Seerah

By: Baqir Shareef al-Qurashi

Imam Abu Muhammad al-Askari (a.s.) was the best worshipper among all people of his time. He spent the night with praying, prostrating, and reciting the Book (Qur’an). Muhammad ash-Shakiri said, ‘The imam sat in the mihrab and prostrated. I slept and awoke while he was still in prostration.’[37]

His Prayer

In his prayer, he turned with all his heart and feelings towards Allah, the Creator of the universe and the Giver of life. He felt or paid attention to nothing of the affairs of this life while he was in prayer. His soul clung to Allah devotedly and totally.

His Qunut[38]

In his prayer, Imam Abu Muhammad (a.s.) recited this du’a,

“O You, Whose light covers darkness, O You, by Whose holiness rugged mountain passes are lit, O You, to Whom all the inhabitants of the earth and the heavens submit, O You, to Whom every insolent tyrant surrenders with obedience, O You the Aware of hidden consciences, You are Merciful to everything and Aware of everything, forgive those who repent and follow Your path, protect them from the torment of Fire, give them soon Your victory that You have promised them of and You do not fail the promise! Devastate the people of evil and take them to the worst abode in the worst punishment and the ugliest retreat.

O Allah, You know the secrets of creatures, and are aware of their consciences. You are in need of nothing except that You carry out what You have promised of. You do not uncover the hidden secrets of Your people. O my Lord, You know what I conceal and what I show of my behaviors, movements, and all my emotions. O my Lord, You see the sufferings of the people of Your obedience and what they meet from Your enemies, and You are generous and not stingy in Your blessings, and the more efforts require more reward. You have ordered Your people of supplication if they turn to You sincerely and this requires the more of Your favors.

These forelocks and necks are submissive to You subserviently acknowledging Your deity, invoking on You with their hearts, and looking forward to Your prompt rewarding, and what You willed took place and what You will shall take place. You are the called upon, the hoped for, and the asked that no taker whatever great he is shall decrease You (i.e., Your favors), and no seeker whatever he insists and invokes shall weary You. Your kingdom shall not come to an end, and Your eternal glory shall remain forever, and nothing in the ages is out of Your will a bit. You are Allah, there is no god but You, the Merciful, the Mighty. O Allah, assist us by Your assistance, suffice us with Your protection, and give us what You give those who hold fast by Your rope, who shade themselves under Your shade…’[39]

His Du’a in the Morning

“O You, Who are greater than every great thing, Who have no partner and no vizier; O You, the Creator of the sun and the lighting moon, the shelter to the resorting fearful, the Liberator of tied captives, the nourisher of young babies, the setter of broken bones, the Merciful to the old, the light of light, the Manager of affairs, the Resurrector of those in graves, the Healer of chests, the Maker of shadow and heat, the One Aware of what is in chests, the Revealer of the Book, the light, the great Qur'an, and the Book of Psalms.

O You, Whom angels glorify in the morning and night; O You, the Permanent and Eternal, the Bringer forth of plants in the early morning and afternoon, the Enlivener of the dead, the Resurrector of decayed bones, the Hearer of sounds, the Everlasting, the Dresser of bones that decay after death!

O You, Whom nothing distracts from any other thing, Who do not change from a state to another, Who do not need to move or advance, Whom no affair prevents from any other affair, Who cancels for charity and supplication what has been determined and affirmed in the Heaven of bad judgement, Whom no place can include or encompass, Who puts remedy in what You like of things, Who keeps alive from serious disease with the least of nourishment, Who removes by the least of remedy the worst of diseases.

O You, Who, if promises, fulfils, if threatens, pardons; O You, Who possesses the needs of requesters, Who knows what is there inside the consciences of the silent; O You, the Most Magnificent, the Generous in pardoning.

O You, Who have a face that never becomes old, Who have complete sovereignty, Who have the inextinguishable light, Whose throne is over everything, Whose authority is over the land and the sea, Whose wrath is in Hell, Whose mercy is in Paradise, Whose promises are true, Whose favors are uncountable, Whose mercy is wide.

O You, the Helper of the callers for help, the Responder to the call of the compelled, O You, Who are in high esteem while Your creation is of low esteem, O You, the Lord of the mortal souls, the Lord of the worn bodies, the most perceptive of seers, the most hearing of hearers, the most prompt of accounters, the wisest of judges, the Most Merciful of the merciful, the Giver of gifts, the Releaser of captives, the Lord of glory, the One of piety and forgiveness.

O You, Whose limit cannot be perceived, Whose number cannot be counted, Whose aid does not cease, I bear witness, and the witness to me is honor and supply, and from me obedience and submission, and by which I hope deliverance on the day of sighing and regret, that You are Allah; there is no god but You alone with no partner, and that Muhammad is Your slave and messenger, Your blessing be on him and on his progeny, and that he has informed and carried out on behalf of You what was his duty to You, and that You always create, provide with livelihood, give, deny, exalt, humble, enrich, impoverish, disappoint, help, pardon, show mercy, forgive, overlook what You know, do not wrong, straiten, enlarge, omit, fix, initiate, reproduce, enliven and deaden; have mercy on Muhammad and the progeny of Muhammad and guide me from You, give me from Your favor, spread on me from Your mercy, and send down to me from Your blessings, for You often have accustomed me to good and favor, given me too much, and uncovered my ugly deeds.

O Allah, send blessings on Muhammad and the progeny of Muhammad and hasten my deliverance, forgive my slips, pity my loneliness, take me to the best of Your worships, gift me with health from my illness, plenty of my supplies, inclusive soundness in my body, insight in my religion, and help me to ask you for forgiveness before death comes and hope ends, and help me bear death and its distress, the grave and its loneliness, the scales and their lightness, the sirat[40] and its slip, the Day of Resurrection and its terror.

I ask You for the acceptance of deeds before death, and ask You for strength in my hearing and sight for the doing of the best of that You have taught and made me understand. You are the lofty Lord, and I am the humble slave, and how great the difference between us! O You, Compassionate, Benefactor, of Glory and Honor, have blessings on Muhammad and the progeny of Muhammad the good, the pure!”[41]

Notes:

[37] Dala’il al-Imama, p.227.

[38] Qunut is a supplication recited in prayers.

[39] Muhaj ad-Da’awat, p.62-63.

[40] Sirat means “way” or “path” but in the Islamic terminology, it means the bridge that dominates the Hell.

[41] Muhaj ad-Da’awat, p.277-278.