Aqeel Mahmood – The Power Of Dua Istikharah
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AI: Transcript ©
About whether we made the right choice,
but if only there was a dua
which we could do and learn
and implement in our lives,
where we'd know that the decision that we
made was the correct decision.
And there is something in Islam,
as Islam is something which is complete,
that if we learnt
this specific dua,
this specific supplication,
our lives would be made much easier for
us.
And not only is it just a Dua,
but Allah
has blessed us along with this Dua with
a prayer.
Not only is it just a supplication,
but it comes along with a specific and
special prayer along with it.
So what is this special dua?
What is this supplication that that Allah
and His Messenger Muhammad Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam
have told us about?
What is
this dua?
That the companions they would say
that the messenger of Allah Alaihi Wasallam
He would teach us
this application
in all of our affairs.
And we would implement this thing and this
dua in all of our affairs.
Something which
they did so much,
that it was something that covered everything in
their lives.
He would teach this to us just like
he would teach us a surah from the
Quran.
So just like we memorize a surah from
the Quran.
Word for word, letter for letter.
This supplication was the same.
They would memorize it precisely.
And this dua brothers and sisters
is a dua of
The supplication of
When a person doesn't know
what decision he needs to make
in his worldly life,
Muhammad
has blessed us
with this dua
and with this prayer
of alastikhar.
He said,
If one of you
is deliberating
and he's thinking about something
and he needs to make a decision,
and he has options laid out in front
of him,
then let him pray
2 raka'at.
Let him pray 2 rak'at
of non obligatory prayer.
So he prays 2 rak'at which aren't from
the obligatory prayers.
He prays a special
2 raka'at
not from the Fajr prayer
or any other prayer,
but he takes time out and he makes
the effort
and he prays 2 raka'at
and then after he makes
these 2 raka'at
he makes this du'a,
he makes this supplication
the du'a Valistikharah.
And the scholars they say that a person
can make this du'a
before the salaam
and after the salaam.
And they say it is better for him
to make this du'a before the salaam because
the Messenger of Allah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam
will make dua and would supplicate to Allah
Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala
while he was in the salah and before
the salam.
And so what does a person say
in this beautiful Dua?
What does he ask for?
This Dua
that many of us have in our homes,
in our Dua books,
but we don't realize
the
status of this Dua
and the power of this Dua
and how it could change our lives brothers
and sisters.
The hadith continues in the Messenger of Allah
Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said
that a person should say
and then he makes dua.
Oh Allah, I seek your guidance in making
a choice.
By virtue
of your knowledge.
By
virtue of your knowledge.
Knowing that Allah
is Alalim
is all knowing.
He knows what is happening right now outside
of these walls.
He knows what's happening at home
with our families,
with our loved ones,
and He knows what has already happened,
and what is happening now, and what will
happen in the future.
And I seek ability
by virtue of your power.
And I ask you
by your great bounty.
For verily you have power and I have
none.
And you know
and I know not.
And you are the knower of all hidden
things.
You have power and I have none.
We all say
we all say this to our
and we all say this without really understanding
what it means.
That there is no power,
no might except with Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala.
Our ability to walk, our ability to see,
our ability to speak.
Sometimes we take these things for granted.
And if it wasn't for these things, we
wouldn't be able to make a living and
support our families.
And they say that a person only appreciates
these things
when he doesn't have them.
When a person loses his ability to speak,
that's when he appreciates
that gift that he has been given.
And when he has pain in his leg
and he's limping
and he's unable to walk that's when he
appreciates
the ability to walk and this great gift
from Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala.
And so the dua continues
after blessing Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala, after praising
Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala, after mentioning
the attributes of Allah Azza wa Jal and
this is from the etiquettes of dua,
that a person praises Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala
before asking for something.
And so we continue the dua
and we say Allahumma'in Kuntaa,
O Allah if in your knowledge,
if in your knowledge you know this matter
that I'm going to mention,
And then he mentions this problem that he
has
in this part of the Dua.
