The Power Of Du'a (Istikharah) Ustadh Aqeel Mahmood

The Power of Du'a al-Istikharah

We often find ourselves uncertain about whether we made the right choice. But if only there was a du'a which we could learn and implement in our lives — where we'd know that the decision that we made was the correct one. And there is something in Islam, as Islam is something which is complete, that if we learnt this specific du'a, this specific supplication, our lives would be made much easier for us. And not only is it just a du'a, but Allah has blessed us, along with this du'a, with a prayer. Not only is it just a supplication, but it comes along with a specific and special prayer along with it.

So what is this special du'a? What is this supplication that Allah and His Messenger Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, have told us about? What is this du'a that the companions would say the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, would teach them in all of their affairs — and they would implement it in all of their affairs?

Something which they did so much that it covered everything in their lives. He would teach this to them just like he would teach them a surah from the Qur'an. So just like we memorize a surah from the Qur'an — ayah by ayah, word for word, letter for letter — this supplication was the same. They would memorize it precisely.

And this du'a, brothers and sisters, is the du'a of al-Istikharah — the supplication of al-Istikharah. When a person doesn't know what decision he needs to make in his worldly life, Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, has blessed us with this du'a and with this prayer of al-Istikharah.

The Hadith of Istikharah

He said in a hadith — as reported by Jabir ibn Abdullah, may Allah be pleased with him — that if one of you is deliberating, thinking about something, and needs to make a decision with options laid out in front of him, then let him pray two rak'aat. Let him pray two rak'aat of non-obligatory prayer. So he prays two rak'aat which aren't from the obligatory prayers — not from the Fajr prayer or any other prayer — but he takes time out, makes the effort, and prays two rak'aat. Then after these two rak'aat, he makes this du'a — he makes this supplication, the du'a of al-Istikharah.

The scholars say that a person can make this du'a before the salam and after the salam. And they say it is better for him to make this du'a before the salam, because the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, would make du'a and supplicate to Allah while he was in the salah and before the salam.

The Du'a of Istikharah

So what does a person say in this beautiful du'a? What does he ask for? This is a du'a that many of us have in our homes, in our du'a books, but we don't realize the status of this du'a, the power of this du'a, and how it could change our lives, brothers and sisters.

The hadith continues, and the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said that a person should say:

"O Allah, I seek Your guidance in making a choice by virtue of Your knowledge — بِعِلْمِكَ — by virtue of Your knowledge." Knowing that Allah is al-'Alim, is All-Knowing. He knows what is happening right now outside of these walls. He knows what is happening at home with our families, with our loved ones, and He knows what has already happened, what is happening now, and what will happen in the future.

"And I seek ability by virtue of Your power — وَأَسْتَقْدِرُكَ بِقُدْرَتِكَ — and I ask You, مِنْ فَضْلِكَ الْعَظِيمِ, by Your great bounty. For verily You have power and I have none — فَإِنَّكَ تَقْدِرُ وَلَا أَقْدِرُ — and You know and I know not — وَتَعْلَمُ وَلَا أَعْلَمُ — and You are the Knower of all hidden things — وَأَنْتَ عَلَّامُ الْغُيُوبِ."

You have power and I have none. We all say لَا حَوْلَ وَلَا قُوَّةَ إِلَّا بِاللَّهِ — we all say this without really understanding what it means. That there is no power, no might except with Allah. Our ability to walk, our ability to see, our ability to speak — sometimes we take these things for granted, and if it wasn't for these things we wouldn't be able to make a living and support our families. They say that a person only appreciates these things when he doesn't have them. When a person loses his ability to speak, that's when he appreciates that gift he has been given. And when he has pain in his leg and he is limping and unable to walk, that's when he appreciates the ability to walk — this great gift from Allah.

And so the du'a continues. After praising Allah, after mentioning the attributes of Allah — and this is from the etiquettes of du'a, that a person praises Allah before asking for something — we continue the du'a and we say:

"O Allah, if in Your knowledge You know this matter that I am going to mention…" — and then he mentions the problem that he has in this part of the du'a. And it is enough for him to be thinking about this in his mind and in his heart. Because Allah knows whatever is hidden in the chest — He knows what we are thinking. And when a person makes du'a, he makes du'a knowing that Allah will respond. We say إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وَإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ — You we worship and You we ask for help — and while knowing that He will help us, even when we make du'a and don't say anything outwardly. We say it all in our hearts because we know that Allah is as-Sami' — He is the All-Hearer, the All-Knower — knowing that He knows what we are thinking, what we are feeling, what distresses us.

And so we mention this problem that we have. And the du'a continues — we mention the religion first and foremost, because that is what we were created for, to worship Allah. As He says:

"And I have not created jinn and mankind except to worship Me."

"If You know that this affair is better for me in my religion, and my livelihood, and the end of my affairs — the consequences of my actions — then ordain it for me and make it easy for me." So we supplicate to Allah and we ask that whatever decision we make, it is made easy for us. And not only do we ask for it to be made easy, we ask Allah to bless it for us.

"And if in Your knowledge it is bad for me — bad for me in my religion, and in my livelihood, and in my affairs — then turn it away from me, and turn me away from it. And ordain for me the good wherever it may be, and make me happy with this choice — make me happy with this decision that You have made for me."

