Should One Make Du’a That Their Child Does Not Succeed in Something?

Answered by Ustadha Shazia Ahmad

Question

Is it ok to make specific dua against your child or anyone? If someone prays to Allah not to grant him or her their job back if they don’t change their mindset, is it permissible? Or for Allah to not make something successful for someone else if….? I know people who do these things, and they do it because they say they have insight and want to protect their child from displeasing Allah. Is this a bad dua? Should one be so specific in their duas?

Answer

Thank you for your question. Making dua that one’s child does not succeed in something and attaching conditions to it is not the best etiquette in supplication.

The Best Supplication

Instead of praying against what one’s child wants, recite this all-encompassing dua for them. Anas bin Malik related, “A man come to the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) and said: ‘O Messenger of Allah, what supplication is best?’ He said: ‘Ask your Lord for forgiveness and to be kept safe and sound in this world and the Hereafter.’ Then (the man) came the next day and said: ‘O Messenger of Allah, what supplication is best?’ He said: ‘Ask your Lord for forgiveness and to be kept safe and sound in this world and the Hereafter.’ Then (the man) came the third day and said: ‘O Prophet of Allah, what supplication is best?’ He said: ‘Ask your Lord for forgiveness and to be kept safe and sound in this world and the Hereafter, for if you are forgiven and kept safe and sound in this world and the Hereafter, you will have succeeded.’” [Ibn Maja]

اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَسْأَلُكَ الْعَفْوَ وَالْعَافِيَةَ فِي الدُّنْيَا وَالْآخِرَةِ

رَبِّ أَوْزِعْنِي أَنْ أَشْكُرَ نِعْمَتَكَ الَّتِي أَنْعَمْتَ عَلَيَّ وَعَلَىٰ وَالِدَيَّ وَأَنْ أَعْمَلَ صَالِحًا تَرْضَاهُ وَأَصْلِحْ لِي فِي ذُرِّيَّتِي ۖ إِنِّي تُبْتُ إِلَيْكَ وَإِنِّي مِنَ الْمُسْلِمِين

My Lord! Inspire me to always be thankful for Your favors, which You blessed my parents and me, and do good deeds that please You. And instill righteousness in my offspring. I truly repent to You, and I truly submit to Your Will.” [Quran, 46:15]

[Ustadha] Shazia Ahmad
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Ustadha Shazia Ahmad lived in Damascus, Syria, for two years, where she studied Aqidah, Fiqh, Tajweed, Tafseer, and Arabic. She then attended the University of Texas at Austin, where she completed her Master’s in Arabic. Afterward, she moved to Amman, Jordan, where she studied Fiqh, Arabic, and other sciences. She recently moved back to Mississauga, Canada, where she lives with her family.