Ramadan 2025 | The Power of Prophetic Prayers | Mufti Azeemuddin Ahmed | 03/17

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

The Punishment of the Grave: Narrations from Aisha

Aisha رضي الله عنها relates that one day the Prophet ﷺ came to her while there was a Jewish lady sitting with her. And the Jewish lady was saying:

تُفْتَنُونَ — you will go through difficulty in the grave. So the Prophet ﷺ was perturbed by this statement of hers, and the way she was saying that the Muslims are going to suffer punishment in the grave.

So the Prophet ﷺ instead said to her: بَلْ أَنْتُمْ — not us, rather it is the Jews themselves. The Prophet ﷺ became shaken by this statement, and then he said:

(Sahih Muslim)

It is the Jews who will go through the punishment in the grave. Aisha رضي الله عنها says:

(Sahih Muslim)

We waited for some nights — the conversation stopped there. Then the Prophet ﷺ came and said: I have received the revelation that you — the Muslims as well — will be put through trials and tests in the grave. Aisha رضي الله عنها says: I heard the Prophet ﷺ thereafter used to seek refuge from the عذاب القبر — the punishment of the grave.

So the background of the story is, as you see here, that this lady came and made a statement that the Muslims are going to be going through difficulty in the grave. And the Prophet ﷺ at that time — evidently nothing had been revealed about this — then received the revelation afterwards and confirmed: yes, the Muslims also, based on their sins, may go through difficulty in the grave.

The Second Narration: Two Old Women of Madinah

In another narration, Aisha رضي الله عنها says:

(Sahih Muslim)

Two old women from the elders of Madinah came to me once. They said: indeed, the people of the grave — they get punished in their graves. She said: at that time I just belied them. I didn't want to believe them. They both left. Then the Prophet ﷺ came to me a little bit afterwards. I said to him: O Messenger of Allah, two old women from the old women of Madinah just came to me, and they claimed that the people of the grave — not Muslims or Jews or Christians specifically, just people of the grave — يُعَذَّبُونَ فِي قُبُورِهِمْ, they will be punished in their graves. The Prophet ﷺ responded: صَدَقَتَا — they both have spoken the truth. Indeed, people will get punished in the grave — such a punishment.

تَسْمَعُهُ الْبَهَائِمُ — the animals will be able to hear it. بَهِيمَة، بَهَائِم — these are animals that cannot speak our language. They are livestock and other types of animals that are not gifted with the ability to communicate. But Allah gave them something else: they can actually hear that which we cannot hear.

You know they have a dog whistle, right? It's at a wavelength that only dogs can hear, not others. So there are things that we, thinking ourselves to be so strong and so powerful and so able-bodied, cannot hear, cannot see, cannot comprehend, cannot hold. And so this is an example of something which we cannot hear. It is happening. It is happening to human beings — our race, our people, whichever religion. But the animals can hear it; we cannot.

Aisha رضي الله عنها says:

(Sahih Muslim)

I never saw Rasulullah ﷺ in any salah except that he would seek refuge from the punishment of the grave.

Imam Nawawi rahimahullah mentions that there seem to be two different situations here. In the first situation — جَلَتِ الْقَضِيَّةُ الْأُولَى — the Prophet ﷺ was informed through revelation afterwards. Then in the second instance, these two women came, and Aisha رضي الله عنها belied them, not knowing that revelation had already descended upon the Prophet ﷺ regarding عَذَابِ الْقَبْرِ. And so now when she asked the Prophet ﷺ about it, he said صَدَقَتَا — they have both spoken the truth.

The Third Narration: The Jewish Servant

There is a third riwayah in Sahih Muslim and Musnad Ahmad. Aisha رضي الله عنها says:

(Sahih Muslim; Musnad Ahmad)

There was a Jewish lady that used to serve Aisha رضي الله عنها — خِدْمَة, as a servant. And whenever Aisha رضي الله عنها would appreciate her kindness — thank her, appreciate her, maybe give her a gift — always this يهودية, this Jewish lady, would respond to Aisha رضي الله عنها by saying: وَقَاكِ اللَّهُ عَذَابَ الْقَبْرِ — May Allah protect you from the punishment of the grave. SubhanAllah. This lady would make du'a for Aisha رضي الله عنها: May Allah protect you from the punishment of the grave.

