https://www.khutbah.info/supplication/ A person’s certainty of their inability, and constantly manifesting their utmost need of Allah, is the most perfect state for their Lord to see them. And one draws nearer to their Lord by realizing the purpose for which Allah created the creation. And the more that one feels that state and magnifies their manifestation of it, their servitude to Allah increases, and their status with their Creator is elevated. Ibn Al-Qayyim, may Allah have mercy on him, said: Whoever Allah wants good for, He will open for him the door of humility and neediness of Allah Almighty, of continually seeking refuge in Allah Almighty, of feeling one’s utmost need for Allah, of seeing his own faults, ignorance, and transgression, and witnessing the favor of his Lord, His benevolence, mercy, generosity, kindness, self-sufficiency, and perfection.
إِنَّ الْحَمْدَ لِلَّهِ ,نَحْمَدُهُ ,وَنَسْتَعِينُهُ وَنَسْتَغْفِرُهُ , وَنَعُوذُ بِاللهِ مِنْ شُرُورِ أَنْفُسِنَا وَمِنْ سَيِّئَاتِ أَعْمَالِنَا ,مَنْ يَهْدِهِ اللهُ فَلَا مُضِلَّ لَهُ , وَمَنْ يُضْلِلْ فَلَا هَادِيَ لَهُ , وَأَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ وَأَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا عَبْدُهُ وَرَسُولُهُ
Verily, all praise is for Allah. We praise Him, we seek His assistance and we ask for His forgiveness. And we seek refuge in Him from the evils of our selves. Whoever Allah guides, none can misguide. Whoever He misguides, none can guide. And I bear witness that there is no deity other than Allah and I bear witness that Mohammad is His slave and messenger.
يَا أَيُّهَا الّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ حَقَّ تُقَاتِهِ وَلَا تَمُوتُنَّ إِلَّا وَأَنْتُمْ مُسْلِمُونَ – آل عمران:102
Al Imran 102 : O you who believe! Fear Allah as He should be feared, and die not except in a state of Islam.
Oh people:
A person’s certainty of their inability, and constantly manifesting their utmost need of Allah, is the most perfect state for their Lord to see them. And one draws nearer to their Lord by realizing the purpose for which Allah created the creation. And the more that one feels that state and magnifies their manifestation of it, their servitude to Allah increases, and their status with their Creator is elevated. Ibn Al-Qayyim, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
Whoever Allah wants good for, He will open for him the door of humility and neediness of Allah Almighty, of continually seeking refuge in Allah Almighty, of feeling one’s utmost need for Allah, of seeing his own faults, ignorance, and transgression, and witnessing the favor of his Lord, His benevolence, mercy, generosity, kindness, self-sufficiency, and perfection.
And indeed, supplication is the greatest act of worship in which this state is manifested, so it is the most honorable matter to Allah. The Messenger of Allah ﷺsaid:
لَيْسَ شَيْءٌ أَكْرَمَ عَلَى اللَّهِ مِنَ الدُّعَاءِ
Nothing is more honorable to Allah than supplication. [Tirmithi 3370, Grade: Sahih]
It is the characteristic of servitude to Allah, and the sense of submission to Allah, which carries within it the meaning of praising, glorifying, exalting and asking Allah.
Allah Almighty said:
وَقَالَ رَبُّكُمُ ادْعُونِي أَسْتَجِبْ لَكُمْ إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يَسْتَكْبِرُونَ عَنْ عِبَادَتِي سَيَدْخُلُونَ جَهَنَّمَ دَاخِرِينَ-غَافِرٍ 60
Ghafir (40) 60: And your Lord says, “Call upon Me; I will respond to you.” Indeed, those who disdain My worship will enter Hell [rendered] contemptible.
This verse includes the supplication of worship and the supplication of asking. As for the supplication of worship, it is every act of worship that Allah has commanded, whether obligatory or recommended. So if a Muslim performs it, it is as if they are beseeching Allah the Almighty – to reward them for it, honor them with His bliss, protect them from his torment, and through it, to rectify their religious and worldly affairs.
And as for the supplication of asking, it is directly requesting Allah to fulfill one’s needs of this world and the hereafter. Both types of supplication, the supplication of worship and the supplication of asking, are solely the right of Allah alone, and if directed to other than Him, becomes associating partners with Allah the Exalted. Allah Almighty said:
وَمَنْ أَضَلُّ مِمَّنْ يَدْعُو مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ مَنْ لَا يَسْتَجِيبُ لَهُ إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ وَهُمْ عَنْ دُعَائِهِمْ غَافِلُونَ-الْأَحْقَافِ 5
Al-Ahqaf (46) 5: And who is more astray than he who invokes besides Allah those who will not respond to him until the Day of Resurrection, and they, of their invocation, are unaware.
