Ramadhaan – A Date with Dr. Zakir
Episode 12
Ramadhaan – The Month of Supplications
(Duration – 45 minutes)
Yusuf Chambers: Dear Brothers and sisters in Islam and Humanity, Assalamu Alaikum Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatuh, may the peace, the mercy and the blessings of Allah (Subhanahu wa Ta’ala) be on all of you. Welcome to the show Ramadhaan- A date with Dr Zakir. I am your host Yusuf Chambers and today we will be discussing the topic ‘Ramadhaan - The month of Supplications’. Dr Zakir, Assalamualaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh!
Dr. Zakir: Walaikum Assalam Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatahu
Yusuf Chambers: Well Dr. Zakir, yesterday we were talking about Ramadhaan as being the month of repentance and because it was such a lengthy topic we didn’t cover all of the viewers’ questions. Today we will cut short the interview in exchange for answering the viewer’s questions…
Dr. Zakir: InshaAllah.
Yusuf Chambers: On the topic generally about repentance and supplication. There is such a small difference between the two but it’s a world in itself. So Dr. Zakir if I could just pose the first question today. Why is Ramadhaan referred too often by many people as being the month of supplications?
Dr. Zakir: Alhumdulillah, Was Salaatu Was Salaam Aala Rasoolillah Wa Ala Aalihi Wa Ashaabihi Wa Ajma’een, Amma Baad.
A’uzu billahi minash shaytan nir-rajeem, Bismillah hirrahman nirraheem.
Rabbish rahli Şadri Wa Yassir Li ‘Amri Wa Ahlul `Uqdatam Min Lisaani Yafqahu Qawli.
Before I answer a question I would like to first define what is the meaning of the word supplication.
Supplication means to call upon Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala, the All Mighty and Glorious with devotion, with sincerity and solemnity and with complete submission. And our beloved Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihe wa sallam) said, its mentioned in a Sahih Hadith of
Tirmidhi (Book of Faith) Hadith no. 2616, our beloved Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihe wa sallam) said, that
“There are 3 gates of goodness.
The first is fasting which is a shield from the hellfire.
Second is a Sadaqa i.e. charity. That charity extinguishes sin same as water extinguishes fire.
And the third is standing n prayer in the late hours in the night”
So here we realize that there is a relationship between supplication, prayer and fasting.
And Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala says in the Quran in Surah Baqarah ch. no. 2 verse no. 186, Allah says that
“If my servants ask thee concerning Me, tell them I am indeed close to them and I listen to the prayer of every supplicant. And tell them that if they listen to my call willingly and if they believe in Me, I will take them to the straight path.”
Here we realize the closeness of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala along with His believers, His servants and He says that if My slaves, if My servants, my servant means the closeness that the human beings have with Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala, if they ask you concerning Me tell them I am indeed close to them. It shows the closeness between the believers and Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala. And He says I will respond to them
And Allah further says in the Quran in Surah Nisa ch. no. 4 verse no. 32
“But ask from the bounty of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala”
And our beloved Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihe wa sallam) said, its mentioned in
Sahih Bukhari Vol. no. 8 (Book of Riqaaq) Hadith no. 6502, the beloved Prophet said that Allah says
“Ask Me and I will give it to you. Ask me your protection and I will protect you”
And as far as Ramadhaan being called as the month of supplication, our beloved Prophet said,
it’s mentioned in a Sahih Hadith of from Al Baihaqi (Vol. no. 3 Book of Prayer) Hadith no. 6393 where the beloved Prophet that
“Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala does not reject the prayer of 3 kinds of people. One is the father who prays for his child, his son or daughter.
The second is a fasting person especially when he breaks his fast and
The third is the traveler”
And our beloved Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihe wa sallam), he further said,
its mentioned in a Sahih Hadith of
Ibn Maajah (Vol. no. 3 Book of Fasting) Hadith no. 1643, the Prophet said that
“Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala emancipates the slaves from the hellfire during every hour when the fast is broken and does this every night”
And our beloved Prophet also said, it’s mentioned in a Sahih Hadith of
Sahih Al Targheeb (Vol. no. 3) Hadith no. 988
“Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala ransoms the Muslims from the hellfire everyday and night in the month of Ramadhaan and He answers the prayer of every Muslim everyday and night in the month of Ramadhaan”
So because Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala, He listens to the supplication of the person who fasts and He gives the special status, that’s the reason Ramadhaan is called as the month of Supplication.
Yusuf Chambers: Beautiful reason for calling it the month of Ramadhaan is being the month of supplication and furthermore I’d like to ask you, Dr. Zakir if you could explain what are the etiquettes of supplicating to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala.