She says: فَدَخَلَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ عَلَيَّ، فَقُلْتُ: يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ، هَلْ لِلْقَبْرِ عَذَابٌ قَبْلَ يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ؟ The Prophet ﷺ one day came to me. I said: O Messenger of Allah, is there actually a punishment in the grave before the Day of Judgment?

This is a big issue. Those of us in 'Aqeedah class have covered it. Because there are many people who deny this. They say: there is no such thing as a punishment of the grave. Why would you have punishment of the grave when you have the Day of Judgment? What's the point of the Day of Judgment? But punishment and reward begins from the grave. So that's why — عَذَابُ الْقَبْرِ حَقٌّ — and those types of texts you'll find in the 'Aqeedah books.

So Aisha رضي الله عنها said the same thing: O Messenger of Allah, is there any punishment in the grave before the Day of Judgment? The Prophet ﷺ said:

No. Why are you asking this? Where did you get this from? She said:

This Jewish lady — we never show any kindness to her but she must respond in a prayer for us, saying: May Allah save you from the punishment of the grave. The Prophet ﷺ said:

This is an incorrect statement — a lie. And they have many lies against the Prophets, which is true. Many lies against Allah. From amongst them: عُزَيْرٌ ابْنُ اللَّهِ — Uzayr is the son of Allah. From amongst them: لَنْ تَمَسَّنَا النَّارُ إِلَّا أَيَّامًا مَعْدُودَةً — We are never going to enter Jahannam, and fire will only touch us for a few days — that's it, we're safe. Where did you get that from? So they would make this up.

(Sahih Muslim; Musnad Ahmad)

The Prophet ﷺ continued doing whatever he did until Allah willed. Then one day he came out — نِصْفَ النَّهَارِ, midday — of his house. SubhanAllah. He came out of his home, midday, with his clothing gathered in his hand — you could think of it like he was rushing. You know when a person is in a hurry, you don't want your shawl or your shirt to be falling, so you kind of hold it together. He's holding it together. مُحْمَرَّةً عَيْنَاهُ — his eyes are bloodshot red. And he is calling out with the loudest tone he has, the loudest pitch:

The Warning: Fitna Like the Dark of Night

O people! Very soon, fitna and trials will befall you. You will have problems coming your way. How are these problems? كَقِطَعِ اللَّيْلِ الْمُظْلِمِ — like the portions of the dark night. قِطَع means portions, اللَّيْل means night, مُظْلِم means very dark. What happens in the night? Every hour gets darker. Every hour gets darker. There's no turning back. Once night starts, every hour brings more darkness. After maghrib — it's dark. Just watch. Then the sun sets. The moon sets sometimes. Stars disappear at times. SubhanAllah, it gets darker and darker. Maybe a cloud will come in. Whatever source of light you had, it's all gone. Pitch dark.

So the fitan will only get worse. Trials and tribulations upon the ummah will only get more difficult. We sit there and think about the 70s and the 80s. At that time when you were in the 80s or 90s, you thought: man, things are falling apart. Things are so messed up. Astaghfirullah, this is happening, that is happening. And then now, I'm sure for those of us who have nostalgia, we just look back and reminisce those old days. Yes, there were basement masalas. No beautiful, well-built masajid. Definitely no big domes and minarets. No nice large spaces for gyms and this and that. We have so much, Alhamdulillah. But then there's a lot of things that you miss from those days.

The State of Our Masajid in Ramadan

I was just thinking yesterday — summer Ramadan. When we started, when this masjid opened, Ramadan was in July. We opened a few days before Ramadan — July 3rd, 2013. A few days after that, Ramadan began. And I remember how packed it was. There was no space. And 'Isha would be at a fast pace — Alhamdulillah, we try to get people in and out as soon as possible, really, because we want to make sure people try to get the Khatm al-Qur'an in all 20 raka'at. And if we extend it too long, people won't stay. So we are one of the quickest tarawihs, probably.