And Allah Almighty said:
وَمَنْ يَدْعُ مَعَ اللَّهِ إِلَهًا آخَرَ لَا بُرْهَانَ لَهُ بِهِ فَإِنَّمَا حِسَابُهُ عِنْدَ رَبِّهِ إِنَّهُ لَا يُفْلِحُ الْكَافِرُونَ-الْمُؤْمِنَونَ 117
Al-Mu’minun (23) 117: And whoever invokes besides Allah another deity for which he has no proof – then his account is only with his Lord. Indeed, the disbelievers will not succeed.
Indeed, nothing has ever knocked on the gates of heaven like supplication. Because through it, is validating the connection with the Creator – may He be glorified – and placing ones affairs before Him, and calling upon Him with whatever the soul carries of its worries, distresses, fears, dreads, hopes and desires. Supplication is the acknowledgment of servitude to Allah alone, and that Allah Almighty takes and gives, heals and afflicts, overlooks missteps and pardons sins.
In the agreed-upon hadith, the Prophet ﷺ narrated from his Lord:
أَذْنَبَ عَبْدٌ ذَنْبًا فَقَالَ: اللَّهُمَّ اغْفِرْ لِي ذَنْبِي، فَقَالَ تَبَارَكَ وَتَعَالَى-: أَذْنَبَ عَبْدِي ذَنْبًا فَعَلِمَ أَنَّ لَهُ رَبًّا يَغْفِرُ الذَّنْبَ، وَيَأْخُذُ بِالذَّنْبِ، ثُمَّ عَادَ فَأَذْنَبَ فَقَالَ: أَيْ رَبِّ اغْفِرْ لِي ذَنْبِي، فَقَالَ تَبَارَكَ وَتَعَالَى-: عَبْدِي أَذْنَبَ ذَنْبًا فَعَلِمَ أَنَّ لَهُ رَبًّا يَغْفِرُ الذَّنْبَ، وَيَأْخُذُ بِالذَّنْبِ، ثُمَّ عَادَ فَأَذْنَبَ فَقَالَ: أَيْ رَبِّ، اغْفِرْ لِي ذَنْبِي، فَقَالَ تَبَارَكَ وَتَعَالَى-: أَذْنَبَ عَبْدِي ذَنْبًا، فَعَلِمَ أَنَّ لَهُ رَبًّا يَغْفِرُ الذَّنْبَ، وَيَأْخُذُ بِالذَّنْبِ، فَقَدْ غَفَرْتُ لَكَ، فَلْيَفْعَلْ مَا شَاءَ
A servant committed a sin and said: “O Allah, forgive me my sin.” Allah – blessed and exalted – said: “My servant has committed a sin and has known that he has a Lord who forgives sins and takes them to account. Then he sinned again and said: ‘O my Lord, forgive me my sin.’ Allah – blessed and exalted – said: ‘My servant has committed a sin and has known that he has a Lord who forgives sins and takes them to account.’ Then he sinned again and said: ‘O my Lord, forgive me my sin.’ Allah – blessed and exalted – said: ‘My servant has committed a sin and has known that he has a Lord who forgives sins and takes them to account. So, I have forgiven you, so let him do what he wills. [Bukhari 7507, Muslim 2758a]
And Allah saying, “So let him do what he wills” is meant to convey grace and favor; because whenever such a person commits a sin, they repent from it. It is not intended to encourage the sin or to permit it.
And when Allah – Glorified be He – wants good for a person, He inspires them to supplicate and seek His help, and makes their supplication and seeking help a reason for the good that He decrees for them. As Umar bin Al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, said:
I am not concerned about the response to my supplication, but rather my concern is about the supplication itself. When I am inspired to supplicate, then the response accompanies it.
So, one should not deem anything too significant to ask for in supplication, for whatever is considered much by people is little in the dominion of Allah, and whatever is seen as difficult by people is easy for Allah. And the Prophet ﷺ said:
يَدُ اللهِ مَلْأَى لَا تَغِيضُهَا نَفَقَةٌ، سَحَّاءُ اللَّيْلَ وَالنَّهَارَ
Allah’s hand is full, not diminished by the continuous spending, day and night. [Bukhari 4684 and Muslim 993]
So, recognize your desperate need for Allah. For Allah – Exalted and Majestic – descends every night to the lowest heaven during the last third of the night, in a manner befitting His majesty, and says:
مَنْ يَدْعُونِي فَأَسْتَجِيبَ لَهُ، مَنْ يَسْأَلُنِي فَأُعْطِيَهُ، مَنْ يَسْتَغْفِرُنِي فَأَغْفِرَ لَهُ
Who is calling upon Me, that I may respond to him? Who is asking Me, that I may give to him? Who is asking My forgiveness, that I may forgive him? [Bukhari 1145, Muslim 758]
Matrif bin Abdullah said:
I thought about the essence of goodness, but goodness is plentiful, fasting and prayer. And it is in the hands of Allah the Exalted and you cannot get what is in Allah’s hands except by asking Him, so that He gives you. Therefore, the essence of goodness is supplication.
