Is Making Dua From the Nafs or From Allah?

Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Question

Does making supplication originate from the nafs or from Allah? If the underlying need arises from the nafs, must the act of asking come from Allah, or can the act itself also stem from the nafs?

How can a person tell the difference, and can the impulse come from both at once?

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate.

Both are true together, without contradiction.

(1) the supplication is genuinely your own act, and

(2) It is Allah who creates and enables it in you. May Allah reward you for your thoughtful question.

Beginning With Realities of Belief

Begin with the doctrine, because it dissolves the either-or. Allah Most High says: “And none of you shall will, save if Allah wills; Verily was Allah ever all-knowing, all-wise.” [Quran 76:30; Keller, The Quran Beheld]

Your will is real and truly yours, but it is not independent of Allah. Imam Khadimi applies this to supplication directly: “Supplication too is from His decree, so the cause stands together with its cause within His decree, for Allah decreed that supplication be a cause that removes.” [Khadimi, Bariqa Mahmudiyya]

From the Human Self (Nafs)

Now, to the part that concerns you. A need arising in the nafs is not a flaw. The self feels hunger, fear, and loneliness. Bringing these needs to Allah is what makes them worship: “whomever Allah employs in supplicating Him has had a door of worship opened to him.” [Abu Talib al-Makki, Qut al-Qulub]

Ibn Ata’illah reads the impulse itself as the first good news: “When He loosens your tongue with the asking, know that He wants to give to you.” [Ibn Ata’illah, al-Hikam]

Imam Zarruq comments, “His enabling you to supplicate is a proof that He wishes to grant you what you asked.”

As for telling the difference, the tradition does not locate it in where the impulse came from, but in what you are asking for and why.

Imam Qushayri gives the criterion: “What the Muslims have a share in, or in which there is a right belonging to the Real, supplicating for it is better… and what As for how to tell the difference, the tradition does not focus on where the impulse comes from, but rather on what you are asking for and why.

Imam Qushayri gives the criterion: “What the Muslims have a share in, or in which there is a right belonging to the Real, supplicating for it is better… and what your own self has a portion in, silence regarding it is more complete” [Qushayri, al-Risala]. What He asks of you.” [al-Hikam]

The Human Self and Beyond

Can it be both at once? That is the ordinary case: a need felt in the self, carried on an ability granted by Allah.

The practical sign is in what the asking does to you. When it is sound, it leaves you more needy before Him, more humble, and content with whatever He decides.

When the nafs dominates, it shows as entitlement or bitterness when the answer is delayed.

For this, Ibn Ata’illah wrote the remedy: “Let not the delay of the gift, despite persistence in supplication, be a cause for your despair; He has guaranteed you an answer in what He chooses for you, not in what you choose for yourself, and at the time He wills, not at the time you will.” [Ibn Ata’illah, al-Hikam].Hikam]

Ask, and Let the Asking Itself be Worship

And when My servants ask you of Me, truly I am near; I answer the prayer of the suppliant when he calls on Me.” [Quran 2:186]

Take comfort in this: the fact that you are turning to Him at all, and troubling yourself over how to turn to Him well, is already His gift to you and not your own doing.

And Allah knows best.

[Shaykh] Faraz Rabbani

Related SeekersGuidance Answers

• The Reality and Etiquettes of Supplication: A Reader — A gathered reader on the reality of supplication: whether it changes destiny, its conditions and manners, the signs of its acceptance, and taking a means. It frames an eleven-part lecture series on supplication built on a classical text.
• Supplication Changes Decree; Asking for the Impossible — From our vantage point,nt supplication changes things, while what is in Allah’s knowledge never changes; what is written in the Preserved Tablet is not the final word. Also distinguishes the rationally impossible, which may not be asked for, from the merely unusual.
• Shall I Continue Making Dua despite My Hesitancy Not to Do So? — Yes, and the remedy for the hesitancy is continuation until it becomes easy. Reads the reluctance as a diversion, and recites the three ways a supplication is answered: swift fulfillment, storage for the Hereafter, or the diverting of a comparable harm.
• What Are the Reasons for My Dua Not Being Accepted? — Answers a woman praying the Prayer of Need for two years with no visible result: keep asking without haste, since Allah decides how and when, and take every practical means alongside the asking. Calls for certainty in the asking and a heart that is present.

Shaykh Faraz Rabbani is a recognized specialist scholar in the Islamic sciences, having studied under leading scholars from around the world. He is the Founder and Executive Director of SeekersGuidance.