Dr. Zakir: The person should remember that he should only ask from Allah and no one else.
Allah says in the Quran in Surah Fathia Ch. no. 1 verse no. 5
“Iyyaka na’budu wa-iyya ka nasta’een”
“Thee alone we worship, Thee alone we ask for help”
We should ask only from Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala
Allah says in Surah Ghaafir ch. no. 40 verse no. 60
“You ask Me and I will answer your prayer”
You can ask from Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala anything even if it be a small thing or a big thing, no problem, you can ask Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala anything.
And furthermore we should ask Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala with humbleness and with humility that’s point no. 3.
Point no. 4 when we ask Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala we should ask with confirmed hope that InshaAllah, Allah is going to answer your supplication.
No. 5 we should ask Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala with fear, we should ask with Taqwa, fear of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala.
No. 6 we should ask Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala with extreme longingness that InshaAllah, we longess and He will answer our prayer.
Besides this points there are some additional things which are important when a person supplicates its preferable for example. A person should preferably be in Wudu, in ablution, its not a Fard. He can even supplicate without being in Wudu but if he is like a person who is in prayer, its preferable that he is in Wudu.
Point no. 2 its preferable that he is facing the Kabah while supplicating though its not a Fard
Point no. 3 he should repeat his supplication, it’s preferable to repeat as much as possible and
Point no. 4 he should ask Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala with single mindedness and with longingness as our beloved Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihe wa sallam) said,
It’s mentioned in a Sahih Hadith of Tirmidhi (Book of Supplication) Hadith no. 3479 that the beloved Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihe wa sallam) said that
“A person should ask Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala with single mindedness and InshaAllah, Allah will answer his prayers.
And Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala does not like a person who asks with his heart when it is toying with trifle things, heart is not in one place.
So these are some of the etiquettes of a person supplicating to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala.
Yusuf Chambers: JazakAllah Khair, Dr. Zakir regarding the aspects of etiquettes of what you add…you’ve added some important points now and that’s very useful. What about the time and the place of supplication, does that matter?
Dr. Zakir: As far as a person is concerned he can supplicate to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala anytime of the day, anytime of the night, 24 hours a day but there are some times which are preferred.
For example immediately after the obligatory prayers. For example especially on the day of Jummah, when the person is fasting, especially when he is breaking his fast and when a person is praying in the Sujood. Also in the late ours of night and the beloved Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihe wa sallam) said
Its mentioned in Sahih Muslim (Vol. no. 1 Book of Prayer) Hadith no. 1655, the beloved Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihe wa sallam) said that
“There is an hour during the night in which there will not be a Muslim who will ask for the good without Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala granting it to him”
Yusuf Chambers: SubhanAllah.
Dr. Zakir: That means there is an hour in which Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala… whatever the Muslim asks, supplicates, Allah will grant him.
Further our beloved Prophet said it’s mentioned in
Sahih Muslim (Vol no. 1 Book of Prayer) Hadith no. 1657 that
“Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala descends to the lowest heaven after one third of the night is over. And then He says “I am your Lord, I am your Lord. Is there anyone who is there to supplicate to Me and I will answer Him. Is there anyone to beg and I will grant it to him. Is there anyone that requires forgiveness and I will forgive him”
So one of the good times is during the late hours of night where Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala descends and the Hadith continues and says that Allah continues asking this question till the dawn breaks.
So one of the good times top supplicate is the late hours of night, just before dawn.
Yusuf Chambers: SubhanAllah! Let’s all get up and… does that mean the last hours of the night meaning like…
Dr. Zakir: Tahajjud which you offer late one third or the middle third of the night and as far as the place is concerned again a person can supplicate in any place as our beloved Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihe wa sallam) said,
Its mentioned in Sahih Bukhari Vol. no. 1 in the Book of Salaah Hadith no. 438 that
“Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala has made for me and the believers the full earth as a place to pray”
The full earth is a place where you can pray to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala but inspite there are certain places that if you supplicate in the mosque, its preferable and amongst the mosques there is no better mosque than the Haramain. The first is Makkah, the Baitullah and the second is the Masjide Nabvi in Madinah.
Yusuf Chambers: MashaAllah, I wish we could be there now, Dr. Zakir. InshaAllah later on.
Dr. Zakir: InshaAllah
Yusuf Chambers: Does the situation or the circumstances of the supplicant… have any bearing on whether or not Allah accepts the dua?
