Topic
Remembrance
remembrance of Allah
17 entries
-
Does silent dhikr count, and is it better than loud dhikr?
Silent dhikr, which even the angel scribes cannot hear, is narrated to be seventy times superior to vocal dhikr on the Day of Resurrection, when Allah will reward it as a good deed of which even the scribes are unaware. Verbal utterance is, however, unanimously considered necessary in certain injunctions, such as the recitation of the Qur'an, in Salah, and in contracts such as marriage or divorce. Depending on the tariqa, the shaykh may teach verbal remembrance or silent remembrance with the heart.
-
Are gatherings of dhikr (halaqah) in the Sunnah?
The hadith of the angels who go about looking for the people of dhikr endorses the significance of the gatherings of dhikr: Allah forgives those gathered, and also the one who happened to pass by and sat with them, though he only came for something he needed. In another narration, Allah's Messenger went out to a circle of his Companions sitting to remember Allah and told them that Jibril had informed him that Allah was talking to the angels about their magnificence. The special peace and tranquillity that settles upon the heart in an assembly of dhikr is explained by the hadith on the sakina that descends on a group gathered in a house of Allah to recite Allah's Book or study it among themselves.
-
What if my mind wanders during dhikr?
Heedless invocation is far better than being completely and utterly heedless, and being distracted and inattentive during dhikr shall not be the reason to stop the remembrance. Allah may grant invocation with attention to the one who invokes His Name inattentively, and that is not difficult for Allah. Remembrance increases the level of certitude; what may be a struggle at first becomes effortless, then a habit, and then one performs dhikr through the heart unconsciously.
-
Is La ilaha illallah the best dhikr?
The narrations of the Prophet tell that when La ilaha illallah, "there is no god but Allah", is said sincerely, the doors of the sky are opened until it reaches the Throne, so long as the one who says it avoids major sins; that the one who says it sincerely from his heart will gain the Prophet's intercession; and that it is the highest of faith's seventy-some odd doors. Throughout the daily course of life it is the only way to revive Iman, and a hadith names it the best remembrance. In two of his letters, Mujaddid Alf Thani wrote that one is to remain engaged in the dhikr of Allah until everything except Allah departs from the heart, and that the seeker is to perform the dhikr of La ilaha to the point that the heart is void of everything except Allah.
-
Does the remembrance of Allah bring peace to an anxious heart?
Worries, anxiety, depression and mental health issues are on the rise, and the concept of true happiness is lost in the vortex of worldly desires. The Creator gave the secret for happiness in the Qur'an, that only through His remembrance do hearts find peace, and when the Creator has set that rule, there is no other means to satisfaction, may it be wealth, fame or status. The Qur'an is a manual and a code for conduct revealed by the Creator, and one who chooses not to follow its rules faces the repercussions not only in the afterlife but also in this world.
-
What does “Remember Me, and I will remember you” mean?
When a servant remembers Allah, Allah remembers him, and the greatest reward for a lover is that the Beloved remembers him. In this world it is not possible to behold Allah's vision by the eye, but by due remembrance the servant can achieve the perpetual state of ihsan and behold the vision of Allah through his heart; the everlasting reward of the believers, the visage, would be in the hereafter.
-
How much dhikr is enough?
Allah commands the believers to remember much, morning and evening, countless and limitless, and the Qur'an's answer to how much is Dhikran Katheera, in abundance. Excessive remembrance is validated through a hadith of the Prophet.
-
How does dhikr polish the heart?
Every soul is born on fitrah and is slowly tainted by the world and its desires, and its only salvation is the remembrance of Allah, until all doubts and delusions are annihilated and the soul becomes pure again. Remembrance is the food of the soul; through it the heart is cleansed, faith is strengthened, the soul is elevated and the state of ihsan is achieved.
-
Is dhikr the greatest of deeds?
The Qur'an calls the remembrance of Allah greatest. Acts of obedience increase the light of certainty and Iman in the soul, and dhikr is one of the greatest of them, as a sahih hadith of the Prophet proves.
-
Where does the Qur’an command dhikr, and why is it necessary?
The Qur'an underlines the importance of invocation in several verses, and the verse of Surah al-Jumu'ah telling the believers to remember Allah often, so that they may be successful, is a command and not a request. The world with all its attractions can easily distract the believer, and its possessions would be of no value on the Day of Judgement; Surah al-Munafiqun addresses the believers with a command not to let their wealth and children divert them from the remembrance of Allah.