Power of Dua

And when My servants ask you, [O Muhammad], concerning Me - indeed I am near. I respond to the invocation of the supplicant when he calls upon Me. So let them respond to Me [by obedience] and believe in Me that they may be [rightly] guided. (Baqarah 186)

In this beautiful verse of Surah Baqarah, Allah swt assures us that indeed he is very close to us (with His knowledge) and he always responds to all our duas, Subhanallah, If we ask people for some thing again and again, they get fed up with us. However, Allah wants us to only ask Him for all our needs. Making dua is itself an act of worship and dua is also the essence of our worship. In our Salahs, we praise and glorify Allah swt, we ask for guidance in Surah Fatiha (Ihdina sirat almustaqeem), we ask for forgiveness (Allahumma aghfirlee) in Rukoos and sujood and we make other duas in Tashahhud and sujood.

But there are some conditions for the acceptance of duas. According to the ayah mentioned above, if we want Allah swt to respond to our duas then we should obey Him and have conviction in Him that He will indeed answer our duas. Here is a list of some of the requirements for the acceptance of our duas:
1) Dua should be made with sincerity (sincerely asking only Allah swt).
2) It should be made with attentive heart not in an auto-mode without understanding what we are saying.
3) Our source of income and the food we consume should be Halal.
4) We should not make dua hastily seeking immediate results.
5) We should not be committing many sins.
6) We should have conviction in Allah swt that He will definitely repond to our duas.
7) We should not be aggressive while supplicating.


According to a hadith in Saheeh Muslim: A man’s (dua’s) may be answered as long as it does not involve sin or severing the ties of kinship or hastening.” It was said: “O Messenger of Allah, what does hastening mean?” He said: “When he says, ‘I made dua’ and I made dua’ but I did not see any response,’ so he gets discouraged and stops making dua’.

According to another hadith, Allah responds to our duas in one of the three ways:
1) Allah accepts our dua right away.
2) Allah saves the reward of the dua for the Hereafter.
3) Allah averts some calmity or harm for us because of the dua.

So we should not never understimate the power of dua. Even if we do not get what we ask for in our duas, we will still get so much reward for just making dua in the Hereafter. Allah swt knows what is best for us so we should never complain Allah swt if we do not get our desire/wish fulfilled right away.

Also there are some etiquettes of making dua. We should start our duas by praising and glorifying Allah swt (e.g.: Subhanallahi wa bi hamdihi Subhanallahil Adheem), then we should send blessings to Prophet saw (durood), then we should ask for forgiveness of our sins, then we should thank Allah swt for all His blessings and then finally we should ask Allah swt for our needs. There is also a Masnoon Dua Haajaat which can also be used.

But subhanallah we are so busy in our worldly lives that we do not even take out time for making dua to Allah swt. But Allah swt is so Merciful that He grants so many of our needs without us asking for them. We should also be aware of the times when duas are accepted. Some of the times are mentioned below:
a) in the last third of night
b) after fard prayers
c) between Athan and Iqamah
d) an hour on Friday
e) while drinking zamzam water
f) in sajdah
g) during rain
h) while travelling
i) between asr and maghrib salah
j) at the iftar time/ of a fasting person
k) during laylatul qadr

Inshallah, by learning about the etiquettes of making dua, conditions of acceptance of dua, reward of making dua and the time of acceptance of dua, we can utilize the power of dua to achieve anything we want in our life (as long as it is not sinful and it is good for us).

Also, we should design our duas wisely. Quranic and Masnoon duas are the best duas to make. Subhanallah, they are so comprehensive. We can always find some Quranic or Masnoon dua according to our need. Whatever duas we make, we should always remember that our duas should not be merely focused on our worldly needs. We should always ask for the success in Hereafter because it is, indeed, the ultimate success for us.