Dr. Zakir: As I mentioned earlier that the situation or circumstances and if he asks Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala, he can supplicate to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala but there are certain situations which are preferable.
For example when a person is fasting, when a person is traveling, when a just ruler, when he supplicates or a just Imam or when a father supplicates for his son or daughter or a person who has Halaal earnings and he supplicates or it can be a person who prays in Sujood as our beloved Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihe wa sallam) said,
It’s mentioned in Sahih Hadith of Tirmidhi in the Book of Supplication Hadith no. 3598, the Prophet said
“The prayer of 3 people is never rejected
no. 1 is a just ruler or an Imam
no. 2 a person who is fasting especially when he breaks his fast and
no. 3 is an oppressed person”
And a similar Hadith when I quoted earlier of Al Baihaqi (Vol. no. 3 Book of Prayer) Hadith no. 6393 where the Prophet said
“The prayer of 3 people is never rejected:
A father when he prays for his child.
A fasting person especially when he breaks his fast
and a traveling person when he prays”
So this is the Hadith of Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihe wa sallam) so these are the times which are preferred when a person supplicates as compared to others.
Yusuf Chambers: Thank you Dr. Zakir and now we’ll move to the next important point. Why is it that some people when often you are speaking to people they say “O my dua hasn’t been answered”, you know, this is a common statement by the Muslim brothers and sisters you meet around the place. Why is it that certain supplications perhaps are not answered?
Dr. Zakir: There are certain criteria that are required and many a times the supplication is rejected because
Point no. 1 maybe the earning is haraam…what he’s eating is haraam. maybe the earnings where he’s deriving all his lifestyle may be his business is haraam, may be involved in Riba, usury, interest he may be dealing is a business which involves bribing, may be dealing in a business which involves lying, cheating etc. all these things which are related to haraam things, that’s the reason, it’s one of the major reasons why supplication is not answered.
No. 2 may be he is oppressing someone else, causing oppression to another human being.
No. 3 he may not be enjoining what is good and may not be forbidding what is wrong which is a Fard in Islam
And there are some other criteria required for a supplication to be accepted and that’s the reason why most of them are rejected.
One is that we should not say that “O Allah, forgive me if you please”, “O Allah bless me if you please” or “O Allah grant me sustenance if you please”. Because our beloved Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihe wa sallam) said its mentioned in
Sahih Bukhari Vol. no. 9 in the Book of Tawheed Hadith no. 7477 where the Prophet said that
“Do not supplicate, do not pray by saying O Allah forgive me if you wish, O Allah grant me mercy if you wish, O Allah give me from your bounties if you wish because Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala he does what he wills and you cannot command Him”
So saying such things is totally wrong which many people do which is a big mistake. That’s the reason supplications aren’t answered.
Furthermore people many a times they give names to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala which Allah never mentioned in the Quran neither the Prophet used in any of the Sahih Hadith. To call Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala with attributes and names which are not given by Allah and His Rasool that is totally wrong while supplicating.
Furthermore many people when they supplicate they add on many names and many things for example they say that please forgive my father, my grandfather, my great grandfather, my mother, my grandmother, my great grandmother, my uncle, my aunty keep on so you know it becomes a big list. Instead of that its preferable to be brief and say that please forgive my family or please forgive my relatives or my brothers and sisters in Islam, that’s sufficient,
And one of the other mistakes that people make is they normally supplicate very loudly you know very loud supplicate.
Where Allah says in the Quran in Surah A’raaf ch. no. 7 verse no. 55 that
“Ask to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala with humility and privacy”
Allah says in next verse Surah A’raaf ch. no. 7 verse no. 56 that
“Call to Allah with fear and longingness”
So these are the basic mistakes that people make while they supplicate.
And furthermore many a times when we ask something from Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala, he may follow all the things but yet Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala does not answer our prayers.
Allah says in the Quran in Surah Baqarah ch. no. 2 verse no. 216 that
“You may dislike a thing which may be good for you and you may like a thing which may not be good for you. Allah knows and you do not know”
There may be a situation where a Muslim may pray to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala that Ya Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala give me a motorcycle, a BMW, I want a BMW 1000 CC and Allah does not answer his prayer. Because Allah knows that if Allah gives him a BMW he may go fast he may have an accident, he may fracture his leg. So Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala by not answering his prayer is actually answering him.
So Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala is the knower of the unseen, of the future. So you may like a thing which may not be good for you, Allah knows and you don’t know.
Yusuf Chambers: JazakAllah Khair. That means the next question is very appropriate so would you now tell the viewers some authentic duas which are good for them which they can make in this month of mercy.
