How do I supplicate using the Beautiful Names? Do I supplicate with the ninety-nine? I hope for an answer from the honorable Shaykh.
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The questioner : How do I supplicate using the Beautiful Names? Do I supplicate with the ninety-nine? I hope for an answer from the honorable Shaykh.
The Shaykh : Allah (Mighty and Majestic) said:[Al-A'raf 7:180] The meaning is not that we should call upon Him with all these names, because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to supplicate to Allah with His names without gathering them all together. The method of supplicating with the names is to place them before your supplication, seeking nearness to Allah through them, or to conclude your supplication with them. An example of the first is to say: “O Allah, O Forgiver, forgive me; O Merciful, have mercy on me,” and the like.
An example of the second is to say: “My Lord, forgive me and have mercy on me, for You are the Forgiver, the Merciful.” Abu Bakr al-Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him) asked the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to teach him a supplication to recite in his prayer, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to him:Sahih al-Bukhari 834 Just as it is permissible to seek nearness to Allah the Exalted with His names when supplicating, it is permissible for a person to seek nearness to Allah with His attributes when supplicating, as in the authentic hadith: Sunan an-Nasa'i 1306Hasan (Darussalam) This is seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted with His knowledge and His power.
Likewise, the saying of the one who recites the supplication for guidance (istikharah):Sahih al-Bukhari 6382 Seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted in supplication with His names or His attributes, whether in a general or specific manner, is among the matters that are sought. You have known the examples of this. Among the seeking nearness to Allah with His names in a general manner is what came in the hadith of Ibn Mas’ud (may Allah be pleased with him) in the supplication for distress and worry: For no one who is distressed or worried has ever supplicated with it but that Allah relieved it for him. In it is seeking nearness to Allah with His names in general Mishkat al-Masabih 2452 but he did not enumerate them. Yes.
The questioner : May Allah bless you. This listener is Faruq Fakhrat Ahmad from Riyadh, working in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He begins his message with “Peace be upon you, and Allah’s mercy and blessings,” and says: “Greetings from Allah, blessed and good. Thank you to the program and to all the honorable scholars who contribute to its implementation. I ask Allah to reward you with the best reward for what you do in guiding the Muslims, informing them of the matters of their religion, and clarifying the lawful and the forbidden for every one who is confused or in distress. May Allah make you a support for all Muslims in all parts of the earth.”
The Shaykh : Allah (Mighty and Majestic) said:
And to Allah belong the best names, so invoke Him by them
وَلِلَّهِ الأَسْمَاءُ الْحُسْنَى فَادْعُوهُ بِهَاAn example of the second is to say: “My Lord, forgive me and have mercy on me, for You are the Forgiver, the Merciful.” Abu Bakr al-Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him) asked the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to teach him a supplication to recite in his prayer, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to him:
Allahumma inni zalumtu nafsi zulman kathiran, Wala yaghfiru dh-dhunuba illa anta, fa ghfir li maghfiratan min `indika, wa r-hamni, innaka anta l-ghafuru r-rahim (O Allah! I have done great injustice to myself and none except You forgives sins, so bestow on me a forgiveness from You, and Have Mercy on me, You are the Forgiver, the Merciful).
قل اللهم إني ظلمت نفسي ظلماً كثيراً ولا يغفر الذنوب إلا أنت، فاغفر لي مغفرة من عندك، وارحمني إنك أنت الغفور الرحيمO Allah, by Your knowledge of the unseen and Your power over creation, keep me alive so long as You know that living is good for me
اللهم بعلمك الغيب، وقدرتك على الخلق، أحيني ما علمت الحياة خيراً ليLikewise, the saying of the one who recites the supplication for guidance (istikharah):
Narrated Jabir: The Prophet (ﷺ) used to teach us the Istikhara for each and every matter as he used to teach us the Suras from the Holy Qur'an. (He used to say), "If anyone of you intends to do something, he should offer a two-rak`at prayer other than the obligatory prayer, and then say: 'Allahumma inni astakhiruka bi'ilmika, wa astaqdiruka biqudratika, wa as'aluka min fadlika-l-'azim, fa innaka taqdiru wala aqdiru, wa ta'lamu wala a'lamu, wa anta'allamu-l-ghuyub. Allahumma in kunta ta'lamu anna hadha-lamra khairun li fi dini wa ma'ashi wa 'aqibati `Amri (or said, fi 'ajili `Amri wa ajilihi) fa-qdurhu li, Wa in kunta ta'lamu anna ha-dha-l-amra sharrun li fi dini wa ma'ashi wa 'aqibati `Amri (or said, fi ajili `Amri wa ajilihi) fasrifhu 'anni was-rifni 'anhu wa aqdur li alkhaira haithu kana, thumma Raddani bihi," Then he should mention his matter (need).
اللهم إني أستخيرك بعلمك، وأستقدرك بقدرتك، فإنك تقدر ولا أقدر، وتعلم ولا أعلم، وأنت علام الغيوبO Allah, I am Your servant, the son of Your servant, the son of Your handmaiden. My forelock is in Your hand. Your decree concerning me is firm, and Your judgment concerning me is just. I ask You, O Allah, by every name that is Yours, by which You have named Yourself, or which You have revealed in Your Book, or which You have taught any of Your creation, or which You have kept exclusive to Yourself in the knowledge of the unseen with You, that You make the great Qur’an the spring of my heart, the light of my chest, the dispeller of my sadness, and the remover of my worry and distress.
اللهم إني عبدك ابن عبدك ابن أمتك، ناصيتي بيدك، ماض في حكمك، عدل في قضاؤك، أسألك اللهم بكل اسم هو لك، سميت به نفسك، أو أنزلته في كتابك، أو علمته أحداً من خلقك، أو استأثرت به في علم الغيب عندك، أن تجعل القرأن العظيم ربيع قلبي، ونور صدري، وجلاء حزني، وذهاب همي وغميI ask Thee by every name Thou hast by which Thou hast called Thyself
أسألك بكل اسم هو لك سميت به نفسكThe questioner : May Allah bless you. This listener is Faruq Fakhrat Ahmad from Riyadh, working in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He begins his message with “Peace be upon you, and Allah’s mercy and blessings,” and says: “Greetings from Allah, blessed and good. Thank you to the program and to all the honorable scholars who contribute to its implementation. I ask Allah to reward you with the best reward for what you do in guiding the Muslims, informing them of the matters of their religion, and clarifying the lawful and the forbidden for every one who is confused or in distress. May Allah make you a support for all Muslims in all parts of the earth.”