And it is enough for him
to be able to
be thinking about this Dua in his mind
and in his heart.
Because Allah
He knows whatever is hidden in the chest,
He knows what we are thinking.
And when a person makes dua,
he makes dua knowing
that Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala will respond.
You We worship and You We ask for
help. And while knowing that He will help
us,
even when we make dua
and we don't say anything out outwardly.
We say it all in our hearts because
we know that Allah is
a Samir. He is the all Hearer, Al
Aalim
the All Knower.
Knowing that He knows what we are thinking,
what we are feeling, what distresses us.
And so we mentioned
this problem that we have
and the dua continues
in Is better for me in my religion.
And we mentioned the religion first and foremost
because that is what we were created for
to worship Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala.
And we have not created
Jinn and mankind except to worship me.
If you think that this affair is better
for me in my religion,
and my livelihood.
And the end of
my affairs,
the consequences of my actions,
the consequences of my affairs and my
the things that I do in my life.
Then ordain it for me
and make it easy for me. So we
supplicate to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala and we
ask that whatever decision we make
then
it is made easy for us.
And not only do we ask for it
to be made easy for us, we ask
Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala to bless it for
us.
And if in your knowledge it is bad
for me,
bad for me in my religion,
and in my livelihood and in my affairs,
Then turn it away from me,
and turn me away from it.
And ordain for me and give me the
good
wherever it may be.
And make me happy with this choice.
Make me happy with this decision
that you have made Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala
for me.
And so this is a dua
that the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alaihi wasallam
taught us and taught his companions.
And if a person was to memorize this
dua brothers and sisters,
if he took 15 minutes out of his
time to memorize this dua,
it would change the 15 years of his
life
and the rest of his life.
Because every decision that he makes,
he makes it
after supplicating to Allah
Now what does a person make a for?
As we mentioned in the hadith,
that the messenger of Allah sallallahu alaihi wa
sallam
as Jabbir ibn Abdullah reported that he is
to teach us
this dua,
in all of our affairs.
So this is something which we should use
in our worldly lives, not only in the
things that we think
are major things
such as marriage,
who we should marry,
what job should we take,
what house should we buy,
should I buy this car or should I
not buy this car.
But rather we should make this dua
even in those things which we consider to
be small.
Because how many times brothers and sisters
have we seen
that we've made a decision,
something which we thought was something which was
minor,
something which was small,
and then a week down the line,
1 month later,
or maybe longer,
and that decision that we made
comes back to haunt us.
And we're so surprised
how a small thing can turn out to
be such a big thing.
How a small problem
and how a small decision and something small,
a small choice that we made became such
a big issue and a big problem in
our lives.
Naisha Radiullahu Anha she said that the Messenger
of Allah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said, Odu'lalla,
ask Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala even it is
for the lace of your shoes.
Even if it is for the lace of
your shoes.
Because if a person supplicates to Allah
for the small things,
then naturally when something big happens,
when a calamity befalls him, when he is
tested,
then he will turn to Allah
straight away.
And so a person makes his dua.
His dua
and he consults
those people who he thinks are righteous,
his friends, his family.
As Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala says,
and consult them
in your affairs.
So consult
those people who you know are righteous,
ask them for their advice
in the decision that you're going to make.
And when a person does this,
and he makes this salah,
and he makes this du'a,
and he puts his trust in Allah Subhanahu
wa ta'ala,
and he asks advice
from his fellow brothers and sisters.
Then he puts his trust in Allah
and Allah
will ordain for him the good
wherever it may be.
Muhammad
The Messenger of Allah
continued in the hadith and he said,
Then look,
after a person has made this dua and
consulted his fellow Muslim brothers and sisters in
this problem that he has, in this decision
that he needs to make, look at what
has set
in his heart.
Look at what has set in his heart
and what
has rested in his heart,
what he thinks should be the best decision
that he needs to make.
For verily
the good is in that thing.
And as for
the act that some people do,
and the misunderstanding
that a person should pray before
he sleeps,
and then when he sleeps
he will have a dream showing him what
decision he should make.