I was in Dallas recently. And the tarawih there was ending at 11:20, 11:50 — two and a half hour tarawih. But how many people are actually there? That's the question. After four raka'at, a big chunk leaves. After eight raka'at, maybe 85-90% leave. Some programs start happening within the masjid while the tarawih is going on. I was actually asked to speak to a group, so I went to go speak. And while I was speaking, I could hear tilawat going on. I looked at the masjid — tarawih is continuing. But there's like one saff, two saffs, that's it. Huge masajid that have 700-800 people for Fajr — when it comes to after eight raka'at, for the remainder of the 20, to listen to the khatm, you will have a third or fourth or fifth of the Fajr crowd.

Thinking about the summer here in this masjid — even though it was so late, you would see that the masjid was still packed. There would be khatm al-Qur'an night. I remember that. It all ended at like 1:45. But there were still 1,500 people, because every single square inch of this place was covered with people, and we still had people outside. That is the very max. Now fast forward to where we are today. 'Isha in the first week started at 7:30. Can you imagine that? We didn't have iftar at 7:30 — iftar was at 8:45. 'Isha starts at 7:30. Two days into tarawih — just that Friday, Saturday, Sunday — after that you just saw the crowd shrink.

If you can't make it for tarawih, can you not make it for 'Isha in the masjid, in Ramadan? To get the reward of at least doing it for about half of the night? One fard is equivalent to 70 fard. And you see, the crowds are gone. What happened? Where are you rushing? You're not sleeping at 8 o'clock. And then you see where the lull is in these 10 days — it's so sad. Right now we have 8 saffs, maybe 7 saffs for 'Isha. And SubhanAllah, that is equivalent to our normal 'Isha in Darus Salam. What we're getting after our 8 raka'at is what we get on a normal 'Isha night here.

I was speaking to another imam of one of the biggest masajid in the area yesterday. And he was sharing with me his concern. He said: in all these years, I've never seen such a low attendance in the middle 10 days — only 5 saffs for 'Isha, as opposed to 10 or 12. And of course, the first few nights, the same thing — Friday, Saturday, Sunday was packed, after that, no. Then yesterday someone went to another beautifully huge, brand new masjid that was built somewhere. I don't want to name names. He said: I got there at 4, and there were more people in the lobby than in the masjid. And the masjid had maybe 3 saffs. On a Sunday night. In this brand new masjid — the excitement has been there for just a few months since it opened — SubhanAllah, 3 saffs.

So this is what I'm looking at. What's going on? There was a time — we used to at least have the "Ramadani Muslim." You know, all the huffadh, they would stop smoking in Ramadan at least. They would start growing out their beard — it was a big thing. You start growing your beard in Ramadan. So many people. In Ramadan, we do it. Ramadan, we change our ways. We make tawbah from gambling for Ramadan. And if we can't do it for all of Ramadan, then for the last 10 days or whatnot. And now I'm seeing that yes, lots of more places have been built. But our population has skyrocketed. And when it comes to just that "Ramadani Muslim" concept — that's also finishing. Where you say, okay, let me just pray in the masjid for 30 days, then I'll see you next year. I'm not even seeing that. That crowd is not even coming. Where are they going? I have no idea. And the masajid all around are saying the same thing.

Those masajid that are filled to the brim — understand that the percentage of people praying in the masjid is probably quite similar to elsewhere. Some places have a little bit more percentage. But those places that have a massive amount of musallis, that's because the population in the area is massive — that's what it is. It's not that all of a sudden everyone there has become super religious. It's that the masjid-going people happen to have moved to that area.

Why I'm saying all of this is that we will never be able to address and solve the problem unless we understand the issue. If we end up becoming apathetic and just say, oh, look at the crowds, look at who's not here — we have to look at the bigger picture. There was a time, just 3-4 years ago, there was not a single Muslim-owned tea store in our area. Not a single one. And in 4 years, I've heard the local district has stopped giving permits because of such oversaturation — 7, 8, 9 on one street. So you see this growth that's happening in terms of our community. We have to see a similar growth of people coming to the house of Allah for at least Salat al-'Isha and the tarawih.

