Invocations for Settling of a Debt

“O Allah, make what is lawful enough for me, as opposed to what is unlawful, and spare me by Your grace, of need of.”

[Narrated by At-Tirmithi 5/560]

“O Allah, I take refuge in You from anxiety and sorrow, weakness and laziness, miserliness and cowardice, the burden of debts and from being over powered by men (i.e. other people).”

[Narrated by Al-Bukhari 7/158]

Invocation for Entering a Market

“None has the right to be worshipped but Allah alone, Who has no partner. His is the dominion and His is the praise. He brings life and He causes death, and He is living and does not die. In His Hand is all good and He is Able to do all things.”

[Narrated by At-Tirmithi 5/291]

One may wonder why a dua concerning the Power and Dominion of Allah is prescribed for one entering a market. A mall, a shopping center or a market is perhaps one of the many places where people tend to become negligent and forgetful of their Creator due to the myriad of worldly items in sight in which they want to indulge in. Thus, it makes complete sense to recite this dua in order to discipline oneself and transform the desire of worldly possessions into a reminder of the blessings and great Power of the Almighty.

Supplication Upon Feeling a Pain in Your Body

Put your hand on the place where you feel pain and say:

 With the Name of Allah (three times).

Then say:

 “I seek refuge in Allah and in His Power from the evil of what I find and of what I guard against.

 [Narrated by Muslim, 4/1728]

The Blessings of Eating Suhoor

The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:

“Eat suhoor for in suhoor there is blessing.”

[Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 1923; Muslim, 1059]

*Suhoor is the pre-dawn meal taken during the Islamic month of Ramadan specialized for fasting.

Like a Ring Thrown in a Desert

Allah Almighty created seven heavens.
The lowest heaven compared to the second heaven, is like a small ring thrown into a desert.

The second heaven in comparison to the third, is like a small ring thrown into a desert.

 

The third heaven compared to the fourth, is like a small ring thrown into a desert.

 

The fourth heaven compared to the fifth, is like a small ring thrown into a desert.

The fifth heaven compared to the sixth, is like a small ring thrown into a desert.

The sixth heaven compared to the seventh, is like a small ring thrown into a desert.

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, “The seven heavens are in relation to the Kursiyy* like a ring thrown into a waterless desert. And the superiority of the ‘Arsh** over the Kursiyy is like the superiority of the desert over that ring.” The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) mentioned regarding the great throne of Allah Almighty, “...The ‘Arsh is over the water, and Allah is over the ‘Arsh, and He knows what you do.” The ‘Arsh is the greatest of all things that Allah has created, over which our Lord rose in a manner that befits His Majesty. When our whole universe is located in the lowest heaven, can you even begin to imagine the size of the Kursiyy? And if the Kursiyy extends over the entire universe (as mentioned in Aathayul Kursiyy - Surah al-Baqarah, 02:255), then how much greater is the 'Arsh?

These amazing and mind-blowing facts were elucidated by the Noble Companion: Ibn Mas’ood, when he said:

“Between the first heaven and the one above it is (a distance of) five hundred years. Between each of the heavens is (a distance of) five hundred years. Between the seventh heaven and the Kursiyy is (a distance of) five hundred years. Between the Kursiyy and the water is (a distance of) five hundred years, and the ‘Arsh is above the water. Allah is above the ‘Arsh, and nothing whatsoever of your deeds is hidden from Him.”

*Kursî: literally a footstool or chair, and sometimes wrongly translated as Throne. The Kursî should be distinguished from the 'Arsh.

**’Arsh: literally means throne. It refers to the throne of Allah Almighty, the Majestic.

Useful & Useless Knowledge

The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:

"Seeking knowledge is obligatory upon every Muslim.”

[Narrated by  Ibn Maajah]

“Knowledge” – What does this mean? What does it signify? Is there such a thing as useless knowledge? Or can we safely say that all knowledge is beneficial? Obviously there are certain categories of knowledge that can be classified as useless. Others, potentially dangerous as it may threaten the life of anyone who possesses it. But the fact is, a good number of people today spend huge portions of their precious time going through, reflecting, watching, listening to and reading useless knowledge which are of no relevance to their lives and others around them. Such things include different genres of books, movies, songs, documentaries, video games etc. Moreover, they get so much occupied in such worthless “junk”, that they lose the ability to differentiate between useful and useless knowledge. Meaning they become desensitized to the most beneficial and awe inspiring fields of knowledge. But on top of that, our minds are constantly bombarded with this absolutely useless information day in and day out. Now someone might say that the examples I mentioned here do have a positive side to it as well. But the point is, the harm inflicted by most of those things far outweigh their benefits. And this is where we have to draw the line. This is a tragedy that we need to solve with a collective effort by aiming our hearts in the right direction and embedding the purpose of our lives into our minds.

Controlling Your Anger

When anger overtakes you say:

“I seek refuge in Allah from Satan the outcast.”

 [Narrated by  Al-Bukhari 7/99]