Bismillahi ‘rahmani ‘raheem

About a month ago, I was drowning myself into information concerning making dua’s for various situations. I got overwhelmed at some point and was about to stop altogether until I read an article where the author said, “The best du’a is the one prayed from the heart.”

I got a huge sense of relief from that statement.

Don’t get me wrong. I absolutely love how practical Islam is. It is however, very easy to be caught up in the routine of doing certain things… leading to the reason for doing them in the first place. The obligatory and the Sunnah actions given to Muslims are designed to help us remember Allah and draw nearer to Him. Worship is supposed to be encompassing; bringing the body, the mind and the soul in harmony and in united submission to God.

When our bodies alone move, without mental concentration, it becomes routine. Even deeper than this, worship cannot happen without the participation of the soul… no matter how physically and mentally engaged we are in acts of worship.

We live in a society where a huge number of us mask emotions or suppress them, perhaps for fear of being hurt or being weak to other people. Our negative experiences with people can cause us to have a negative perception of Allah. If we have been rejected before, we could expect Allah to disappoint us. If we have been mistreated before, we could have trouble depending on Allah’s justice to save us.

We should remember that Allah is to His servant what she thinks she is. If she sees Allah as faithful, she will experience His faithfulness InshAllah. If she recognizes that Allah is All Knowing, she will be more likely to entrust Him with her affairs. Being vulnerable with Allah is evidence of trust in Him; trusting that He is good and kind and able to take care of His submissive servants. This is why du’a is such a key part of worship. It shows that we believe that there is a God that grants supplication.

To be vulnerable with Allah, one must allow oneself to be secluded, to enjoy the company of none but Allah and yourself for a while. Being in touch with yourself helps you to understand what is going on within you, so that you pray to Allah from a position of inner understanding and honesty.

I will end this post with two profound statements from Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).

• Who knows himself, knows his Lord
• One hour of contemplation is better than a thousand years of worship

May our worship be pleasing to God. Ameen.