Dr. Zakir: There are hundreds of duas which are authentic and if you can refer to the book ‘Fortification of a Muslim’ through the supplications from the Quran and authentic Hadith, it’s a book published which has more than a hundred duas. I think 129 to be precise. I will just mention just a couple of them from the Quran and the Hadith since you have requested that.
The most general dua which is there in the Quran in Surah Baqarah ch. no. 2 verse no. 201 is
“Rabbana atina fid-dunya hasanatan wa fil 'akhirati hasanatan waqina 'adhaban-nar”
“O my Lord give us the good in this world and the hereafter and save us from the torment of hellfire”
This is a general dua which is general and the best. There are various other duas given in the Quran and the Dua of the Quran is the best because this is the word of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala Himself.
Allah says in Surah Ale Imran ch. no. 3 verse no. 8
“Rabbana la tuzigh quloobana baAAda ith hadaytana wahab lana min ladunka rahmatan innaka anta alwahhab”
Which means
“O Lord let not our hearts deviate after thou has guided us. And grant us mercy from thy bounty for Thou are the granter of Bounties”
There is a dua which I always make in the starting of any lecture which is asking for help from Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala which you can do when you begin any speech or when you are doing something which is very difficult is a dua which Musa (alihe salaam) made when Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala asked Musa (alihe salaam) that go and give the message to Fir’aun
So its mentioned in Surah Taha ch. no. 20 verse no. 25 to 28
“Rabbish rahli Şadri Wa Yassir Li 'Amri Wa Ahlul `Uqdatan Min Lisani Yafqahu Qawli “
Which means
“O my Lord expand my breast for me and make my task easy for me and remove the impediment which is in my speech so that they will understand me.”
And you know Musa (alihe salaam), he was a stammer and as many people are aware that even I during my childhood I was a stammerer and even now sometimes I stammer that’s the reason I read this dua in the beginning of every talk. So Musa (alihe salaam) asks Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala to remove the impediment from his speech and furthermore so that they will understand me and there is a barrier many a times between you and the person you are giving the message.
So you pray to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala may that barrier be removed. Therefore before every talk I supplicate so that the audience is if there is any barrier between the audience and myself it is removed. These were just few duas from the Quran.
There are several authentic duas and evidence from the Hadith.
There is a Sahih Hadith in Tirmidhi as well as Sahih Ibn Hibaan where the Prophet said that
“Anyone who says ‘Subhan Allahi wa bi Hamdihi’ which means ‘Glory be to Allah and Praise be to Allah’ then Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala will plant a date tree for that person in paradise”
The other Hadith which is there mentioned in Sahih Muslim (Vol. no. 4) Book of Dhikr Hadith no. 6509 where the beloved Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihe wa sallam) said that
“Anyone who says ‘Subhan Allahi wa bi Hamdihi’, ‘Glory be to Allah and Praise be to Him’ if he mentions this hundred times there is nothing more excellent for him on the Day of Judgment, on the Day of Resurrection. Nothing better than that except someone who says similar words or someone who says something better”
A similar Hadith is mentioned in
Sahih Bukhari Vol. no. 8 (Book of Supplication) Hadith no. 6405 where the beloved Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihe wa sallam) said that
“Anyone who says ‘Subhan Allahi wa bi Hamdihi’, ‘Glory be to Allah and Praise be to Allah’ a hundred times his sins will be forgiven even if his sins are equal to the foam of the sea”
And there are various authentic hadith, it also says in Sahih Muslim (Book of Salaah) Hadith no. 749 that
“When you hear the call of the Muadin, when you have to pray and say that “I testify that there is no one worthy of worship except Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala and He has got no partners and Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihe wa sallam) is the slave and messenger of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala and I’m pleased with my Lord who is Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala and I am pleased with my messenger Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihe wa sallam) and I am pleased with my Deen Islam” anyone who says this, his sins will be forgiven”
There are various such Hadith for example after the Salaah, obligatory prayers we say SubhanAllah, we say Alhumdulillah, we say Allahu Akbar we say it 100 times then your sins will be forgiven.
There are other Hadith like after the obligatory prayer we say (Sahih Al Targheeb Hadith no. 2616)
“Allahumma antas-salam waminkas-salam, tabarakta ya thal-jalali wal-ikram”
And in traveling when we board any vehicle, any plane, any car, etc. dua which our Prophet had said that
“Subhaanal-lathee sakhkhara lanaa haathaa wa maa kunnaa lahu muqrineen. Wa 'innaa 'ilaa Rabbinaa lamunqaliboon”
So these were just a few examples of the authentic duas from the Quran and the Sahih Hadith.
