Du’as for Patience

Patience is frequently enjoined throughout the Quran, and it is not always easy to have it; thus the Quran shows us du’as for patience. There are two examples; we can ourselves simply ask for His help in becoming more patient, and these examples can give us words and encouragement. We can say “grant us patience,” but the word in the Quran is afrigh ʿalaynā, which means “pour upon us,” also translated “shower us with” – the word afrigh meaning to “pour.” This expresses the need for a great deal of patience and indeed the two examples are of those fighting Galut or Goliath, who was a daunting opponent, and the Pharaoh’s magicians after he said he will crucify them. Obviously these are extreme circumstances requiring extraordinary patience. Here are their du’as:

Du’as for Forgiveness in the Collective Voice

There are so many du’as for forgiveness in the Quran, one wonders why people seek du’as from sources other than the Quran, since these are known to be given to us directly from Allah. This post shall discuss those which are given in the collective voice, using the plural us. Al-Fatiha, which is our prime du’a in the Quran and in salat as well, is in that collective voice. Even though one individual may be reciting, that one is also imploring Allah on behalf of humanity as a whole. The “us” is also referring to fellow believers, those who worship Allah as a whole. But only Allah truly knows who is a believer and who is not; so our prayer is often unspecified and thus praying for “all-in-all.” In the context of the du’a, for example, asking Allah to help us against the “nation” or “people” of deniers/wrongdoers, this du’a is accordingly more specific. In either case, we are not praying for ourselves or even others individually. Below are four important du’as for forgiveness in the collective voice (out of a total of eight) with transliterations, given to us by our All-Knowing Merciful Lord. 

Du’as for a Safe Journey or Trip, from Noah and More

Below are du’as for both long journeys such as that of Noah (reminding us that life itself is a journey to Allah), and shorter trips, as we commonly take daily. The Quran’s narratives of Prophet Noah focus on the ark/ship (in Arabic not a separate word but the same used for any ship) as essentially the refuge that protected he and those with him from the catastrophic flood. It was about the believers being saved by Allah whereas the rejecters/deniers were all drowned. The ship was built over time under Allah’s guidance and also revelation as to how to build it in the same way that the Quran was revealed to prophet Mohammad. Thus the ark is also a metaphor for the Quran itself – those who read and internalize (understand and act upon) its message are like those who boarded the ark, but the catastrophe in this case is Judgment Day and the Finality Al-Akhira – likewise, the those who deny or reject the Quran’s message (including previous revealed scriptures) will be “drowned” in that ultimate catastrophe. Thus prophet Noah’s du’a for a safe journey is also more than that – we can consider it a du’a both for a specific safe journey within this life and a safe journey through our lifetime “in the ark” of the Quran to the Finality. 

Du’a of Facing Allah – Du’a At-Tawajhu

This is a du’a combining 3 Quranic ayat, to be recited at the beginning of the salat prayer before Al-Fatiha. It is called du’a at-tawajhu, which means “du’a of facing Allah.” Surprisingly, I found nothing about it online except some “study notes” for the Bayyinah Institute on a separate website that appears to keep such things online, but it gave no explanation of how it is used, just the du’a and a translation with some notes. It’s basically the du’a of prophet Ibrahim (Abraham), connected to a completion of that du’a given to prophet Mohammad at the end of the same sura (Al-An’am), and a powerful expression of faith in Allah alone (monotheism). 

Du’as for Progeny

These are specific du’as in the Quran for people who want but do not have children. Prophets Ibrahim (Abraham) and Zakariya, both of whom did not have children prior to making their du’as for progeny, each were motivated by seeing the need to carry on the faith in Allah and continue it through future generations. Their du’as were granted in every respect, and both had children in old age, and both had infertile wives (in Ibrahim’s case, one of two wives) whom Allah made fertile in answer to their husbands’ du’a. In the case of Ibrahim, this single du’a led to a lineage that ultimately culminated (from one of two major branches) in prophet Mohammad (pbuh). 