And so this is a du'a that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, taught us and taught his companions. And if a person were to memorize this du'a, brothers and sisters — if he took 15 minutes out of his time to memorize this du'a — it would change 15 years of his life, and the rest of his life. Because every decision that he makes, he makes it after supplicating to Allah.

What Do We Make Istikharah For?

As we mentioned in the hadith, the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, as Jabir ibn Abdullah reported, he used to teach this du'a in all of their affairs. So this is something which we should use in our worldly lives — not only in the things that we think are major, such as marriage, what job to take, what house to buy, whether to buy a certain car. But rather we should make this du'a even in those things which we consider to be small.

Because how many times, brothers and sisters, have we seen that we've made a decision — something which we thought was minor, something which was small — and then a week down the line, one month later, or maybe longer, that decision comes back to haunt us. We're so surprised how a small thing can turn out to be such a big thing. How a small problem, a small decision, a small choice that we made, became such a big issue in our lives.

'Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, reported that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: "Ask Allah even if it is for the lace of your shoes." Because if a person supplicates to Allah for the small things, then naturally when something big happens — when a calamity befalls him, when he is tested — he will turn to Allah straight away.

And so a person makes this du'a of Istikharah, and he consults those people who he thinks are righteous — his friends, his family. As Allah says:

"And consult them in your affairs." So consult those people who you know are righteous. Ask them for their advice in the decision that you're going to make. And when a person does this — makes this salah, makes this du'a, puts his trust in Allah, and asks advice from his fellow brothers and sisters — then he puts his trust in Allah, and Allah will ordain for him the good wherever it may be.

I say this, and I ask Allah's forgiveness for me and for you. Indeed, He is the Forgiving, the Merciful.

After Making Istikharah — What Next?

All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds. And peace and blessings be upon the most honoured of prophets and messengers — our Prophet Muhammad and his family and companions.

The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, continued in the hadith and said: after a person has made this du'a, and consulted his fellow Muslim brothers and sisters regarding the problem he has and the decision he needs to make — look at what has settled in his heart, what has rested in his heart, what he thinks is the best decision. For verily, the good is in that thing.

A Common Misunderstanding

As for the act that some people do — the misunderstanding that a person should pray Salat al-Istikharah before he sleeps, and then when he sleeps, he will have a dream showing him what decision to make — there is no report from the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, regarding this. And we don't take our religion from dreams. How many times have we had dreams where we wake up in the morning completely confused? We have the strangest of dreams, subhanAllah.

The Best Times for Du'a

And so a person makes this du'a, makes this salah, in the times when du'a is accepted — such as the last part of the night. In the last part of the night, a person's du'a is accepted. And likewise, when it rains. And how blessed are we to live in this country where it rains all the time — we should take advantage of this and supplicate to Allah when it rains.

And if a person is unable to make the salah — he might be driving and needs to make a decision while driving — then it is enough for him to supplicate and make the du'a of al-Istikharah, to make this supplication without the prayer.

Sticking to the Decision

Once a person makes his du'a, once he puts his trust in Allah, he makes his decision — and he sticks to that decision. He doesn't change his mind and doesn't become indecisive. He sticks to his decision and knows for a fact that whatever happens from now on is going to be better for him, because he has made du'a to Allah. He has done all he could, all that was in his power, to make sure that his decision was a correct one. And so he puts his trust in Allah and continues with his life and the decision that he made.

And whatever happens to him — whether he thinks it is bad or good — Allah says in the Qur'an:

"It may be that you dislike something — that you hate something — and it is something which is good for you. And it may be that you love something and it is something which is bad for you. And Allah knows, and you do not know."

We don't know what is going to happen to us ten minutes from now. We don't know what's going to happen to us straight after the salah when we go outside, when we leave the masjid. But Allah knows. So He knows what is best for us. And we put our trust in Allah — and how great is this du'a, if we were to implement it in all our lives, in all the decisions that we made, knowing for a fact that Allah is behind every decision that we make. That our lives are in His hands.

Examples from the Companions

From the times that the companions made al-Istikharah was when the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, passed away, and they were deciding how to bury him — they made Istikharah in this issue. And also the wife of Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, Zaynab, may Allah be pleased with her — it is reported that she made the du'a of al-Istikharah before she married the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him. She made du'a because she wanted to know whether she would be able to give the Messenger of Allah his due rights.

And you all know the famous book, Sahih al-Bukhari — the most authentic book after the Book of Allah. Imam al-Bukhari would make du'a and supplicate to Allah before writing a single hadith in his book. And look at the value and the status of this book in Islam.

Conclusion and Advice

So never underestimate, brothers and sisters, the power of du'a. Supplication is worship. Because a person knows that Allah will respond, and he knows that Allah will help him if he is sincere — if he has sincerity in making his du'a, in making his supplication.

To summarize, brothers and sisters — I'd like to advise each and every one of us to learn this blessed du'a, this beautiful du'a, the du'a of al-Istikharah. Because when we come to a point in our lives where we have to make a decision — when it comes to our family, our jobs, our careers, our studies — we don't become confused and we don't become burdened, and we know that we can make du'a to Allah and that He has given us a way out. So I advise all my brothers and sisters to learn this du'a, to learn this supplication — and this could be a life-changing moment in their lives.

And we ask Allah that He gives us the ability to memorize this beautiful du'a and to perform this beautiful salah. And the remembrance of Allah is the highest, the most important, and the greatest. And Allah knows what you hear.