Etiquettes and Impediments of Supplication

Praise be to Allah and peace be upon the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). I bear witness that there is no god but Allah alone with no partner with Him. I also bear witness that Muhammad is His Servant and Messenger.

One of the noblest and greatest acts of worship that makes a Muslim draws near to his Lord (Exalted be He) is supplication because it contains admission with the greatness, the power, the richness, and ability of the Creator. It also denotes the humiliation and submission of the servant to his Lord (Glory be to Him).

Allah (Exalted be He) command His Servants to worship Him and had promised to answer them. Allah (Exalted be He) says: “And when My slaves ask you (O Muhammad peace be upon him) 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.” [Surat Al-Baqarah: 186].

The people in supplication are of three types:

1- Those who call other than Allah: the polytheists, even if they supplicate Allah sincerely in adversity, it will not benefit them. Allah (Exalted be He) says: “And when they embark on a ship, they invoke Allâh, making their Faith pure for Him only: but when He brings them safely to land, behold, they give a share of their worship to others.” [Surat Al-`Ankabut: 65]. The Muslim, who supplicates Allah only in adversity and distress and forgets Him in easiness, takes the same ruling.

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “Whoever desires that Allah responds to him in adversity and anguish, let him supplicate frequently in adversity.”[1]

2- Those whom Allah gave of His favor and bounty, but they did not thank Him, but exceeded the limits and oppressed. Allah says about those people: “And your Lord said: Invoke Me, [i.e. believe in My Oneness (Islâmic Monotheism) and ask Me for anything] 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, (Islâmic Monotheism)] they will surely enter Hell in humiliation!” [Surat Ghafir: 60].

3- Those believers who knew their Lord and were sure that there will be no happiness or success in this world and in the Hereafter but from Him. Allah praises them by saying: “So We answered his call, and We bestowed upon him Yahyâ (John), and cured his wife (to bear a child) for him. 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. [Surat Al-Anbiya’: 90].

 

The Prophet (peace be upon him) explained to his nation the excellence of supplication saying: “There is nothing is better to Allah than supplication.”[2]

 

Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “Recite frequently: `Ya Dhal-Jalali wal-Ikram! (O You, Possessor of glory and honour).'”[3]

 

The Prophet (peace be upon him) explained to the nation that Allah (Glory be to Him) loves that His Servants supplicate Him frequently.

 

The poet said:

Do not ask the people for anything and only ask the One Whose gates are always open.

 

Allah will be angry with you if you do not ask Him, but the people are always angry when you ask them (for money or need).

Another poet from the Pre-Islamic Period said:

Allah does not have a partner and He knows what the hearts conceal.

The one who asks the people shall be deprived and the one who asks Allah shall not be disappointed.

 

A servant should take into account the following conditions in supplication:
First: Sincerity in supplication: An-Nu`man ibn Bashir (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: “Supplication is (the core of) worship.”[4]

Allah (Glory be to Him) explains the necessity of showing sincerity in worship: “And they were commanded not, but that they should worship Allâh, and worship none but Him Alone (abstaining from ascribing partners to Him), and perform As-Salât (Iqâmat-as-Salât) and give Zakât, and that is the right religion.”[Surat Al-Bayyinah: 5].

Allah also says: “And the mosques are for Allâh (Alone); so invoke not anyone along with Allâh.” [Surat Al-Jinn: 18].

Second: A person should not haste the response of his or her supplication because Allah is the best who knows the interests of His Servants. There is no one supplicates Allah but shall have his supplications answered, an evil to be warded off, or his supplication will be save for him to the Hereafter as was authentically reported from the Prophet in the authentic Hadith.[5] Therefore, the Prophet (peace be upon him) forbade that a person haste the response of his supplication.

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: “The invocation of anyone of you is granted (by Allah) if he does not show impatience (by saying, "I invoked Allah but my request has not been fulfilled.”[6]

 

Third: A person should not supplicate for sin or cutting the ties of kinship:
Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: “Whenever a Muslim supplicates Allah, He accepts his supplication or averts any similar kind of trouble from him until he prays for something sinful or something that may break the ties of kinship.”[7]

Fourth: A person must be of attentive heart during supplication, supplicating Allah in reverence and tranquility, and to be sure that his supplication shall be answered.