Yusuf Chambers: JazakAllah Khair, Dr. Zakir. As promised in cutting short the interview phase umm…to allow the viewers questions on the topic. If you don’t mind that is.
Dr. Zakir: My pleasure.
Yusuf Chambers: We will now address some very important questions from the viewers on the topic. Now, question 1 form one of the viewers the meaning of Allah’s Fadal. When we say ‘O Allah I ask to give me from your grace Fadal’ does it mean that we are precisely speaking about wealth?
Dr. Zakir: The word ‘Fazal’ actually means the grace or the favour of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala, Fazal of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala, but literally the word ‘Fazal’ it means surplus, it means that you are giving something to someone without any payment. And when we say it’s the Fazal of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala like we say
‘Haaza min fazli Rabbi’
This is by the Fazal of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala, this is by the grace and favour of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala. It means that the person whose receiving it he actually does not deserve it. And Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala out of His mercy and grace has given all these things.
So when we say it is because of Fazal of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala we are actually telling that Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala has given us all these good things. It may be the wealth not has to be wealth. It can be a good house, it can be a car, it can be whatever thing he is given it of His grace and mercy and we actually do not deserve any of this. Its only because of grace and mercy that we have got it. So this is actual understanding that to show that we actually do not deserve all this and Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala out of his mercy and grace because of being kind to His servants and slaves he Has given all these things.
And Allah says in the Quran in Surah Nahl ch. no. 16 verse no. 61 that
“If Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala had to punish each of the human beings for his wrong doings, there would not be a single living creature on the face of this earth”
So all this is due to the Fazal of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala
Yusuf Chambers: By mercy of Allah…Rahma of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala. The second question is by one of our dear viewers Dr. Zakir is, what exactly is meant by the meaning of the word ‘Lamama’ translated here as I believe small foods in the verse of Surah Najm?
Dr. Zakir: There is a verse of the Quran in Surah Najm ch. no. 53 verse no. 31 and 32 where Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala says that
“To Allah belongs everything in the heavens and the earth. Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’alaha’s created everything in the heavens and the earth and He gives to every evil act according to their deeds. And he rewards every good act according to the best. And Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala if a person avoids the major sins and the shameful deeds except the ‘Lamam’ translated as small faults Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala will forgive him”
Now there is a difference of opinion among the scholars as far as what is the meaning of this word this Arabic word ‘Lamam’. If you read
[Tafseer] Al Tabri Vol. no. 2 Page no. 527 it says that
According to most of the Salafs, they said that Lamam, it means any sin done only once even if it is a major sin and this was the view of Abu Hurraira, may Allah be pleased with him, Mujahid, may Allah have mercy on him, and son on and so forth.
But if you read Qurtubi Vol. 17 Page no. 71 here it says that
According to Sahih Ibn Musaib, he says that Lamam means a thought which comes into your mind once and goes away. Means may be any evil thought which comes and goes away.
According to Al Hasan ibn Fadal he says that Lamam means forbidden glance that you give once unintentionally. Without the intention but if you give a second glance then it’s a sin.
As our beloved Prophet said that
“The first glance is forgiven and the second is prohibited”
So the first glance without intention then it cones into the small sins or Lamam.
And further if you read in Tabari Vol. no. 2 Page no. 526 and 527
Some of the scholars they say that Lamam means the sins done by the Muslims before they accepted Islam, at that time, in the days of Jaahilya, in their ignorance which Allah will forgive all the sins. This is Lamam because when the non-Muslim Mushrik used to tell those who became Muslims that these things that you used to do yesterday and now you say it’s a sin. So this verse was reveled.
Surah Najm Ch. 53 verse 31 and 32 saying that
“Stay away from the major sins and shameful deeds and what is the Lamam means that past sins that you do, Allah will forgive”
Butt according to most of the scholars, the majority of the scholars, they say that Lamam means minor sins or small faults and further if you read the view of Imam Ragib, he says that Lamam means small minor sins and the Hadith of
Sahih Bukhari Vol. no. 8 (Book of Istizaan) Hadith no. 6243
“Where Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, he says that he does not know the meaning of Lamam except what he heard from Abu Hurraria, may Allah be pleased with him, who says that the messenger of Allah said that every son of Adam has his share of adultery and he does it inevitably. The adultery of the eyes is a person giving a gaze which is forbidden, the adultery of the tongue is to speak and what is in one’s desire, his own wishes and then his private part will either confirm or deny.”