There was a time where few people used to leave after 8 raka'at. And I understand — people are fatwa shopping. If you can find anyone saying anything to make life easy, why not? Grab it. But now it's like — when 8 raka'at finishes here at 9:15, when 'Isha has changed to 8:30, and we're done with 8 raka'at by 9:30 or 9:40 — you still see 70%, 60% of the masjid leaving. This is on my mind. If this is going to happen to us adults, you tell me, in 10 years, what's going to happen? Who is going to even stay till later? And in another 10 years, our 'Isha in Ramadan and outside Ramadan will be the same. Because we are dipping down so fast, so quickly.

That's not how it was when the immigrants first came to this country. SubhanAllah. They cared about that. That's what I mean — the "Ramadani Muslim." Brother, I don't do anything. But Ramadan, I'm going to be there for all 20 raka'at and I'm going to listen to the entire Qur'an. Religiously. And it was that level of focus on these basic things. Is that the end of the world? Like, Ramadan and tarawih, that's it? No, of course not. But at least they had that down. And having that down, I felt, was a peg that kept them anchored — that one Ramadan, inshallah, their life will actually change.

But now when you're not even allowing a person to be a Ramadani Muslim — to say, at least in Ramadan I'm going to pray all my salah in the masjid, and I'm going to stay till the end of tarawih, and I'm going to make a point to be there for khatm al-Qur'an. If a person is not listening to the entire Qur'an in tarawih, nor is he praying and reciting his own Qur'an in tarawih — what khatm al-Qur'an are you talking about? It's not your khatm, it's someone else's khatm. We should all have our own khatm.

Today I'm speaking about something 'ajib. I think it was Mawdudi — or someone — who said something beautiful. The Arabic statement was so nice, but it roughly translates as: you are in an era where the sin of this era will be the virtue of the future era. How true these words are. The sin of today will be regarded as the virtue of tomorrow. And tomorrow's virtue is the sin of today. Meaning, every era is getting worse and worse. So what we regard as unacceptable in the 70s and 80s — if someone does that today, it's fine. Like marrying an irreligious person. Today they say: my son wants to marry a religious girl. And I'm not making this up, I've heard this with my own ears: "at least it's a girl." Because we've heard what's happening in the world already. So SubhanAllah — someone saying "irreligious girl" or "irreligious boy" is now the smaller concern. People say: at least she wants to get married to a boy, not a girl. You're seeing that. And I don't know if this change has ever been as rapid as it has been in the last 50 years. The type of fitnah that has come is so rapid that virtue and vice have been flipped very, very quickly.

So hold on to whatever we have. As I sit there and think about the stinky basements, the small cramped spaces, the dirty wudu areas of my childhood — yeah, they weren't good. But SubhanAllah, they say: masajid kachi thin, musalli pakke the. Aaj masajid pakki hain, musalli kacche. Which means: previously the masajid were very weak in construction — made out of mud bricks — but the musallis were made out of iron. And today the masajid are built out of stone blocks and high-grade stone, but SubhanAllah, I as a musalli am very weak. SubhanAllah.

Passing the Baton to Our Children

When we understand where we are headed, at least we can try our best to throw a safety net for our kids. And dear dads and moms who are listening to me wherever you are: our children more than likely will be 5-10 steps below us in terms of deen. There are exceptions — no doubt. Ibrahim عليه السلام came from what type of household, right? Many prophets have come from very difficult households. But usually, the way we are moving towards the Day of Judgment, every generation is going to be lower than the previous. So if we want our children to remain firm, then we ourselves have to be extra firm — just like our parents and our elders were when they first came and moved to this country.

Stay till the end. I remember as a little kid, 5-6 years old — SubhanAllah — we used to pray. We used to get tired, man. Whether it was summer or winter. But we used to have little snacks, cereal, Ziploc bags in our pocket. And I just don't remember if I used to eat in between the salah or not — let's conveniently forget that part. But the idea was: there was no such thing as an exception. We were 6-7, but brother, you have to stand for all 20. There was no running around. No "oh, you're a little kid, it's fine." No. You're standing right here, and you're going to stand and pray — not even sit. You fall asleep standing? Go ahead, fall asleep standing. But you need to pray all 20 and listen to the whole Qur'an. Those were the days. May Allah reward our parents and our elders who kept us steadfast on that.