And among the people is he who says, "Our Lord, give us in this world," and he will have in the Hereafter no share. But among them is he who says, "Our Lord, give us in this world [that which is] good and in the Hereafter [that which is] good and protect us from the punishment of the Fire. Those will have a share of what they have earned, and Allah is swift in account. (Baqarah 199-202)

There is nothing wrong in making duas for wordly things such as a big house, a new car, high marks in exams. But we should ask for Hereafter, as well. Infact, a good dua (as mentioned in verse 201 of Surah Baqarah) includes asking for both the good of this dunya and the good of the Hereafter.

Whoever asks Allāh for Paradise three times [Allahumma innee as'aluk al-Jannah], then Paradise will say: “O Allāh! Enter him into Paradise!” And whoever seeks protection with Allāh from the Fire three times [Allahumma ajirnee min an-Naar], the Fire will say: “O Allāh! Protect him from the Fire!”" [Reported by at-Tirmidhi, and it is authentic]

What is Sabr? How to do Sabr?

And We will surely test you with something of fear and hunger and a loss of wealth and lives and fruits, but give good tidings to the patient. (Baqarah 155)

In this ayah, Allah swt mentions that we will be tested through fear, hunger, loss of wealth, loss of lives of loved ones and loss of children. Everyone goes through different tests in their lives. Whatever our test is, no matter how big or small, we will only be able to pass it through patience and prayer.

O you who have believed, seek help through patience and prayer. Indeed, Allah is with the patient. (Baqarah 153)

What is Sabr (patience)?
Sabr is holding ourselves from every kind of negative reaction whenever we are tested. Negative reactions may include swearing, yelling, blaming others, being violent, etc. Sabr also includes to accept the test as the decree of Allah swt and to say Inna Lillahi Wa Inna Ilaihi Rajioon (Indeed we belong to Allah , and indeed to Him we will return) whenever anything bad happens to us.


Who, when disaster strikes them, say, "Indeed we belong to Allah , and indeed to Him we will return." Those are the ones upon whom are blessings from their Lord and mercy. And it is those who are the [rightly] guided. (Baqarah 156, 157)

Being patient at the time of difficulty is not always easy. Therefore, the next tool which we have is Salah. Prophet saw used to rush to Salah whenever any calamity strikes. So, the correct attitude of a believer when facing any difficulty is not whining or saying "Why me?", but instead a believer should seek Allah's help by praying two rakah Hajaat Nawafil.

Sabr includes three things:

1) to stop oneself from negative reactions and accept the test as a decree of Allah swt
2) to be steadfast and firm on obedience of Allah
3) to stay away from doing what Allah has forbidden.

Also there are three levels of sabr:
Level 1: to at least control oneself from negative reactions (it is okay to weep and make dua)
Level 2: to be pleased/content with the decree of Allah swt
Level 3: Despite being in a calamity, person thanks Allah swt (by saying alhumdulillahi ala kulli haal) realizing that it could have been worse and it is an opportunity to earn more reward. Person also makes this dua:

 To Allah we belong and unto Him is our return. O Allah, recompense me for my affliction and replace it for me with something better.

We should aim for the third level of sabr which is the best level.

Also, we should know that sabr should start as soon as the calamity strikes. it is not sabr to first whine and complain and then say that now I will do sabr. Moreover, sabr should be done consistently. It is not sabr to stop being patient and say "now thats enough, I cannot do it anymore".

Also remember the purpose of tests by Allah s.w.t. By putting us in hardships, Allah forgives us our sins, raises our ranks in His eyes and makes us stronger. Allah tests everyone through different kinds of trials. For some, praying on time or waking up for fajr could be a test. For others, doing house chores, fulfilling family commitments or managing time could be a test. Allah also tests us through people especially our loved ones. Basically, any command of Allah which is hard for us to fulfil or any of His prohibitions which is hard for us to resist is a test for us. Only through patience and prayer, we can submit ourselves to the will of Allah s.w.t and pass all the test successfully.

This life itself is a test. Only those who will lead their lives according to the will of Allah swt will be successful in the Hereafter.

We should always remember that Allah's mercy and support is always with the patient ones and Allah loves those who endure every test with patience as mentioned in verses in Quran.

May Allah swt makes us among Sabireen (those who are patient), Shakireen (those who are grateful to Him) and Aabideen (those who worship Him), Ameen!