And Sheikh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
I contemplated the most beneficial of supplications, and it is asking Allah for help to do what pleases Him. Then I saw it in Surah Al-Fatiha:
إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وَإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ-الْفَاتِحَةِ 5
Al-Fatiha (1) 5: It is You we worship and You we ask for help.
And he also noted:
لا إلهَ إلَّا أنتَ سُبحانكَ إنِّي كنتُ مِنَ الظالمينَ
There is no deity except You; exalted are You. Indeed, I have been of the wrongdoers
It contains an acknowledgment of one’s true state, and that no one can absolve themselves from this description, especially while calling upon Allah Almighty. For indeed, the sincere hearts and righteous supplications are the troops that cannot be defeated.
Allah Almighty said:
ادْعُوا رَبَّكُمْ تَضَرُّعًا وَخُفْيَةً إِنَّهُ لَا يُحِبُّ الْمُعْتَدِينَ * وَلَا تُفْسِدُوا فِي الْأَرْضِ بَعْدَ إِصْلَاحِهَا وَادْعُوهُ خَوْفًا وَطَمَعًا إِنَّ رَحْمَةَ اللَّهِ قَرِيبٌ مِنَ الْمُحْسِنِينَ-الْأَعْرَافِ 55-56
Al-A’raf (7): 55-56: Call upon your Lord in humility and privately; indeed, He does not like transgressors. * And do not cause corruption in the earth after its reformation and call upon Him in fear and aspiration. Indeed, the mercy of Allah is near to the doers of good.
أَقُولُ مَا تَسْمَعُونَ وَأَسْتَغْفِرُ اللهَ لِي وَلَكُمْ مِنْ كُلِّ ذَنْبٍ فَاسْتَغْفِرُوهُ إِنَّهُ هُوَ الغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ
I say what you have heard and I seek forgiveness from Allah for me and you from every sin. So seek forgives from Him, Verily He is Oft-Forgiving, the Most Merciful.
Second Khutbah
الحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ, وَالصَّلَاةُ وَالسَّلَامُ عَلَى رَسُولِ اللهِ , وَ أَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَاْ إِلَهَ إِلَّاْ اَللهُ وَحْدَهُ لَاْشَرِيْكَ لَهُ وَأَشْهَدُ أَنَّ مُحَمَّدَاً عَبْدُهُ وَرَسُوْلُهُ
All praise is to Allah, and peace and blessings upon the Messenger of Allah, and I bear witness that there is no deity other than Allah and I bear witness that Mohammad is His slave and messenger.
Oh Muslims:
Indeed, persistence in supplication is a manifestation of contentment with Allah as Lord, and it does not contradict being content with His decree. For He, Glorified be He, loves to be asked persistently just as He loves contentment with His decree. Among what aids in reaching the lofty level of persistence in asking Allah is the supplicant’s realization of the great realities of servitude encompassed by the honor of persistence in asking Allah. For in persistence is displaying one’s utter need of Allah, singling out Allah alone for answering, submitting to Allah’s command, having good expectations of Allah, and awaiting Allah’s bestowal and relief.
And from the greatest matters that motivate a supplicant to persistently ask Allah is consciousness of the ultimate aim and purpose of supplication, which some scholars have described by saying: A person hastens (in expecting their supplication to be answered) only when their purpose from supplicating is to obtain what they asked for, and if they do not attain what they desire, supplication becomes burdensome for them. A person’s purpose for supplicating should be the act of supplicating to Allah, asking Allah, and always showing one’s need for Him, and one should not depart from the characteristic of servitude, obedience to Allah’s command and prohibitions, and submission to his Lord – the Exalted – in humility and submissiveness. Indeed, Allah – the Exalted – loves insistence and persistence in supplication.’ And, ‘Let not the delay in receiving a response, while being persistent in supplicating, lead you to despair, for He guarantees to answer you in what He chooses for you, not what you choose for yourself, and at the time He wills, not the time that you will. For calling upon Allah, showing one’s neediness and humility to Allah are in themselves sufficient. For sometimes a person is not answered due to their elevated status with Allah.
And establishing a daily regimen for supplication is among what achieves insistence and persistence in asking Allah, as was practiced by the righteous predecessors. Urwah bin Zubair, may Allah have mercy on him, used to persist on his daily portion of supplication just as he persisted on his daily portion of the Quran. And if a person is honored with the sincerity of insistence and persistence in asking Allah, then they taste the sweetness of supplication, enjoy calling upon their Lord, and waiting for bestowal and relief, whose sweetness surpasses all sweetness.
We ask Allah Almighty to make us among those who realize the servitude to Him alone and taste the sweetness of supplicating Him. Indeed Allah is All Hearing, Answering.
