relief
through a door of His mercy and blesses them with tranquillity and peace
of mind. That door is the door of supplication to Allaah, humbling oneself
before Him and putting one’s trust in Him. For supplications are the
security of the frightened, the refuge of the weak and the solace of
invocators. Who is He that has sought refuge with Allaah and has not been
protected and who is he that has relied on Him and has not been given
guidance?
Supplication is
the essence of worship. Allaah says,
“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!”
(Ghaafir 40:60)
He also says,
“And when My slaves ask
you (O Muhammad) concerning Me, then (answer them), I am indeed near (to
them by My Knowledge). I respond to the invocations of the supplicant when
he calls on Me (without any mediator or intercessor). So let them obey Me
and believe in Me, so that they may be led aright.”
(Al-Baqarah 2:186)
Supplication is the dearest
thing to Allaah. It is the way to patience in the cause of Allaah. It is a
sign of sincere dependence on Allaah and keeping away from incapacity and
laziness. It is an easy-to-make act of worship and it can be done at all
places and times. Allaah tells us that Prophet Ibraaheem said,
“And I shall turn away
from you and from those whom you invoke besides Allaah. And I shall call
on my Lord and I hope that I shall not be unblessed in my invocation to my
Lord.”
(Maryam 19:48)
Many are the afflictions
that have been removed by supplications! Many are the sins that have been
forgiven through invocations! And many are the blessings that have been
endowed through supplications! The Messenger of Allaah said, “What has
been destined cannot be prevented from happening. Invocation is helpful in
things that have happened and things that have not happened. Calamity and
supplication sometimes meet and engage in duel till the Day of
Resurrection.” (Al-Haakim)
Supplication is the worship
of the Prophets. Allaah says about them,
“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.”
(Al-Anbiyaa 21:90)
The Messenger of Allaah
said, “No Muslim makes a supplication in which there is no sin or severing
of the tie of kinship except that Allaah gives him by that one of three
things: He gives him what he asked for immediately or He saves for him by
that supplication some reward (which He gives him on the Day of
Resurrection) or He saves him from a calamity which is equivalent to the
supplication he made.” The companions then said: ‘We will then make more
supplications.’ The Messenger of Allaah replied: “And Allaah also will
give more.” (Ahmad)
When Prophet Ibraaheem
called upon Allaah after he was thrown into fire, Allaah commanded the
fire saying:
"O fire! Be you coolness
and safety for Ibraaheem (Abraham)!”
(Al-Anbiyaa 21:69)
Allaah also says about
Prophet Ayyoob,
“And (remember) Ayyoob
(Job), when he cried to his Lord: "Verily, distress has seized me, and You
are the Most Merciful of all those who show mercy. So We answered his
call, and We removed the distress that was on him, and We restored his
family to him (that he had lost) and the like thereof along with them, as
a mercy from Ourselves and a Reminder for all those who worship Us.”
(Al-Anbiyaa 21:83-84)
He says about Prophet Yoonus,
“So We answered his call,
and delivered him from the distress. And thus We do deliver the believers
(who believe in the Oneness of Allaah, abstain from evil and work
righteousness).”
(Al-Anbiyaa 21:88)
And about Prophet Zakariyya
He says,
“And (remember) Zakariyya
(Zechariah), when he cried to his Lord: "O My Lord! Leave me not single
(childless), though You are the Best of the inheritors. So We answered his
call, and We bestowed upon him Yahyaa (John), and cured his wife (to bear
a child) for him.”
(Al-Anbiyaa 21:89-90)
O you who is afflicted with
calamities! O you who has been weakened by ailments! O you who have been
overwhelmed by debts! Why don’t you call upon Allaah the Self-Sufficient
and the Most Gracious? O you who have been submerged by sins! Why can’t
you call upon Allaah the Oft-Forgiving to forgive you? O you who lives in
fear and distress! Why can’t you call upon Allaah to give you relief?
Brethren in Islaam! The
nation of Islaam has experienced many crises and hardships and it was only
through sincere return to Allaah that it was able overcome those
hardships. Allaah says,
“Verily, We sent
(Messengers) to many nations before you (O Muhammad) And We seized them
with extreme poverty (or loss in wealth) and loss in health (with
calamities) so that they might humble themselves (believe with humility).
When Our Torment reached them, why then did they not humble themselves
(believe with humility)? But their hearts became hardened.”
(Al-An’aam 6:42)
Even some ancient
polytheists would sincerely call upon Allaah alone whenever they were
faced with calamities.
The Muslim nation is now in
dire need of the mercy of its Lord as it is in need of His help. Let us
return to Allaah, invoke His blessings and hope for His mercy.
Fellow Muslims! Supplication
has its condition and manners, which every Muslim must learn in order to
have his supplications answered. Foremost among these is that the
intention and means of supplication should be compatible with Islaamic
Monotheism. It is this condition that makes supplication an act of worship
that must be solely directed to Allaah alone. Man must call, seek
assistance from and seek refuge with Allaah alone. He must seek
forgiveness, victory, guidance, realization of his goals and aid from
Allaah alone. He should ask only Allaah for the removal of his afflictions
and for security against all evils.