And we are unfortunately failing this battle. Very few dads are able to keep their kids with them. Very few dads and very few moms. The girls are roaming around. Today all the masajid are complaining — young college and teenage boys and girls are just out in the parking lots, talking to each other, crossing over the streets, going to coffee shops, gas stations, and whatnot, while tarawih is going on. It's not masjid hopping, it's parking lot hopping. That's what ends up happening. When I'm entering the masjid, I'm looking at who's outside. What type of people are outside? What's going on over here? It's a mess. All the old people sitting in the front row. Kids, grandkids roaming around the place. If you ever went to the bathroom, look at all the prayer halls, all the side prayer halls and lobbies — you'll see a bunch of kids sitting on their phones.

What can we say? The dad has to have the فِكْر. The mom has to have the فِكْر. Now, if a 16-17 year old — not a little kid — is sitting on his phone, missing tarawih in Ramadan, what in the world will happen outside of Ramadan? Why don't we wake up? Why don't we make our kids at least Ramadani Muslims, the way they used to be? Because 29 days — if you show up for 'Isha, 29 days if you stand for 20 raka'at tarawih, 29 days if you participate inshallah for the tafsir — honestly, that will change your habit. I can't say it won't bring even 5% change. No. 29 days of this type of regimen, inshallah, will definitely bring some change. You can't say 100% change, but change will happen. But when we are not motivating our kids to even do that much, then it's a very big problem.

And so for those dads who say, I'm tired — do it for the sake of your kids. For those moms who say, I'm tired — do it for the sake of your kids. Because I'm really afraid of what's going to happen as soon as we die.

In one of my trips overseas, one of my ustads said something to me that honestly gave me goosebumps. I wanted to cry, or I did cry, maybe, at that time. I'll say it: He looked at me and said — the shayateen are just waiting. They are just waiting for you and the dads in your age group, and the elders — naturally — they are waiting for the day your soul comes out of your body. And no sooner does that soul come out, they are going to pounce on your kids. Because the only reason they haven't been able to snatch all the kids is because the dads and the moms who are still somewhat religious are holding down the fort. Those moms and dads who are already liberal — khalas, their kids are out. But the kids whose mom and dad are still practicing — their kids are still under the protection of their parents, and under the protection of the duas of the parents. And so the shayateen are just waiting: as soon as this mom and dad breathe their last, they are done.

He said that with such conviction, and me knowing what's happening on the ground, honestly it gave me goosebumps. Because I know this is true. Unless we dads and moms are listening. Unless we wake up and say: SubhanAllah, no. I cannot allow this to happen. I have to pass the baton of spirituality to my kids while I'm still alive. I have to pass the baton of dua to my kids while I'm still alive. I have to create spirituality, taqwa, and awakening within them before I breathe my last.

Because most senior citizens — dads and dadis, grandpas and grandmas — they make dua for their kids. But brother, when you're dead, you can't make dua. When you're six feet under, your duas are gone. Dua lasts as long as you're doing it. MashaAllah, you're alive — you have to do the dua. But along with the dua, you have to train those grandkids, train those kids to remain Muslim. If that's not happening, then we're in big trouble. If the senior generation is not passing down these morals, ethics, and values to the younger kids — don't just say, "Son, I'm doing dua for you." That's very good, but it's not sufficient. We actually have to do hands-on training. Whatever good qualities you picked up from your mom and dad, you have to pass it on. Otherwise, wallahi al-'azim, what my Shaykh said is true — they're waiting. They're waiting. And they're going to grab them.

And how are we going to face the Day of Judgment, knowing that our entire generation, until يَوْم القِيَامَة, is going to suffer because it just takes one son, one daughter to become an atheist? And there are so many. You all don't know this. Maybe you're sitting and listening to this talk. You don't know how many people who come for tarawih, who come for 'Isha, who tell me themselves that their sons are no longer Muslim. Their daughters are no longer Muslim. It has become such a common thing. While they're still alive and coming to the masjid, if your son or daughter — la qadarallah — has already left Islam, ya ikhwati, ya ikhwani, what in the world is going to happen in the next 20 years? What chance do we have of saving our generation from becoming the fuel of the fire of Jahannam?

