“Verily your Lord is Generous and Shy. If His servant raises his hands to Him (in supplication) He becomes shy to return them empty.” (Ahmad, Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi)
If a believer understands that no dua returns empty, then there should be no doubt that dua is the number one therapy for those who believe in Allah and His messenger. Therefore, its wholesome benefit is numerous and it must be a part of every action of a believer -beginning, middle and end. Dua serves as a pillar in the healing process, like first aid or as a component of preventive action. This attitude is reflected in the Islamic tradition where nothing is too small or too big to ask Allah for. It has been reported that Nana Aisha said: “Let one of you ask his Lord for everything that he needs, even a lace for his shoe if it breaks.”1
The Therapeutic Nature of Dua:
Dua is a Stress Reliever:
Stress is ‘a state of worry or mental tension caused by a difficult situation’. However, a believer knows that nothing happens without the permission of Allah, not even the difficult situations they find themselves in. Hence, they direct their dua to Allah for guidance, support, and relief. This awareness in itself is a relief, knowing that the Most High has their back. The way dua was a relief for the Prophet in many incident of his life, most notably the Macca period.
Counselling Therapy with Allah:
No matter your position, condition, or status in this life—whether wealthy, poor, knowledgeable, ignorant, saint, or sinner—everyone has dua to act as a weapon that connects their inner self to Allah; to ask, converse, and request. Hence, amid confusion or hopelessness, or when everyone has abandoned you, the only weapon left is dua, to reposition you towards possibilities by connecting you to Allah. What a positive feeling it is to know that you are engaged in a one-on-one conversation with Allah.
Healing through His attributes:
For us to know Him, Allah has mentioned His names and attributes to us. When we call upon Him using these beautiful names and attributes, we direct our focus to specific needs through His Jamal and Jalal. Allah says: “And Allah’s names are the best names, so call on Him and leave those who violate the sanctity of His Names. They shall be recompensed for what they did.” [Surah Al-A’raf 7:180]
So when you feel ill, you know He is the Healer (Ash-Shafi), when you seek some form of opening, you know He is Al-Fattah, and when you seek provision, He is Ar-Razzaq. The more we learn and use these names and attributes, the more aware we become of Him in every situation.
Safe Space with Allah:
Admittedly, the only being to whom we can fully express ourselves without worry or bias is Allah. We speak to Him honestly, whether our feelings are positive or negative. Unlike humans, Allah is aware of our situation even before we express it, so He is neither surprised nor affected by it. No matter how much trust we place in therapists, counsellors, healers, or friends, there are some things we cannot express—either because they are too personal or because we struggle to articulate them. However, with Allah, we know that He understands us better than our expression. This awareness alone provides relief.
Dua is a Comforter:
This is how the Prophet trained the Ummah. He taught us a dua for every situation, whether at the beginning or the end. The benefit of dua is that it provides us with a sense of assurance and confidence that we are under the protection of Allah’s will. Even if things do not unfold as we expect, we trust in Allah knowing that He is always in control, and the outcome aligns with His wisdom, which we may not fully comprehend.
Dua is a Bridge to Healing:
Yes, dua is the gateway to miracles. Therefore, even in the most obvious situations, dua can turn things around because we understand that the result of dua is coming from a realm of possibility rather than impossibility.
Effectiveness of Dua
- Always maintain trust in Allah and think well of Him in every situation.
- Observe the etiquettes of Dua.
- Avoid sins as much as possible.
- Follow the commands of Allah and His messenger to the best of your ability.
- Verbalize your dua to move it from the world of thoughts to the world of actions.
- Be generous with your dua and pray for your brethren and everyone. It is said that such a dua will not miss its mark. “There is no Muslim worshipper who prays for his brother (Muslim) in his absence except that an angel says, ‘And to you the same!'” (Muslim)
In conclusion, dua is an essential component of healing, mental stability, and overall wellness because it is the singular weapon that transcends all boundaries in the life of a believer, both spiritually and physically. Therefore, dua should be regarded as the sibling to the actions of the limbs. Recall the words of Allah in the Hadith Qudsi: “O My servants! If the first of, and the last of you; if the jinn of you and the men of you, were to stand on one plain and ask Me, and I gave every single person what he wanted, then all of that would not decrease from My Kingdom, except like a needle (decreases the amount of water) when it is placed in the ocean (and then taken out).”2
- https://faith.consulting/blog/dua-and-acceptance-all-you-need-know#:~:text=In%20one%20hadith%2C%20Prophet%20Muhammad,small%20to%20ask%20Allah%20for.
- https://muslimmatters.org/2007/05/09/dua-the-weapon-of-the-believer/
JazakumAllah Khairun for these important reminders of the place of Duaa in our Mental and Spiritual well-being. Supplication and prayer is called a spiritual intervention tool by Spiritual Care Practitioners because of the efficacy that is observed by those who use this consistently. I like the reminder that, “Unlike humans, Allah is aware of our situation even before we express it, so He is neither surprised nor affected by it.” We have been gifted this incredible means to directly connect and speak with Our Creator without intermediary, and knowing and availing ourselves of this is wonderfully uplifting for our souls.
THE NAME of ALLAH AS-SAMI’ (السمیع), MEANS “THE LISTENER”.
We are creatures in constant need of “listening ears”: those of our mother in the womb when we were babies; of our father, of a shaykh, of a psychology professional… of those who lend us their ears so that our heart may be serene and comforted.
But above all, we need to be heard by Allah, for it is He who listens to us in our supplications (duas). We can make them with the tongue, with the intellect (aqal) and, especially, from the sincerity of the heart. We will make supplications (duas) with the highest degree of certainty and confidence that Allah is listening to us, in an intimate and recollected dialogue in the nest of the heart (qalb).
Ibn Arabi says: “Everything in creation is interrelated and intercommunicated” and creation is being reconfigured at every instant by its Creator, Al-Khaliq.
Our energy (taqah) and the qualities that emanate from our supplication return to Allah, because, in reality, it is He who puts in our heart the intention to ask Him. We are vulnerable and in constant need.The fact that we are heard is in itself healing (ruqya), and Allah is the Great Ruqy, the Great As-Shifa`.We are the needy and He provides relief and health to our creatures so that our hearts may find repose and peace. Just as He can give us an intellect (aqal) with clarifying discernment to navigate the process of Mushahada and gain entry into the ocean of Muraqqabah. We can ask our Lord for anything.
We can call upon Him from the intuitive language of our heart, through His Most Beautiful Names, each of which has a specific medicine (such as Al-Fattah to open the heart and the five senses), from Quranic verses and specific verses, from duas of the hadiths, etc. Any form of call for help to our Lord will be heard, because He is the Helper, An-Nasir (النصير), in sha Allah. Surrendered in dua, we can do it with the chest expanded and opening the heart with natural and conscious breathing, and proper body posture and movement.
References in the Qur’an of As-Sami’
Surah Al-Baqarah (2:256):
o “Allah is the All-Hearing, the All-Knowing.” (اللَّهُ سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌ)
2. Surah Al-Imran (3:34):
o “Verily, Allah is Hearer, Knower.” (إِنََّ اللَّهََ سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌ)
3. Surah An-Nisa (4:58):
o “Allah certainly exhorts you to return the deposits to their owners, and if you judge among the people, judge justly. Verily, Allah is Hearer, Watcher.” (إِنَّ اللَّهَ كَانََ سَمِيعًا بَصِيرًا)
BarrokAllahu feekum