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The Power of Du’a: Keep Asking. Allah Can Answer Any Du’a

The Power of Du'a: Keep Asking. Allah Can Answer Any Du'a

Praying for the Impossible

Why We Should Never Give Up Hope.

Remember when Imran’s wife said: ‘O my Lord, I have vowed that what is in my womb will be devoted exclusively for You. So, accept (it) from me. You, certainly You, are the All-Hearing, the All-Knowing.’ (3:35)

The Du’a that Allah Almighty Loved

The story of Maryam in the Qur’an is not like the Biblical version. Apart from the missing stable, donkey, and Joseph, the background to Maryam’s own birth, highlighting the very private moment, when Maryam’s mother Hannah, an old lady and wife of the Chief Rabbi of the Jerusalem makes du’a to Allah Almighty. A conversation that no one would have overheard, that may have been made in the dead of night, is plucked (from the numerous du’as she must have made throughout her life) and preserved for all time by being quoted in the Qur’an itself. Why? This childless woman who wished against all the odds to have a child appealed to her Lord with such sincerity and utter trust that He made her words a lesson for all supplicants. She made du’a as she had not lost hope that Allah Almighty could grant her what was physically impossible. She ends her du’a with the words ‘accept it from me’ and a further pledge to dedicate her child to His service. Her intention was not just to fulfil her desire for motherhood, but a means of showing her gratitude towards Allah Almighty by bringing up a pious child, and preserving Allah Almighty’s message to mankind. Similarly Ibrahim (peace be on him) made the du’a:
‘O my Lord! Make me one who performs As-Salat (muqima-as-Salat), and (also) from my offspring, our Lord! And accept my invocation.’ (14:40)
They both had vision for the future in which their offspring would continue to worship Allah Almighty and stay on the right path, in submission to Him. Hannah goes one step further and swears an oath, which is called ‘nadhr’, (i.e. makes a commitment to carry out something to please Allah Almighty if He grants her wish.) If one swears a permissible oath, one is then committed to fulfilling it.

Du’a Can Make the Impossible Possible

Allah Almighty is so pleased with her manner of appealing to him, He accepts her du’a making the impossible happen – blessing her with a child when it was physically impossible.

Du’a is Not Always Answered As You Expected

Allah Almighty blesses Hannah beyond every leap of imagination. First by giving her a daughter against her expectation of a son, then by granting her a daughter who would be among the best women ever to have lived, and further blessing her by granting that daughter the honour of being mother to the Prophet Eesa (peace be on  him) through one of the most incredible miracles.

Du’a is Not Always Answered When You Expected

One of the things we learn is that Allah Almighty may not give us exactly what we want or when we expect it. For example, Ibrahim’s du’a that Allah Almighty send someone from among the people of Makkah to them was answered 3000 years later, when Prophet Muhammad (peace be on him) was born. We cannot be hasty in expecting our du’as to be answered, but be sure that Allah is listening to you. There is wisdom when Allah Almighty delays acceptance. Had she not wished so desperately for a child, she would not have made the pledge and if she had had a daughter under different circumstances, she would not have dedicated her to the service of the temple as it was not the norm. By delaying the granting of a child, Hannah was brought to the point of making a pledge. Having made the pledge to dedicate her child to the temple, and now finds herself in the unusual position, after her daughter is born, of having to send a girl to the temple to fulfil her oath. The way these events unfolded were indicative of Allah Almighty’s hikmah (wisdom) as it leads to Maryam being raised in the way that is exceptional.

The 5 keys to boost the acceptance of your dua

1. Humility is a Key Component of a Successful Du’a

Hannah’s style of making du’a is reminiscent of Ibrahim’s du’a, when he and Ismail (peace be on them) were building the Kaaba:
‘Our Lord! Accept from us this (service); verily You alone are the All-Hearing, the All-Knowing.’ (2:127)
And indeed that Allah Almighty granted him a child in his old age in answer to his du’a:
‘O my Lord, bless me with a righteous son.’ So, We gave him the good news of a forbearing boy.’ (37:100-101)
This humility a common trait among righteous people.

2. Have Trust in Allah Almighty

Both have total certainty that He can make the impossible happen if He wills it, and both show total sincerity. The Prophet (peace be on him) said:
Allah the Most High said, ‘I am as My servant thinks (expects) I am.’ Narrated by Bukhari.
This means that if you doubt that Allah will accept your du’a then He will not fulfil it for you. Meanwhile, it is noteworthy that Allah Almighty accepts Hannah’s pledge as He has promised to answer the du’as of those who make du’a and He accepts the oaths of those who are elevated. Some people are so loved that Allah Almighty never disappoints them when they make a pledge.

3. The Best Time for Du’a

Choose the best time for du’a – the last third of the night, with minimal distraction and with deep concentration.

4. The Best Du’a Comes from the Heart

Du’a is not just from the lips, the most powerful du’a emanates from the heart. It does not have to be in any particular language.

5. Boosting Du’a

How else can we boosting our du’as chances of being accepted? By ensuring that we do not displease our parents. If we upset our parents, their ensuing negative feelings may lead them to make du’as against us, which could be accepted too. This can happen to even the most pious children if they neglect the reasonable and permissible wishes of parents. Keep trusting Allah, remain humble, implore Him sincerely by always questioning your intentions and insha’Allah Allah Almighty will accept your du’as. No matter how impossible they seem.

Comprehensive Du’as

Here is a link to the comprehensive du’as that you can make: The Comprehensive Du’a http://www.islamicstudies.info/literature/Duas.pdfns We cannot control the time when our du’a will be fulfilled and we must never lose hope that Allah Almighty will respond. Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Messenger of Allah (peace be on him) said:
The du’a of any one of you will be answered so long as he is not impatient and says ‘I made du’a but it was not answered’. (Bukhari and Muslim.)
The response to the du’a may take different forms: either Allah will respond and fulfil the du’a, or He will ward off some evil from you because of your du’a, or He will make something good easy for you to attain because of it, or He will save it with Him for you on the Day of Resurrection when you will be most in need of it. The Messenger of Allah (peace on him) said:
Whoever wishes that Allah would respond to him during hardship and grief, then let him supplicate plentifully when at ease. (Tirmidhi)


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Umm Hana has been studying with Shaykh Haytham Tamim since 2013 when she was inspired by the irresistible combination of spirituality and common sense, and desire to promote social justice, peace, harmony and tolerance.