So there is a difference as far as the word Lamam is concerned and further if you read according to Imam An Nawawi, he says that Lamam means what a person intends to do. A person thinks of doing but he does not do. Means going towards act but does not do, these are small sins.
Furthermore the other scholars, they say these are specific small sins but according to Qurtubi Vol no. 17 page no. 70 that
Lamam means minor sins or small faults which Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala will, InshaAllah forgive, and they give cross reference of Surah Nisa ch. 4 verse no. 31 that
“Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala as long as you stay away from major sins, he will forgive your small sins”
Yusuf Chambers: I think that’s a very comprehensive answer Dr. Zakir. JazakAllah Khair I am sure the brothers and sisters will take adequate knowledge from that answer to implement some changes in his or her life.
InshaAllah lets move on to another section of questions regarding the month of repentance which we didn’t have time to answer last time out.
Question 1, is it permitted in supplication to negotiate with Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala, the question is. He goes on to say for example ask Allah to grant me something or forgive me and take something else away from me instead like my health for instances.
Dr. Zakir: When we supplicate to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala we have to remember that Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala’s mercy is beyond limits. His mercy, His grace we cannot limit the mercy of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala, we cannot limit His grace neither can we ask Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala to hasten the punishment or you know that you give me this good thing and take this away as though we are negotiating. We should realize that Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala is the most bountiful and most merciful and
Allah says in the Quran in Surah Ghaafir ch. no. 40 verse no. 60
“You ask me and I will answer your prayers”
Allah further says in Surah Nisa ch. 4 verse no. 147 that
“What will Allah gain by your punishment, if you believe and if you are grateful”
that means it’s not worth negotiating with Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala.
What you want you can ask Him you cannot barter with Him because He is so merciful. In fact it will be our loss if we do that and that reminds me of
Sahih Muslim Vol. 4 Book of Dhikr Hadith no. 6501 that
“Once Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihe wa sallam), he goes to one of the Muslims who is sick and he goes to see and the person is very sick and the Hadith says as feeble as a chicken. Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihe wa sallam) asks him that did you ask for something or did you beg Allah for something. So the person says yes I prayed to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala that to hasten my punishment what I am going to get in Aakhira let me have it in this world and then Allah’s messenger says that you don’t have the forbearance to bear the punishment of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala. In fact you should have asked
'Rabbana atina fid-dunya hasanatan wa fil 'akhirati hasanatan waqina 'adhaban-nar'
That’s what I quoted earlier that
“O Lord give us the good in this world and the hereafter and save us from the torment of hellfire”
Surah Baqarah ch. no 2 verse no. 201
And after Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihe wa sallam) prayed for him then that Muslim became alright”
So we should always realize that the bounty of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala is beyond limits. So whatever may be our sin, whatever may be the sin we have committed, we can always seek Allah’s forgiveness and He is most oft forgiving and Most Merciful.
Yusuf Chambers: O! We have to be very careful what we ask Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala for. The second question regarding Ramadhaan, the month of Repentance is the question which says am I allowed to ask for the forgiveness of the sins of other people in my personal supplications. If I may then how should I do so?
Dr. Zakir: It is not that you can, it is recommended that when you pray you should pray for your other believing Muslims, other Muslim brothers and sisters. It’s mentioned in several places
And it further mentions in the Qur’an in Surah Muhammad ch. no. 47 verse no. 19, it says
“Ask for forgiveness for yourself and the believing men and women”
That means you ask for yourself for forgiveness as well as for the believing men and women.
And there is a dua of Nooh (alahe salaam) in
Surah Nooh ch. no. 71 verse no. 28 where it says that
“Noah (peace be upon him) he prayed to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala that forgive me, my parents and those who enter my house in faith.”
Forgive me, my parents and those who enter my house in faith and the believing men and women.
And our beloved Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihe wa sallam), its mentioned in a Hadith of Tirmidhi (Book of Supplications) Hadith no. 3385
“That the Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihe wa sallam) whenever he used to ask forgiveness for others”
First he used to ask for himself that forgive me and forgive my Muslim brothers and sisters etc. but you have to be careful for the unbelievers for the mushriks
For Allah says in the Qur’an in Surah Tawbah ch. no. 9 verse no. 113 that
“It is not befitting for the Prophet and for the believing men and women to ask forgiveness for the pagans who associate partners with Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala even if it be your kith and kin for those who you know are surely going to hellfire.”