 

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “Supplicate Allah while you are sure that your supplications shall be answered.”[8]

 

Fifth: Fearing Allah by doing good deeds and avoiding bad deeds. Allah (Exalted be He) says: “For him (each person), there are angels in succession, before and behind him. They guard him by the Command of Allâh. Verily, Allâh will not change the (good) condition of a people as long as they do not change their state (of goodness) themselves (by committing sins and by being ungrateful and disobedient to Allâh). But when Allâh wills a people’s punishment, there can be no turning back of it, and they will find besides Him no protector.” [Surat Ar-Ra`d: 11].

 

Some Predecessors said: “Do not haste the answer while you blocked the way of response with sins.”

 

The poet said:
We supplicate Allah in every distress and then we forget about Him when the anguish is revealed
How come our supplication shall be answered and we blocked its way by sins!

 

Sixth: To know that one of the greatest impediments of answering the supplications is to eat up illicit funds and it is sad that most of us do not pay attention to this.

 

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “A time will come when one will not care how one gains one's money, legally or illegally.“[9]

 

For example: You see that some people take people's money unjustly and forcibly. Some of them take them by cunning and plots. Some of them take them by underestimating the wages of his workers. On the other hand, some place their money in the riba-based banks or deal in usury in their trade and dealings.

 

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: "O people, Allah is Good and He therefore, accepts only that which is good. And Allah commanded the believers as He commanded the Messengers by saying: " O (you) Messengers! Eat of the Taiyyibât [all kinds of Halâl foods which Allah has made lawful (meat of slaughtered eatable animals, milk products, fats, vegetables, fruits, etc.] and do righteous deeds. Verily, I am All-Knower of what you do." (Al-Mu`minun: 51).

And He says: “O you who believe (in the Oneness of Allâh - Islâmic Monotheism)! Eat of the lawful things that We have provided you with, and be grateful to Allâh, if it is indeed He Whom you worship.”

He then made a mention of a person who travels widely, his hair dishevelled and covered with dust. He lifts his hand towards the sky (and thus makes the supplication):" O Lord, O Lord," whereas his diet is unlawful, his drink is unlawful, and his clothes are unlawful and his nourishment is unlawful. How can then his supplication be accepted?”[10]

 

The scholars stated the etiquettes of supplication and explained that in their books. So, a person must know these etiquettes to abide by, such as:

1- A person should start supplication by praising Allah with His Noble Attributes.

2- Sending peace and blessings to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).

3- To be affirmative in his supplication and do not say: O Allah, forgive me if you want or something like this.

4- To raise his hands during supplication.

5- To face the Qiblah and be purified.

6- To admit his sins and admit the bounties and favors of Allah.

7- Showing humbleness and complaining to Him.

8- Do not supplicate for a sin.

I explained these etiquettes by the authentic Hadiths reported from the Prophet (peace be upon him).

 

9- To supplicate Allah in the preferable times where supplication is accepted such as during prostration, between Adhan (call to Salah) and Iqamah (call to start Salah), in the middle of the night, at the end of Friday, at rain, upon breaking the fast, Laylatul-Qadr (the Night of Revelation), on the Day of `Arafah, after the obligatory Salah, during Adhan for the obligatory Salah, during the Iqamah, during marching to Jihad, and upon waking up from sleep.

 

10- Using the authentic reported supplications.

These preferable times are authentically reported from the Prophet (peace be upon him).

 

The Prophet (peace be upon him) told his Companions about the people whose supplications are answered:

1- The supplication of a person to his Muslim brother.

2- The supplication of the parents to their children.

3- The supplication of a traveler.

4- The supplication of the oppressed.

5- The supplication of the just ruler.

6- The supplication of pious children to their dead parents.

7- The supplication of those who wake up from sleep if they supplicate Allah with the authentically reported supplications.

 

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “The supplication of the oppressed person is raised above clouds and Allah says to it: By My Honor and Glory, I shall give you victory even after a while.”[11]

 

The Prophet (peace be upon him) used to choose Jawami` Al-Kalim (the most concise expressions carrying the most eloquent meanings), so he used to say frequently : “And of them there are some who say: “Our Lord! Give us in this world that which is good and in the Hereafter that which is good, and save us from the torment of the Fire!“ And he used to say: “O Turner of the hearts, hold my heart to Your Religion.” He also said to `Ali (may Allah be pleased with him): “Say: O Allah, guide me and grant me success.” He taught `Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her to say on Laylatul-Qadr “O Allah, You are Forgiving and loves to forgive, so forgive me.” In addition to other supplications.

 

Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds. May Allah send His peace and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his Companions.