Al Minah Al `Aliyyah (41)

There are two kinds of Du’a:

Du’a as an act of worship: it is included in Al-dhikr and we shall discuss it later.

Du’a to ask Allah for something: it is when a slave has a need and he supplicates to ask for whatever he wants.

There are some daily situations when Du’a is more likely to be accepted, such as in: Sujud, the third part of the night and between the Adhan and the Iqamah.

The Sunnan of Du ’a :

1-Keeping Wudu

Both Bukhari and Muslim report in their sahihs the hadith of Abu Musa al-Ash’ari t and his story with his uncle Abu ‘Amer t when the Prophet r sent him on the top of the army of Awtas. The hadith says that ‘Amer was killed and he advised Abu Musa to convey greeting to him and asked for his (i.e. the Prophets) du’a. Abu Musa t said, “I told the Prophet about Abu ‘Amer’s request.” So, Allah’s Messenger r asked for water to make ablution. He raised his hands and said, “O Allah! Forgive Abu ‘Amer.” Abu Musa t said, “I saw the whiteness of his armpit.” Then, the Prophet r said, “O Allah! Raise his rank on the Day of Judgment. ” ^[1]

2- Sitting towards the Qibla

Abdullah Ibn ‘Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated, ‘Umar Ibn al-Khattab t said, “When it was the day on which the Battle of Badr was fought, the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) cast a glance at the infidels, and they were one thousand while his own Companions were three hundred and nineteen. The Prophet r turned (his face) towards the Qibla. Then he stretched his hands and began his supplication to his Lord saying:

“O Allah, accomplish for me what Thou hast promised to me. O Allah, bring about what Thou hast promised to me. O Allah, if this small band of Muslims is destroyed. Thou will not be worshipped on this earth.”

 He continued his supplication to his Lord, stretching his hands, facing the Qibla, until his mantle slipped down from his shoulders. So Abu Bakr came to him, picked up his mantle and put it on his shoulders. Then he embraced him from behind and said: “Prophet of Allah, this prayer of yours to your Lord will suffice you, and He will fulfill for you what He has promised you.”^[2]

3- Raising both hands:

The evidence for this can be found in the previous hadith narrated by Ibn ‘Abbas, “And Allah’s Messenger faced the Qibla, and then he raised his hands.”

4- Starting Du’a by praising Allah the Almighty, then sending peace and blessings upon his Prophet r:

At-Tirmdhi (may Allah have mercy upon him) reported through Fadhalah Ibn ‘Obaid t who said, “That the Prophet r heard a man supplicating during the prayer. The man said, “O Allah, forgive me and have mercy on me.” So the Prophet (may Allah praise him) told him,

“You were hasty. When you pray, praise Allah, ask Allah to exalt my mention, then ask Allah.”^[3] In another narration, “If one of you prays, let him start by praising Allah, exalting Him, send peace and blessings upon me, and then let him supplicate with what he wishes.”^[4]

5- Make Du’a with the 99 names of Allah the Almighty

A person should choose the name that corresponds to his need so that his du’a is more likely to be fulfilled. For example, if someone is invoking Allah for his or her livelihood, it is better to say, “O Allah! Superb Provider!” If someone is invoking Allah for mercy, it is better to say, “O Allah! The Most Merciful.” If someone is invoking Allah for dignity, it is better to say, “O Allah, the Almighty.” If someone is asking Allah for forgiveness, it is better to say, “O Allah, the Ever-Forgiving.”

6- Repeating and insisting on du’a:

Ibn ‘Abbas  narrated in the hadith we quoted before that the Prophet r said, “O Allah, accomplish for me what You have promised to me. O Allah, bring about what You have promised to me.” He continued his supplication to his Lord, stretching his hands, facing the Qibla, until his mantle slipped down from his shoulders. So Abu Bakr came to him, picked up his mantle and put it on his shoulders. Then he embraced him from behind and said: “Prophet of Allah, this prayer of yours to your Lord will suffice you, and He will fulfill for you what He has promised you.”^[5]

In the two sahih, Abu Hurairah t narrated that the Prophet r made du’a for the tribe of Daws and said, “O Allah guide Daws! O Allah guide Daws and bring them here as Muslims.”^[6] Imam Muslim also reports in his sahih, “A man who had traveled on a long journey, his hair disheveled and discolored with dust. He will raise his hands to the sky saying ‘O Lord! O Lord!’” ^[7]

It is Sunnah to make du’a three times and this is taken from the hadith by Ibn Mas’oud t that the Prophet r invoked Allah against Quraish three times. ^[8]

7-Making Du’a in secret:

Allah Almighty said,

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“Invoke your Lord with humility and in secret. He likes not the aggressors.” (7:55).

Making du’a in secret is more sincere; hence Allah praised Zakariah,

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“When he called out his Lord (Allah) a call in secret.” (19:3).

Some interpreters said that he did so in order to be sincere.

Sheikh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “Muslims made special efforts to make du’a silently. No one could hear them. It was only whispers between themselves and God, because Allah the Almighty said,

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“Invoke your Lord with humility and in secret. He likes not the aggressors.” (7:55).

Sheikh al-Islam referred to many reasons why Muslims should make du’a in secret.

In making Du’a we should not be hostile, use a lot of rhyme, or exaggerate with regards to linguistic styles, or ask for what is forbidden or evil, i.e. calling for sins or the cutting of from relations with relatives, gaining illegal money etc, as these prevent the acceptance of the du’a, the same one should not hesitate when making du’a and also not say Insha’Allah in the du’a.