But you may ask for other things, you can ask for health for unbeliever, you can ask for the wealth for an unbeliever that’s perfectly fine. The best dua you can do for the Mushrik, for an unbeliever is the Hidaaya which our beloved Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihe wa sallam) said, its mentioned in a Hadith of
Tirmidhi (Book of Manaaqib) Hadith no. 3681 where the beloved Prophet said that
“Out of the two Umars may Allah give Hidaaya to one Umar and Umar bin Khattab, may Allah be pleased wit him, Allah gave him Hidaaya and he accepted Islam.”
So you can always ask for Hidaaya of the unbelievers. That’s the best dua you can do for them.
Yusuf Chambers: SubhanAllah. May Allah give my mother Hidaaya in that case, InshaAllah.
Dr. Zakir: Aameen.
Yusuf Chambers: Dr. Zakir, next question is; is repentance accepted if the Hadd, punishment is not carried out on a person.
Dr. Zakir: As I mentioned earlier the person should realize that the bounty of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala, His mercy and grace is in abundance and if you commit a crime, if it involves some other people then you have to restore their property back. If you have robbed then you have to give their wealth back, if you have taken something from someone, give it back but if it’s between you and Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala, a person should never be dissatisfied, he should never think that Allah will not forgive. Whatever sin he may commit let it be the biggest sin, if he repents sincerely as we mentioned in the last episode, Allah will forgive any sin but if he has done some harm to some other human being then he should try and undo it.
And Allah says in the Quran in Surah Furqaan ch. no. 25 verse no. 68
“And as for those who do not invoke with Allah any other god or do not take any life of any other human being unless for a just cause or do not indulge in adultery and for those who do it for them there is a punishment”
And Allah continues in the next verses in Surah Furqaan ch. 25 verse 70
“As for those who believe and repent and do righteous deeds, Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala will change the evil thing that he has done,The evil deed he has done to good”
So that’s the mercy of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala. So as for as the Hadd penalty is concerned it is person who himself knows that he has done a sin for example if he has done adultery so he should repent to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala and ask for forgiveness. It is between him and Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala and its not required that he should tell to the others because if its told then the Hadd punishment would be there. And as I mentioned earlier about the case of the woman from Johainah who told Allah’s messenger, she had done adultery and she was pregnant and the Prophet said that come later on and she came later on after she gave birth to a child and she was stoned to death.
The other example I gave of Ma’iz ibn Malik in the Hadith of Sahih Muslim Vol. no. 3 (Book of Hudood) Hadith no. 4205
Which
“Ma’iz ibn Malik, may Allah be pleased with him, he tells to Allah’s messenger that O Prophet purify me. So Allah’s messenger says go and repent, ask for forgiveness. He again comes back and says O Allah’s messenger please purify me. So he says go away. Allah’s messenger please purify me, again goes away. Fourth time he comes and says.. what is your..? Purify you from what? He says adultery then Allah’s messenger asks him that are you mad? Are you drunk? And then after that when he found that he was not mad, he was not drunk he had to pass Hadd penalty”
But Allah’s messenger said that both these 2 people thay had asked for forgiveness and they repented so may Allah accept their repentance.
But further its mentioned in a Hadith of
Muwatta Vol. no. 2 Book of Punishment Hadith no. 12 the beloved Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihe wa sallam) said that
“Stop committing sins, major sins etc. and if you commit then you have to conceal it and ask for forgiveness from Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala, you repent. And if you disclose it then we will have to pass the Hadd penalty”
That means if the sin is known to the Sultaan or the ruler or to a Kazi or to a judge then it becomes compulsory for that person that he has to pass the had penalty i.e. stoning to death. If he has done adultery or any other sin which requires a death penalty. But if it’s not known and the person who has sinned if it involves some other human being you should try and undo it, if it is involvement in between him and Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala then he should ask for forgiveness and ask for repentance and he should conceal. It’s not a requirement that the punishment of Hadd should be given to the person for repentance. But we have the example of Ma’iz ibn Malik who repented and did not mind being killed for the sake of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala. Allah forgave them and the Prophet said that even if you distributed in the people of Madinah it would be sufficient for them to forgive you.
But as a general rule its not a requirement that you have to pass the Hadd penalty for repentance. If you are exposed then the penalty is there, if you are not exposed, conceal it and ask for forgiveness from Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala and you repent and InshaAllah, Allah will forgive you.
Yusuf Chambers: InshaAllah. JazakAllah Khair. So next question from our respected viewer is I’d like to know Is performing ablution or wudhu necessary before making Tawbah? And secondly is Gusul necessary before Tawbah if someone unclean?