Du’as for Giving Thanks

Showing appreciation to Allah Who gave us life, sustenance, enjoyment, and beauty surrounding us on earth and in the sky at day and night, is important way beyond what most people think or consider. In the Quran, the word kufr, often translated “disbelief,” really means denial and literally “covering up” – the root word means literally “to cover,” as you can even hear in the pronunciation of kufr like cover. The Quran frequently juxtaposes kufr in opposition to grateful or appreciative. With kufr as the primal sin from which other sins or wrongdoing are derived, this shows us that thankfulness is of monumental importance. The word “denial” encompasses the same two meanings: rejection of Allah the Exalted and His guidance, and denial that anything good is from Allah/God. In the current era, this denial is expressed as “self-sufficiency,” and randomness, that things just “happen” but there’s no meaning to anything other than “facts” devoid of significance except as empirical statistics. The Quran, on the other hand, shows us everything has profound meaning, purpose, and value which is freely given to all. By offering du’as of thanks and praise to Allah, we enhance this attitude and understanding – even science finds that the most balanced, beloved, and joyful people are the most grateful.  

Du’as for Accepting Repentance

There are many du’as for forgiveness, which is in many ways similar or a part of asking for Allah to accept one’s repentance, but there is a distinction. Repentance is especially required in the event of major sin or transgression. Often this involves repeated bad behavior or an attitude that leads to oppressing others. But it can also be for any kind of transgression, even done out of ignorance. The first example of this is that of Adam/Eve (Eve is not named in the Quran but I use it here to avoid confusion since that is commonly used to refer to her even in Arabic, as Hawa’.) And since Ramadan is the month associated with repentance, this is a good way to begin our examples of du’as.

The Necessity of Du’a

This Ramadan, we hope to bring a series of du’as from the Quran, given to us to supplicate Allah in the best possible way. Of course, we can pray (du’a means “pray” in the sense that the English word does, to “supplicate” directly to Allah/God. Before presenting these, however, today we will simply discuss the basic necessity of du’a to be accepted by Allah. The simplest form of prayer, sometimes called “spontaneous” prayer, that comes from one individual from the heart to call upon their Creator/Sustainer, is no less essential than the formal canonical prayer called salat, which means “connection,” and is the way we establish a daily connection to Him. But du’a is always voluntary, and often arises out of some circumstance or need. That connection is extremely important because it is personal and self-initiated. It has no set time or place, no protocols, can be aloud or silent, and Allah promises to respond to it. 

Mistranslations in the Quranic Descriptions of Paradise Corrected

Some of the ayat in the Quran describing the reward in paradise for muttaqīn or “the God-fearing/righteous” have frequently been translated in a manner that includes descriptive reference to women’s bodies, as in “full-breasted companions” described below. This includes the widely-accepted Sahih International translation. But the word muttaqīn is gender-neutral, including both men and women, making such a translation contradictory and inconsistent. This issue is discussed below in a well-reasoned answer copied here from Quora (question links to the its answer) to the following question: why did the Muslim translators of the Quran place the phrase “full-breasted” in passage 78:31-33 of Sura an-Nisa?

Rabb Al-‘Alameen in Quran

As the 7th and 8th words in the Quran, and arguably the 4th name of Allah in Al-Fatiha, the name Rabb Al-‘Alameen is significant and appears in the Quran 42 times in 42 verses in 21 suras. Thus it is not repeated in any verse, but is frequently repeated among the suras. Of these 42 ayat/verses, 7 are ayat of praise like the second verse of Al-Fatiha 1:2.  As both 42 (6×7) and 21 (3×7) are multiples of 7, this is an interesting correlation. Much interpretation has been given by scholars to this name over time, most interpreting the word al-alameen to refer to all that exists except Allah, or in the words of Ibn Abbas, “all the heavens and what they contain, all the earths and what they contain, and all that is between them, be it known or unknown.” Or, as Ibn ‘Arabi put it, “all through which God can be known.” He also thought of the term rabb as referring to the level where existence and the Divine are related. But for me, I think of Rabb in itself as simply the relationship name for Allah, because unlike other names of Allah, it easily and unequivocally accepts possessive usage, such as “my Lord” (using “lord” as the English expression for rabb), “their Lord,” “your Lord,” etc. Adding the expression al’alameen signifies that this name only can possibly refer to Allah the Exalted.