If Only You Knew What I Know

So SubhanAllah — this is what the Prophet ﷺ said. He came out midday with his eyes red, gathering his clothing, rushing, and he says:

(Sahih Muslim; Musnad Ahmad)

O people! لَوْ تَعْلَمُونَ مَا أَعْلَمُ — if only you knew what I know, لَبَكَيْتُمْ كَثِيرًا — you would have cried a lot, وَلَضَحِكْتُمْ قَلِيلًا — and you would have laughed very little.

We don't know — that's what we're enjoying. Dinner, iftar, suhoor, all that stuff. We're having fun. Because we don't know what's awaiting. The worst thing you think is that your son doesn't get into the college he wants. What are we seeing today here? A professor of an Ivy League school — one of the top physicians in the entire state. SubhanAllah, some incredible specialty. She was not allowed to enter the country. She went home to visit Lebanon. From the airport, they sent her back. Deported. Yes, she was not a US citizen, but she had qualifications and credentials that most US citizens don't have. So stop thinking all of this stuff is going to save you. When push comes to shove, without the fadl of Allah, we won't have anything. The most important concern for every mom and dad right now should be: where is my children's deen? Do not allow our ignorance to become a means of depriving our children from what they actually need.

And then the Prophet ﷺ said: O people, seek refuge in Allah from the punishment of the grave. For indeed the punishment of the grave is true. The fitnah is on top, and then fitnah, as soon as you go in. You know, they say, "Alhamdulillah, he died peacefully." He died peacefully — who knows if he died peacefully? What is happening? The real story begins after the eyes close and the soul comes out of the body.

Protection from the Punishment of the Grave

From amongst those punishments of the grave, the Prophet ﷺ said: one of the main causes —

(Sunan Ibn Majah, Hadith 348; also narrated in Musnad Ahmad)

The majority of the punishment of the grave will be because of not protecting themselves from urine. How many dads have taught their own children how to relieve themselves properly? You see that in all the masajid — the bathrooms are stinking, urine all over the floor. We're not in some random rest stop on an I-80 or something. You're in a masjid. Why is a masjid toilet like this? Because someone's dad and mom didn't show their kids how to relieve themselves properly. So now you have it all over the floor. And if it's all over the floor, it's obviously on their clothes. If it's on their clothes, they can read tahajjud and qiyam al-layl all they want — it's not even accepted. Because they're wearing najis clothing. Their wudu is not done, their salah is not done. Obviously they're going to have 'adab al-qabr because of that.

Simply by not teaching the children how to relieve themselves properly in the toilet — that you cannot use the bathroom without cleaning yourself properly. If you don't have toilet paper, knock on the door, we'll get it to you. But you have to use toilet paper, and on top of that you have to use water, and you have to dry yourself. And whenever you're traveling, going to school, make sure you keep toilet paper with you in your pocket and in your backpack. Those are teachings that we have to give. Otherwise they're not going to know. So it's غَفْلَة here — heedlessness — that we don't teach our little ones about this, and they don't learn it until they're 25-30 years old. SubhanAllah, they're still making these mistakes. So عَذَاب القَبْر — there are many things about it. It's a long discussion. But one hadith says the majority of the people — their punishment in the grave will be because of what? Not protecting themselves from urine.

I ask Allah to awaken me, awaken all of us. May He make us amongst those who cry a lot and laugh less. May He make us amongst those who truly take from our parents and our elders what they have, and make an effort fully to pass it down to our next generation — not only to our own children, but to those who are in the age of our children. Ameen, Rabbil Alameen.

Du'a

O Allah, create an awakening within all of us. O Allah, create an awakening within the Ummah. Ya Allah, create an awakening within the Ummah. O Allah, allow the Ummah to realize where we stand today. Allow us to realize, ya Allah, the absolutely difficult situation we have truly found ourselves in. O Allah, allow the Ummah to realize that we are on the edge of a cliff. O Allah, if we do not take care of ourselves now, O Allah, all will be lost. Entire generations will be lost. O Allah, there is no prophet coming after us. Whatever work we have to do to safeguard ourselves and our generations, we have to do ourselves. Ya Allah, awaken the Ummah. Allow them to get out of their heedlessness. Allow them to get out of their intoxication of wealth, intoxication of fame and name, intoxication of material gain. Ya Allah, protect all of us from any and all forms of intoxication.

