In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
The life of the salaf between word and deed.
Supplication (Du'a).
The importance of supplication.
Beseeching Allah and humbling oneself before Him.
What has been said regarding this.
Salman al-Farisi, may Allah be pleased with him, said:
"If a servant remembers Allah during times of ease,
And praises Him during times of prosperity,
Then when he is afflicted by hardship and calls upon Allah,
The angels say:
'A familiar voice from a weak servant,'
And they intercede for him.
But if a servant does not remember Allah during times of ease,
And does not praise Him during times of prosperity,
Then when he is afflicted by hardship and calls upon Allah,
The angels say:
'An unfamiliar voice,'
And they do not intercede for him."
Abu al-Darda', may Allah be pleased with him, said:
"A Muslim servant may be forgiven by Allah while he is asleep."
It was said to him:
"How is that, O Abu al-Darda'?"
He said:
"His brother rises in the night and performs the night prayer (tahajjud),
He calls upon Allah and He answers him,
And he prays for his brother, and He answers him."
'Abdullah Ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him, said:
"Allah does not listen to one who seeks to be heard,
Nor to one who shows off, nor to one who plays,
Nor to any caller,
Except for one who calls out with a supplication that is firmly rooted in his heart."
Thabit al-Bunani, may Allah have mercy on him,
A man among the worshippers, may Allah have mercy on him,
Said one day to his brothers:
"I truly know when my Lord, the Almighty and Majestic, answers me."
They were amazed by his statement and said:
"How do you know that?"
He said:
"When my heart trembles, my skin shivers,
My eyes overflow, and I am granted ease in supplication,
Then I know that I have been answered."
Tawus, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
"Beware of taking your needs to one who has closed his door against you,
And has placed a barrier between you and him.
Instead, you must take your needs to the One whose door is open to you until the Day of Resurrection;
He asked you to call upon Him and promised you an answer."
Abu al-'Atahiyah said:
"Do not ever ask your brother for a need,
But ask the One whose doors are never barred.
Allah becomes angry if you cease asking Him,
While the son of Adam, when asked, becomes angry.
So direct your request to the Lord, for indeed,
We live and move within the grace of our Lord's bounty."
Mutarrif, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
"I looked into the beginning of this matter—from whom does it originate?
And I found it is from Allah the Almighty.
I said: 'And upon whom does its completion depend?'
And I found it is upon Allah the Almighty.
And I looked at what its foundation is,
And I found its foundation is supplication."
Ibrahim Ibn Adham, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
"Why do we complain of our poverty to those like ourselves,
And not seek its removal from our Lord?"
Al-Fudayl Ibn 'Iyad, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
"By Allah, if you were to despair of the creation,
To the point that you did not want anything from them,
Your Master would give you everything you want."
He also said, may Allah have mercy on him:
"When a believer finds the relief delayed,
And despairs of it after much supplication and beseeching,
And no sign of an answer appears to him,
He returns to himself with blame,
And says to it:
'It is only because of you that I have been denied;
If there were any good in you, you would have been answered.'"
Al-Shafi'i, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
"Do you mock supplication and belittle it?
You do not know what supplication achieves.
The arrows of the night are piercing, but
They have a time, and for that time there is a decree.
My Lord holds them back when He wills,
And releases them when the decree is fulfilled."
Some etiquettes of supplication.
And some mistakes therein.
'A'ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, said:
"Ask your Lord for everything, even a shoelace,
For if He does not make it easy,
By Allah, it will not be made easy."
Malik Ibn Anas, may Allah have mercy on him, was asked about a man who calls out saying:
"O my Master!"
He said:
"I prefer that he calls out with the supplication of the Prophets:
'Our Lord, our Lord.'"
'Umar Ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz, may Allah have mercy on him, passed by a man
Who had pebbles in his hand, playing with them while saying:
"O Allah, marry me to the wide-eyed houris."
'Umar stood over him and said:
"What a poor suitor you are!
Why do you not drop the pebbles,
And make your supplication sincere to Allah?"
Imam Ahmad, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
"One should keep his supplication quiet,"
Due to His saying: ﴾Call upon your Lord in humility and privately﴿.
“Say (unto mankind): Cry unto Allah, or cry unto the Beneficent, unto whichsoever ye cry (it is the same). His are the most beautiful names. And thou (Muhammad), be not loud-voiced in thy worship nor yet silent therein, but follow a way between.” (17:110)
He said:
"This applies to supplication."
And he said:
"They used to dislike raising their voices in supplication."
Mujahid, may Allah have mercy on him, heard a man raising his voice in supplication,
So he threw pebbles at him.
The life of the salaf
Between word and deed.