هَذَا وَصَلُّوا وَسَلِّمُوا عَلَى نَبِيِّكُم كَمَا أَمَرَكُمْ بِذلِكَ رَبُّكُمْ , فَقَالَ
I conclude with this and send prayers of blessings and peace upon your Prophet as your Lord commanded:
إِنَّ اللَّهَ وَمَلَائِكَتَهُ يُصَلُّونَ عَلَى النَّبِيِّ ۚ يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا صَلُّوا عَلَيْهِ وَسَلِّمُوا تَسْلِيمًا
Al Ahzaab (33) 56: Indeed, Allah confers blessing upon the Prophet, and His angels [ask Him to do so]. O you who have believed, ask [ Allah to confer] blessing upon him and ask [ Allah to grant him] peace.
اللَّهُمَّ اهْدِنا فِيمَنْ هَدَيْتَ وَعَافِنا فِيمَنْ عَافَيْتَ وَتَوَلَّنا فِيمَنْ تَوَلَّيْتَ وَبَارِكْ لنا فِيمَا أَعْطَيْتَ وَقِنا شَرَّ مَا قَضَيْتَ إِنَّكَ تَقْضِي وَلاَ يُقْضَى عَلَيْكَ وَإِنَّهُ لاَ يَذِلُّ مَنْ وَالَيْتَ تَبَارَكْتَ رَبَّنَا وَتَعَالَيْتَ
O Allah, guide us with those whom You have guided, grant us well-being among those You have granted well-being, be an ally to us along with those whom You are an ally to, and bless what You have bestowed upon us, and save us from the evil of what You have decreed. For verily You decree and none can decree over You. He whom You support can never be humiliated. Glory is to You, our Lord, You are Blessed and Exalted.
اللَّهُمَّ إِنَّا نَسْأَلُكَ مِنَ الْخَيْرِ كُلِّهِ عَاجِلِهِ وَآجِلِهِ مَا عَلِمْنا مِنْهُ وَمَا لَمْ نَعْلَمْ وَنَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنَ الشَّرِّ كُلِّهِ عَاجِلِهِ وَآجِلِهِ مَا عَلِمْنا مِنْهُ وَمَا لَمْ نَعْلَمْ اللَّهُمَّ إِنَّا نَسْأَلُكَ مِنْ خَيْرِ مَا سَأَلَكَ عَبْدُكَ وَنَبِيُّكَ وَنَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ شَرِّ مَا عَاذَ بِهِ عَبْدُكَ وَنَبِيُّكَ اللَّهُمَّ إِنَّا نَسْأَلُكَ الْجَنَّةَ وَمَا قَرَّبَ إِلَيْهَا مِنْ قَوْلٍ أَوْ عَمَلٍ وَنَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنَ النَّارِ وَمَا قَرَّبَ إِلَيْهَا مِنْ قَوْلٍ أَوْ عَمَلٍ وَنَسْأَلُكَ أَنْ تَجْعَلَ كُلَّ قَضَاءٍ قَضَيْتَهُ لَنا خَيْرًا
O Allah, We ask You for all that is good, in this world and in the Hereafter, what we know and what we do not know. O Allah, we seek refuge with You from all evil, in this world and in the Hereafter, what we know and what we do not know. O Allah, we ask You for the good that Your servant and Prophet has asked You for, and we seek refuge with You from the evil from which Your servant and Prophet sought refuge. O Allah, we ask You for Paradise and for that which brings one closer to it, in word and deed, and we seek refuge in You from Hell and from that which brings one closer to it, in word and deed. And we ask You to make every decree that You decree concerning us good
عِبَادَ اللّهِ إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَأْمُرُ بِالْعَدْلِ وَالْإِحْسَانِ وَإِيتَاءِ ذِي الْقُرْبَىٰ وَيَنْهَىٰ عَنِ الْفَحْشَاءِ وَالْمُنكَرِ وَالْبَغْيِ يَعِظُكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَذَكَّرُونَ
Servants of Allah. Indeed, Allah orders justice and good conduct and giving to relatives and forbids immorality and bad conduct and oppression. He admonishes you that perhaps you will be reminded.
اُذْكُرُوا اللَّهَ الْعَظِيمَ يَذْكُرْكُمْ واشْكُرُوهُ يَزِدْكُمْ واسْتَغْفِرُوهُ يَغْفِرْ لكُمْ واتّقُوهُ يَجْعَلْ لَكُمْ مِنْ أَمْرِكُمْ مَخْرَجًا وَأَقِمِ الصّلَاة
Remember Allah, the Great – He will remember you. Thank Him for His favors – He will increase you therein. And seek forgiveness from Him – He will forgive you. And be conscious of Him – He will provide you a way out of difficult matters. And, establish the prayer.
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