O Allah, allow us to truly become cognizant of Your presence. Allow us to become amongst those who repent abundantly, who beg for Your mercy abundantly, who believe in every single name and attribute of Yours, who believe in every single verse of Yours, who believe in every authentic hadith of the Prophet ﷺ. Ya Allah, make us amongst those who benefit from the Qur'an and Sunnah. Make us amongst those who benefit from Ramadan. Make us amongst those, and our children and our progeny, from the people of yaqeen. Ya Allah, make us from the people of yaqeen. Make us from the people of conviction.

Ya Allah, ya Allah, we are too weak to fight the shaytan. We are too weak to fight the hidden agendas of shaytan — from the humans and shaytan from the jinn. O Allah, we are too weak. Ya Allah, we will be swayed and swept away by these plots and plans unless You save us. Ya Allah, unless You save us. Ya Allah, do not allow us to get swept away by the plots and plans of shaytan. Do not allow us to get swept away by the plots and plans of the dajjali fitan. Please, ya Allah, allow us to become aware of what is right and what is wrong, no matter how dark it becomes. O Allah, in this dark night that the hadith talks about, allow us, ya Allah, to become carriers of a lantern. Allow us to benefit from the lantern ourselves, and allow us to lead the way for thousands and thousands of others.

O Allah, make all of us and our families people of knowledge, and families of those who support knowledge, and families of those who propagate knowledge and who practice upon that knowledge. Ya Allah, ya Ilah al-'Alamin, today is the 17th day of Ramadan. O Allah, this is the day on which the Battle of Badr was fought, and in which an amazing victory took place. O Allah, we ask You — allow all of us to become victorious against our own nafs and our shaytan. Allow us to gain victory over our bad habits. Ya Allah, every single husband and wife that is quarreling with one another — allow them to become victorious against the shaytan and nafs that makes them fight. Allow every parent and child who is disconnected — every father who has lost connection with his son and daughter, every mother who has lost connection with her children — and who have become victims of their own nafs and their shayateen — ya Allah, on this day of Badr, allow all of them to become victorious against the shaytan and the nafs that is destroying their relationships.

O Allah, every single sibling that is disconnected from one another — O Allah, allow the power of the Qur'an and Sunnah, and the power of fasting, and the power of this blessed 17th of Ramadan, to remove any and all obstacles that have come between siblings. Ya Allah, we ask You to grant us all the ability and the strength to overcome our bad habits and inculcate good habits within ourselves. O Allah, the middle 10 days is also halfway through. O Allah, ya Allah, the days of rahmah are gone. The days of forgiveness are almost coming to an end. Do not allow any one of us or our loved ones to become deprived of the blessings of Ramadan. Ya Allah, fill up all of our masajid. Ya Allah, across the globe, fill up all of our masajid. Ya Allah, in the month of Ramadan, at least fill up all of our masajid. O Allah, allow people to participate in their own khatm al-Qur'an, or in the khatm al-Qur'an of tarawih. O Allah, allow people to enjoy standing up in tarawih for long hours and for long stretches. Allow the desire to come within them to be able to give this sacrifice.

Ya Allah, we become very, very weak when it comes to 'ibadah. O Allah, our bodies can handle all sorts of sacrifices for dunya, but when it comes to sacrifices for deen, our bodies become weak. Ya Allah, grant us a strong body. Grant us a body that can handle difficulty in the face of doing 'ibadah. O Allah, we ask You, ya Allah, to make all of us amongst those whose duas are always accepted — مُسْتَجَابِي الدَّعَوَات, whose duas are always accepted. Grant us all cure from any spiritual, physical, emotional, and mental illness any one of us or our loved ones or family members are going through. O Allah, have mercy upon the entire Ummah that is going through so much difficulty. Grant victory to all the people of the truth. Grant victory to the people of the truth.

Ameen.