There's no
report from the messenger of Allah
regarding this.
And we don't take our religion
from dreams.
And how many times have we had dreams
where we wake up in the morning
and we're so confused
because of the dream that we had? We
have the strangest of dreams, subhanAllah.
And so a person makes this
du'a,
makes this salah in the times that a
person's du'a is accepted.
Such as the last part of the night.
In the last part of the night
a person's dua is accepted and likewise
when it rains.
And how blessed are we to live in
this country where it rains all the time.
And we should take advantage of this
and supplicate to Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala when
it rains.
And if a person is unable to make
the salah, if he's unable to make the
prayer of Alastihqarah,
he might be driving and he needs to
make this decision while he's driving.
Then it is enough for him to supplicate
and to make dua
to Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala
to make dua
to make the supplication of alastikharam.
And so a person, once he makes his
dua, once he puts his trust in Allah
Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala,
he makes his decision.
And once he makes his decision,
he sticks to that decision.
And he doesn't change his mind,
and he doesn't become
indecisive in what he wants to
do. So he sticks to his decision,
and he knows
for a fact
that whatever happens
from now on is going to be better
for him.
Because he'd made he's made dua to Allah
He's done all he could do,
all that was in his power to do,
to make sure that his decision was a
correct decision.
And so he puts his trust in Allah
and he continues.
And he goes along with his life, with
the decision that he made. And whatever happens
to him,
whether he thinks it is bad or good,
the decision that he made.
Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala says in the Quran
It may be
that you dislike something,
that you hate something
And it is something which is good for
you.
And it maybe
that you love something
And it maybe something which is bad for
you.
And Allah
knows
and you don't know.
We don't know
what is going to happen to us 10
minutes from now.
We don't know what's going to happen to
us
Straight after the salah,
when we all go outside outside of these
these two these two doors,
and when we leave the Masjid,
when we step outside of this Masjid, we
don't know what's going to happen to us.
But Allah
knows.
So he knows what is best for us,
and we put our trust in Allah
And how great is this dua
if we were to implement it in all
our lives, in all the decision that we
made.
Knowing for a fact that Allah
is behind every decision that we make.
That our lives are in His hands.
And from the times
that the companions
made Alistighara
was when the Messenger of Allah Sallallahu Alaihi
Wasallam passed away.
And they were deciding on how to
bury the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alaihi wa
sallam, and they made istikhara in this issue.
And also the wife of Muhammad sallallahu alaihi
wa sallam Zaynab
It is reported that she made dua alistikharah
before she married the messenger of Allah Sallallahu
Alaihi Wasallam.
And she made dua because she wanted to
know whether she would be able
to give the messenger of Allah Sallallahu Alaihi
Wasallam his due rights.
And you all know the famous book Sahih
al Bukhari.
The most authentic book after the book of
Allah,
Azzawajal.
And how he would make dua
and supplicate to Allah
before writing a single hadith in his book.
And look at the value
and the status of this book in Islam.
So never underestimate brothers and sisters,
the power of du'a.
Supplication
is worship.
Because a person knows that Allah
will respond,
and he knows that Allah
will help him if he is sincere.
If he has sincerity
in making his dua, in making his supplication.
So to summarize brothers and sisters, I'd like
to advise each and every one of us
to learn this blessed Dua, this beautiful Dua.
The Dua of Alastikharah.
Because when we come to a point in
our lives where we have to make a
decision,
when it comes to our family,
when it comes to our jobs, our careers,
when it comes to our studies.
And we need to make a decision
that we don't become confused,
and we don't become burdened in this issue.
And we know that we can make dua
to Allah
and that He has given us a way
out.
So I advise all my brothers and sisters
to learn this dua, to learn this supplication,
and this could be a life changing moment
in their lives.
And we ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala that
it gives us the ability
to memorize this beautiful dua and this beautiful
salah.
So is fufakum.
Straighten your rows.
Make space for the brothers and sisters who
are still coming in.