The Virtue and Manner of the Prayer for Rain
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The Shaykh:
And upon you be peace, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
The questioner:
We ask your permission, our honorable Shaykh, for the first question that reached us. This questioner says: Tell us about the virtue of the prayer for rain, for we see that few people perform it. May Allah guide us and them.
The Shaykh:
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may Allah send prayers and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions. Istisqa' is seeking rain from Allah the Exalted. Souls are naturally inclined to seek help from the One who can relieve them, and He is Allah alone. This was known among past nations, and it is among the practices of the Prophets (peace be upon them). Allah the Exalted said:[Al-Baqarah 2:60] The Seal of the Prophets, Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), also sought rain. The Muslims have agreed on its being prescribed (mashru'). Istisqa' is prescribed when the land becomes barren, the rain is withheld, and this harms them, so they have no recourse except to supplicate to their Lord, seek rain from Him, and call upon Him for aid through various forms of supplication. Sometimes this is done through prayer in congregation or individually, sometimes through supplication in the Friday sermon, and sometimes through supplication after the prayers in private, without prayer or sermon. All of this is reported from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). Its ruling is a confirmed sunnah (recommended practice), based on the statement of Abdullah ibn Zayd: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) went out Sahih al-Bukhari 1024 The manner of the prayer for rain is like the prayer for the festival, and its rulings are like the rulings of the festival prayer in the number of rak'ahs, the recitation aloud, and the fact that it is prayed before the sermon.
In its sermon, the imam should remind the people of what softens their hearts, such as the remembrance of Allah's reward and punishment, by repenting from sins and abandoning injustices by returning them to their rightful owners. This is because sins are a cause for the withholding of rain and the severing of blessings, while repentance and seeking forgiveness are a cause for the acceptance of supplication. Allah the Exalted said:[Al-A'raf 7:96].
One should also increase seeking forgiveness in the sermon for rain, reciting the verses that command it, for that is a cause for the descent of rain. One should increase supplication asking for rain from Allah and raise his hands, for the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to raise his hands in his supplication for rain until the whiteness of his armpits was visible. He should also send prayers upon the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), for that is among the causes for the acceptance of supplication. Yes.
And upon you be peace, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
The questioner:
We ask your permission, our honorable Shaykh, for the first question that reached us. This questioner says: Tell us about the virtue of the prayer for rain, for we see that few people perform it. May Allah guide us and them.
The Shaykh:
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may Allah send prayers and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions. Istisqa' is seeking rain from Allah the Exalted. Souls are naturally inclined to seek help from the One who can relieve them, and He is Allah alone. This was known among past nations, and it is among the practices of the Prophets (peace be upon them). Allah the Exalted said:
And [recall] when Moses prayed for water for his people
وَإِذِ اسْتَسْقَىٰ مُوسَىٰ لِقَوْمِهِHe faced the Qibla invoking Allah. He turned over his cloak (inside out) and then offered two rak`at and recited the Qur'an aloud in them.
يستسقي فتوجه إلى القبلة يدعو وحول رداءه ثم صلى ركعتين جهر فيهما بالقراءةIn its sermon, the imam should remind the people of what softens their hearts, such as the remembrance of Allah's reward and punishment, by repenting from sins and abandoning injustices by returning them to their rightful owners. This is because sins are a cause for the withholding of rain and the severing of blessings, while repentance and seeking forgiveness are a cause for the acceptance of supplication. Allah the Exalted said:
And if only the people of the cities had believed and feared Allah, We would have opened upon them blessings from the heaven and the earth; but they denied [the messengers], so We seized them for what they were earning."
وَلَوْ أَنَّ أَهْلَ الْقُرَىٰ آمَنُوا وَاتَّقَوْا لَفَتَحْنَا عَلَيْهِم بَرَكَاتٍ مِّنَ السَّمَاءِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَلَٰكِن كَذَّبُوا فَأَخَذْنَاهُم بِمَا كَانُوا يَكْسِبُونَOne should also increase seeking forgiveness in the sermon for rain, reciting the verses that command it, for that is a cause for the descent of rain. One should increase supplication asking for rain from Allah and raise his hands, for the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to raise his hands in his supplication for rain until the whiteness of his armpits was visible. He should also send prayers upon the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), for that is among the causes for the acceptance of supplication. Yes.
Source
قناة «إذاعة القرآن الكريم»، نور على الدرب مع معالي الشيخ صالح الفوزان ح7537 — youtube.com (0:54)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.