Dr. Zakir: As far as the text in the Qur’an is concerned I don’t know of any Quranic verse or any Sahih Hadith of the beloved Prophet which says that ablution or Gusul is necessary for a Tawbah to be made. If you repent, repent to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala. making wudu is not compulsory neither making ghusul is compulsory he can ask for repentance directly except if a person who is a non-believer, who is a Mushrik, who is a Kaafir when he accepts Islam at that time he has to make Ghusul that’s a Hadith of Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihe wa sallam),
(Sunan Abu Dawud Vol. no. 1 Book of Purification Hadith no. 355)
“He told to Kais bin Aasim, May Allah be pleased with him, when he wanted to accept Islam that you do Ghusul so that he is in the state of purity”
Otherwise for making Tawbah etc. wudhu is not a requirement neither is Ghusul a requirement.
Yusuf Chambers: Thank you for that concise answer Dr. Zakir and last but not least Shaytaan, Question about Satan, Satan disobeyed Allah only once and he was accursed, Allah forgives human beings inspite of their disobedience, frequent disobedience if they repent. Will Allah forgive Iblees if he repents today?
Dr. Zakir: If you read the Quran, the story of Adam (alahe salam) and Iblees is mentioned several times in the Quran in
Surah Baqarah ch. 2, in Surah A’raaf ch. no. 7, Surah Hijr ch. no. 15 Surah Kahf ch. no. 18 several places and if you realize in the story the moment Adam (alahe salam), Adam (peace be upon him) he realized his mistake, he repented to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala and Allah immediately forgive him and Eve, both of them may Allah be pleased with them, but if you note the story of Iblees.
It’s mentioned in Surah A’raaf ch. no. 7 verse no. 14
When Iblees disobeyed Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala, Allah says that
“We said to the angels bow down to Adam. All bowed down illa Iblees, except Iblees”
Mentioned in Surah Baqarah ch. 2, in Surah A’raaf ch. no. 7, but instead of repenting to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala, Iblees says in Surah A’raaf ch. 7 verse no. 14 that
“Give me respite till the day they are raised up”
That means please delay my punishment, give me respite and see what I do. He challenges Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala that I challenge you.
So Allah says in Surah A’raaf ch. no. 7 verse no. 18, He gives him respite and he says that
“All those human beings who follow you, I will fill hell with all of you”
And as far as Iblees repenting, here the question does not come because Allah further says in Surah Hijr ch. no. 15 verse no. 34 that
“He is the accursed one.”
And Allah has the knowledge of the future, of the unseen. So Allah knows in advance that this person, he will never repent.
As Allah says in the Quran in Surah Baqarah ch. 2 verse 7 and 8, Allah says
“Khatama Allahu AAala quloobihim”
That
:Allah has put a seal on the hearts of those people, on those Kaaafirs and they will never come to the straight path”
And similarly we have examples of Allah predicts even about Abu Lahab that he was one of the staunchest enemies of the beloved Prophet. Allah tells in advance, He reveals the Surah,
“Tabbat yada abee lahabin watabb” The Father of the Flame. he was one of the staunchest enemies to the Prophet and He says that he will never accept Islam and he will burn in hell. It was a prediction, all he had to do to prove the Qur’an wrong was to say that I am a Muslim and say the Shahaadah. 10 years he had the opportunity, he did not do it.
So Allah knew that he would never repent. Similarly, Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala knows that Iblees, he will never repent. So that’s the reason He has said that he is to you an avowed enemy. Allah says in
Surah Baqarah ch. 2 verse 168 that
“Ya ayyuhan Naas”
“O you who believe, be careful of the Khutuwatush Shaytan, of the footsteps of the devil. For he to you is an avowed enemy”
So with all the verse of the Quran we realize that Iblees will never repent and Allah knows that therefore He has called ‘he is the avowed enemy of the human beings and he is accursed. So he will never repent he will never ask for forgiveness.
Yusuf Chambers: Well, Dr. Zakir, we’ve reached the end of our question and answer session and as we promised the viewers we answered many questions on the topic of Ramadhaan – The month of Repentance and…
Dr. Zakir: Supplications.
Yusuf Chambers: …Supplications, correct. Thank you for reminding me. So brothers and sisters I ask Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala to enlighten your hearts and my heart and Dr. Zakir Naik’s heart with the information that we have given you and ask Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala to make it easy for us to act on His advice during this holy month of Ramadhaan. Please do join us tomorrow when we would be addressing the topic ‘Qiyamul Layl’ and I wish you all the best.
Assalamu Alaikum Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatuh!