The Prayer of seeking Allah's Guidance (Salat Al-Istikharah)

The Prophet  was keen to teach the believers the Du’aa' (supplication) for Istikhaarah (seeking Allaah’s guidance). Jaabir narrated: "The Prophet would instruct us to pray for guidance in all of our concerns, just as he would teach us a chapter from the Quran. He would say: “If any of you intends to undertake a matter, then let him pray two supererogatory Ra’kahs (units of prayer) after which he should supplicate: "Allaahumma innee astakheeruka bi'ilmika wa astaqdiruka bi qudratika wa asáluka min fadhlikal-'Atheem, fa innaka taqdiru wa laa aqdir, wa ta'lamu wa laa a'lam, wa anta 'allaamul-Ghuyoob. Allaahumma in kunta ta'lam inna– and here he mentions his need – khayrun lee fee deenee wa dunyay wa 'aaqibatu amree wa 'aajilihi wa aajilihi faqdurhu lee wa yassirhu lee thumma baarik lee feeh, wa in kunta ta'lam inna haatha al-Amra sharrun lee fee deenee wa dunyay wa 'aaqibatu amree wa 'aajilihi wa aajilihi fasrifhu 'annee wasrifnee 'anhu waqdur lee al-Khayru haythu kaan thumma radh-Dhinee bih" (O Allaah! I seek Your counsel by Your knowledge and by Your power I seek strength and I ask You from Your immense favour, for indeed You are able while I am not and indeed You know while I do not and You are the Knower of the unseen. O Allaah! If You know this affair – and here he mentions his need – to be good for me in relation to my religion, my life, and end, then decree and facilitate it for me, and bless me with it; and if You know this affair to be ill for me towards my religion, my life, and end, then remove it from me and remove me from it, and decree for me what is good wherever it be and make me satisfied with such.)” [Al-Bukhaari]

The Benefits and Rulings of Istikhaarah:

1. This Hadeeth tells us the precise words with which to invoke Allaah for guidance. There is, therefore, absolutely no doubt left about how to seek guidance.

2. It is recommended to perform a two-Rak'ah prayer before the Istikhaarah Du’aa' (supplication) is recited. Imaam Ibn Abu Jamrah who was one of the early scholars, stated: "The wisdom behind the performance of the two-Rak'ah prayer before supplicating lies in the fact that the purpose of Istikhaarah is to achieve success, both in this life and in the Hereafter. For this purpose, the servant needs to knock at the door of the King (i.e., Allaah) and nothing is better and more effective in this regard than praying to and glorifying Allaah and showing one’s need for His bounty and constant assistance.”

3- The believer should then praise Allaah Almighty as He deserves to be praised, for Allaah loves that His servants do this.

4- An important rule for any Du’aa' is that one should ask Allaah by His sublime Attributes; he should select that attribute which reflects Allaah’s power and ability to do the thing being asked of Him; one should therefore supplicate by saying, for example: ‘O Razzaaq (i.e., Provider)! Sustain me.”

5- As with every Du’aa', the supplicant should have humility before His Lord. The slave recognises that Allaah alone can do everything and that there is no strength or power except His, and that he is utterly helpless without His Lord’s help.

6- The Prophet would teach his companions to begin their supplications by asking Allaah for benefit and safety in their religion, for indeed nothing is more precious than that and no calamity worse than its loss.

7- The Companions were extremely diligent in performing Istikhaarah. The Prophet would teach his companions to pray for guidance in all of their concerns, just as he would teach them a chapter from the Quran. Imaam Ibn Hajar stated that this shows the great importance of consulting Allaah through supplication because it was mentioned here, in the same breath, with the importance and necessity of reciting the Quran in prayer.

What matters should Istikhaarah be performed for?

The Hadeeth states that we should consult Allaah about all matters. Imaam Ibn Abu Jamrah stated: "This is a general statement pertaining to something specific. Istikhaarah should not be about things understood to be an obligation, nor about things that are known to be Haraam (forbidden). For example, Salaat, (Prayer), is compulsory and so we should not ask Allaah whether to perform it or not; when Allaah and His Messenger have made something clear to us we must accept it completely."

Allaah confirms this by saying (what means): “It is not for a believing man or a believing woman, when Allaah and His Messenger have decided a matter, that they should [thereafter] have any choice about their affair.” [Quran 33:36]

This tells us that before we act, we should find out the Islamic position regarding it and then comply accordingly. Istikhaarah is performed for matters where we have a choice, (such as marrying a particular person, buying a car, etc…) regardless of whether they are small or big matters or whether one finds them to be good or not. Yet some people only resort to Istikhaarah when they are confused about a matter; if they see good in it, they proceed, relying on their own judgement, thus forgetting the Sunnah.

What does one do after performing Istikhaarah?

Once the Muslim has consulted his Creator about a particular matter through Istikhaarah, he should proceed to undertake what he is content with, relying on Allaah to achieve his purpose, fully convinced that whatever Allaah wills happens, and whatever He does not will, never happens.

It is not a condition that after Istikhaarah has been made, one should expect a dream relating to something unusual happening, even though Allaah may choose to make such things occur. Therefore, Istikhaarah is, in essence, a form of faith-education, after which the Muslim should proceed to undertake a matter with full confidence of his success, having consulted his Creator in whom he has full confidence and trust.

Thereafter, even if he faces difficulties, he never loses faith in the wisdom of Allaah, because as a Muslim he does not see success merely in worldly terms, for he is more concerned with the rewards and blessings of the Hereafter. Part of his faith is the belief that calamities may be of benefit to him in the sense that Allaah forgives his sins if he is patient through them. When the believer reaches this level of understanding of Istikhaarah and the results it brings about, his satisfaction will be great, as will be his contentment and perseverance, Allaah willing, since he fully believes, having consulted his Creator, that whatever the situation is, it is his Lord’s chosen one.

This increases his faith and he will never feel regret for anything he misses in life, nor will he indulge in the use of the expression: “If only this or that happened…” This level of understanding is subsequently reflected in his personality to such an extent that he will always appear firm and self confident.

These etiquettes are derived from the aforementioned Hadeeth, which many Muslims have unfortunately turned their backs to in lethargy and absent mindedness.