Salaah
al Istikhara
"Put your trust in Allah, certainly, Allah loves those
who put their trust (in Him)." [Surah al-Imran; 3:159]
Istikhara
is to seek guidance from Allah when one is faced with a problem
to which no solution is apparent. To ask Allah SWT to guide
you to the path best for you concerning an affair with two
Halal options. Whenever a person is faced with a difficult
problem, or becomes hesitant in making a decision and his/her
knowledge of the matter is insufficient to guide them then
after seeking advice from trusted friends and family, one
should turn to Allah SWT and beseech His grace. One should
willingly and with an open heart and mind supplicate for divine
guidance and ask for direction so that the problem is solved
in one's own best interest. The Dua at such an occasion is
called Istikhara.
At
anytime one makes a decision, one should seek Allah's guidance
and wisdom. Allah alone knows what is best for us, and there
may be good in what we perceive as bad, and bad in what we
perceive as good. This prayer is usually made when making
a decision to marry someone, or working out which university
to attend, and so on. But it can be related to any significant,
or insignificant aspect of a person's life. If confused about
a decision, where you have a choice to make, make this prayer.
Simply, seek Allah (Ta'ala)'s guidance.
It comprises of a two Rak'ah non-obligatory (Nafl) prayer,
prayed at anytime during the day, with the specified Dua recited
at the end.
The
Dua for Salaah al-Istikhara
According to a Hadith transmitted on the authority of Muhammad
Ibn al-Munkadir, it was Jabir Ibn 'Abdullah RA who said: "
Rasulullah SAW used to teach us how to seek guidance in choosing
the best option available in a practical enterprise [al-Istikhara
fi'l-amr], just as he would sometimes teach us a Chapter (Surah)
from the Qur'an.
"'If
one of you is concerned about some practical undertaking,
or about making plans for a journey, he should perform two
cycles of ritual prayer [rak'atain], not as an obligatory
observance [farida], but voluntarily. Then he should say:
Allahumma
inni astakhiruka bi ilmika wa-astaqdiruka biqudratika wa-as'aluka
min fadhlika al-adheem. Fa innaka taqdiru wala' aqdiru. Wa
ta'lamu wala a'alamu wa anta allaamul ghuyub. Allahumma in
kunta ta'lamu anna [hadhal-amr] khayrun li fi deeni wa-ma'ashi
wa-aqibat amri, fa'qdruhli wa-yasirh li thumma barik li feehi.
Wa in-kunta ta'lamu anna [hadhal amr] sharrun li fi deeniy
wa-ma'ashi was-'aqibat amri. Fa asrifh anni wa-srif 'anhu.
Wa aqdurh liyal khayr hayth kana thumma a-rdhini bihi
(O
Allah, Behold I ask you the good through Your Knowledge, and
ability through Your Power, and beg (Your Favour) out of your
infinite Bounty. For surely You have Power; I have none. You
know all; I know not. You are the Great Knower of all things.
O Allah! If in Your Knowledge [this matter] be good for my
faith (Deen), for my livelihood, and for the consequences
of my affairs, then ordain it for me, and make it easy for
me, and bless me therein. But if in Your Knowledge, [this
matter] be bad for my faith (Deen) for my livelihood, and
for the consequences of my affairs, then turn it away from
me, and turn me away therefrom, and ordain for me the good
wherever it be, and cause me to be pleased therewith.)
Imam
an-Nawawi holds that "after performing the Istikhara,
a person must do what he is wholeheartedly inclined to do
and feels good about doing and should not insist on doing
what he had desired to do before making the Istikhara. And
if his feelings change, he should leave what he had intended
to do, otherwise he is not completely leaving the choice to
Allah SWT, and would not be honest in seeking aid from Allah's
power and knowledge. Sincerity in seeking Allah's choice means
that one should completely leave what he himself had desired
or determined."
After
performing the Salaah, one should "have a good feeling"
-- a 'firmness' about one of the options. Whatever option
one feels is best right after saying the Dua should be the
decision. If still in doubt, the Salaah can be repeated (up
to seven times). It should be mentioned that there is also
no dream or specific timing involved to perform this prayer.
After having placed one's trust in Allah SWT, simply follow
one's feelings after performing it.
Overall
summary of the method
• In time of decision-making, and a feeling
of uncertainty about your affairs.
• You wish to pray to Allah Ta'ala to seek some
guidance (on a Halal matter).
• Before reciting the Dua' make sure that you are
not already inclined to a given decision; otherwise it will
mean that you serious about seeking guidance from Allah (Ta'ala).
• You perform the prayer, and recite the cited
Dua' at the end.
• Upon performing the prayer, you will have a feeling
or inclination towards one choice. So that is the
choice that you have to take, Insha Allah (God Willing).
• If your his mind has not been made up after the
first day, and some doubt still persists, then repeat the
Salaah the following day. This can be continued for up to
seven days. Insha Allah, you will come to know of the advantage
or disadvantage of that matter. |
Golfing
with an older man
A young man who was also an avid golfer found himself with
a few hours to spare one afternoon. He figured if he hurried
and played very fast, he could get in nine holes before he
had to head home. Just as he was about to tee off an old gentleman
shuffled onto the tee and asked if he could accompany the
young man as he was golfing alone. Not being able to say no,
he allowed the old gent to join him.
To
his surprise the old man played fairly quickly. He didn't
hit the ball far, but plodded along consistently and didn't
waste much time. Finally, they reached the 9th fairway and
the young man found himself with a tough shot. There was a
large pine tree right in front of his ball - and directly
between his ball and the green.
After
several minutes of debating how to hit the shot the old man
finally said, "You know, when I was your age I'd hit
the ball right over that tree."
With
that challenge placed before him, the youngster swung hard,
hit the ball up, right smack into the top of the tree trunk
and it thudded back on the ground not a foot from where it
had originally lay.
The
old man offered one more comment, "Of course, when I
was your age that pine tree was only three feet tall." |