All these are rights of
Allaah over His slaves. Man must call upon Allaah alone. For neither does
slumber or sleep overtakes Him. It is He alone who hears the supplication
of the supplicants wherever they are and whichever language they speak. He
is never distracted by a slave whom he listens to from listening to
another and He is never annoyed because of the multitude of those who call
upon Him. He alone has the power to give benefit or harm.
It is therefore an act of
associating partners with Him to call upon the dead, the angels, the jinn
and others besides Him. He says about Himself,
“He is the Ever Living.
None has the right to be worshipped but He; so invoke Him making your
worship pure for Him Alone (by worshipping Him Alone, and none else, and
by doing righteous deeds sincerely for Allaah’s sake only, and not to show
off, and not setting up rivals with Him in worship).”
(Ghaafir 40:65)
The observer of the
invocations of the Prophets will notice that Tawheed characterizes them.
An example of this is the invocation made by Prophet Yoonus,
“He cried through the
darkness (saying): None has the right to be worshipped but You (O, Allaah)
Glorified (and Exalted) are You (above all that (evil) they associate with
You). Truly, I have been of the wrong-doers.”
(Al-Anbiyaa 21:87)
Allaah answered his
supplication through Tawheed.
Brethren in Islaam! The
supplicant should make sure that he follows the Sunnah while making the
supplication. He should call upon Allaah with His sublime Names and
Attributes. He should seek for His forgiveness and acknowledge His favour
on him. It is good if he starts his supplication with praising Allaah as
it is due and invoking His blessing on His Prophet, Muhammad –peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him. The supplicant should also not transgress
while making supplication nor be in haste to have his supplication
answered. He should also not despair. For the One he calls is the Graceful
Lord.
Further, the supplicant must
be a sincere believer. He should face the qiblah while making the
supplication and should be sure that he is in the state of purity. He
should raise his hands to Allaah. He should be resolute in his
supplication, supplicate at the times when invocations are most likely
answered and select the supplications that are authentically reported from
the Prophet. He should also not forget to make a sadaqah before his
supplication. If he can do all these, his supplication will never be
rejected. If he however does not see a sign of the acceptance of his
supplication, let him examine himself.
The Messenger of Allaah
said, “O you people! Allaah is Pure and does not accept but only that
which is pure. He indeed commands the believer with that which He
commanded the Messengers. He says: ‘
“O (you) Messengers! Eat
of the lawful foods (meat of slaughtered eatable animals, milk products,
fats, vegetables, fruits, etc.), and do righteous deeds. Verily! I am
Well-Acquainted with what you do.”
(Al-Mu’minoon 23:51)
And He commands the
believers saying:
“O you who believe! Eat
of the lawful things that We have provided you with, and be grateful to
Allaah, if it is indeed He Whom you worship.”
(Al-Baqarah 2:172)
The Messenger of Allaah then
mentioned a man who was on a long journey, and he was shoeless and
dust-covered. He was raising his hands to heavens saying: O my Lord! O my
Lord!’ while his food, drink, dress and nourishment were all from unlawful
sources. How could his supplication be answered?” (Muslim)
Brethren in faith! Listen to
this call from your Lord:
“Invoke your Lord with
humility and in secret. He likes not the aggressors. And do not do
mischief on the earth, after it has been set in order, and invoke Him with
fear and hope. Surely, Allaah’s Mercy is (ever) near unto the good-doers.”
(Al-A‘raaf 7:55-56)
Fellow Muslims! Whoever
fears Allaah in times of ease Allaah, Allaah will stand by him in times of
hardship. Allaah says about Prophet Yoonus when the whale swallowed him:
“Had he not been of them
who glorify Allaah, He would have indeed remained inside its belly (the
fish) till the Day of Resurrection.”
(As-Saaffaat 37:143-144)
Which means: Had it not been
for the good deeds that he had done before, he would have been made to
remain in the belly of the whale till the Day of Resurrection.
The Muslim must therefore
remain steadfast during afflictions and return to Allaah in repentance.
Brethren in Islaam! We are
also in dire need of uniting our ranks and removing our differences. For
disunity is the cause of failure. Allaah says,
“O you who believe! When
you meet (an enemy) force, take a firm stand against them and remember the
Name of Allaah much (both with tongue and mind), so that you may be
successful. And obey Allaah and His Messenger, and do not dispute (with
one another) lest you lose courage and your strength depart, and be
patient. Surely, Allaah is with those who are patient.”
(Al-Anfaal 8:45-46)
Fellow Muslims! Let us
always follow the teachings of Qur’aan and Sunnah. It is the duty of the
scholars to teach people and direct them to all that can benefit them and
remove their distress. They should remind people of Allaah and teach them
the importance of unity and the harm of disunity.
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