Dhikr and Dua | Mufti Azeemuddin Ahmed | 4.15.2021

The Two Parts of La Ilaha Illallah

When we are taking the name of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, the Kalima Tayyiba, just as a reminder, first part is the negation, second part is the affirmation. لا إله is where we free our heart from everything besides Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. We clean it up from all the filth and the effect of various things that we are connected with and the love that we have put into our heart. And with إلا الله, then we beautify our heart after it's been made empty.

First we have to empty out our heart, and that's a process we should do, as though a sword is cutting through all the false idols within our hearts. لا إله is that sword that cuts through all the false idols in our hearts. And then إلا الله is where the beauty of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala's muhabba and love and ma'rifah penetrates into our hearts.

The Power of Dhikr Against Shaytaan

And this is one of the most powerful dhikrs, of course, that this is what shaytaan runs away from. Just like the Adhan is called, and shayateen run away from where the Adhan is called, as it comes in hadith, similarly, a person should focus on that لا إله إلا الله or الله الله, as we say, is a dhikr, the name of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, something that creates a lot of agitation to the shayateen. And that those shayateen that were with us in our body, that are affecting us all the time, making us or inviting us towards sin through the barakah of the dhikr, they are becoming weakened and they're being pushed out.