Shaykh Faraz stands as a distinguished figure in Islamic scholarship. His journey in seeking knowledge is marked by dedication and depth. He spent ten years studying under some of the most revered scholars of our times. His initial studies took place in Damascus. He then continued in Amman, Jordan.

In Damascus, he was privileged to learn from the late Shaykh Adib al-Kallas. Shaykh Adib al-Kallas was renowned as the foremost theologian of his time. Shaykh Faraz also studied under Shaykh Hassan al-Hindi in Damascus. Shaykh Hassan is recognized as one of the leading Hanafi jurists of our era.

Upon completing his studies, Shaykh Faraz returned to Canada in 2007. His return marked a new chapter in his service to the community. He founded SeekersGuidance. The organization reflects his commitment to spreading Islamic knowledge. It aims to be reliable, relevant, inspiring, and accessible. This mission addresses both online and on-the-ground needs.

Shaykh Faraz is also an accomplished author. His notable work includes “Absolute Essentials of Islam: Faith, Prayer, and the Path of Salvation According to the Hanafi School.” This book, published by White Thread Press in 2004, is a significant contribution to Islamic literature.

His influence extends beyond his immediate community. Since 2011, Shaykh Faraz has been recognized as one of the 500 most influential Muslims. This recognition comes from the Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Center. It underscores his impact on the global Islamic discourse.

Shaykh Faraz Rabbani’s life and work embody a profound commitment to Islamic scholarship. His teachings continue to enlighten and guide seekers of knowledge worldwide.

 

«النصوص» · Source-Texts

[الخادمي، بريقة محمودية في شرح طريقة محمدية]
«إنَّ الدُّعَاءَ أَيْضاً مِنْ قَضَائِهِ تَعَالَى فَيَكُونُ المُسَبِّبُ مَعَ سَبَبِهِ مِنْ قَضَائِهِ تَعَالَى فَالله تَعَالَى قَضَى بِكَوْنِ الدُّعَاءِ سَبَباً مُزِيلاً»

[الغزالي، نقلاً في الخادمي، بريقة محمودية]
«فَاعْلَمْ أَنَّ مِنْ جُمْلَةِ القَضَاءِ رَدَّ البَلَاءِ بِالدُّعَاءِ، فَالدُّعَاءُ سَبَبٌ لِرَدِّ البَلَاءِ وَوُجُودِ الرَّحْمَةِ، كَمَا أَنَّ التُّرْسَ سَبَبٌ لِدَفْعِ السِّلَاحِ… فَقَدَّرَ الله الأَمْرَ وَقَدَّرَ سَبَبَهُ»

[أبو طالب المكي، قوت القلوب]
«لأَنَّ مَنِ اسْتَعْمَلَهُ الله تَعَالَى بِالدُّعَاءِ لَهُ فَقَدْ فَتَحَ لَهُ بَاباً مِنَ العِبَادَةِ»

[ابن عطاء الله، الحكم العطائية — الحكمة ٧٤]
«مَتَى أَطْلَقَ لِسَانَكَ بِالطَّلَبِ فَاعْلَمْ أَنَّهُ يُرِيدُ أَنْ يُعْطِيَكَ»

[أحمد زرّوق، مختصر شروح الحكم العطائية]
«لأَنَّ تَوْفِيقَهُ إِيَّاكَ لِلدُّعَاءِ دَلِيلٌ عَلَى أَنَّهُ أَرَادَ أَنْ يُسْعِفَكَ بِمَا طَلَبْتَ»

[القشيري، الرسالة القشيرية]
«وَيَصِحُّ أَنْ يُقَالَ: مَا كَانَ لِلْمُسْلِمِينَ فِيهِ نَصِيبٌ، أَوْ لِلْحَقِّ سُبْحَانَهُ فِيهِ حَقٌّ.. فالدُّعَاءُ بِهِ أَوْلَى… وَمَا كَانَ لِنَفْسِكَ فِيهِ حَظٌّ فَالسُّكُوتُ لَهُ أَتَمُّ»

[ابن عطاء الله، الحكم العطائية — الحكمة ١٦٦]
«لَا يَكُنْ طَلَبُكَ سَبَباً لِلْعَطَاءِ فَيَقِلَّ فَهْمُكَ عَنْهُ، وَلْيَكُنْ طَلَبُكَ لِإِظْهَارِ الْعُبُودِيَّةِ وَقِيَاماً بِحُقُوقِ الرُّبُوبِيَّةِ»

[ابن عطاء الله، الحكم العطائية]
«خَيْرُ مَا تَطْلُبُهُ مِنْهُ مَا هُوَ طَالِبُهُ مِنْكَ»

[ابن عطاء الله، الحكم العطائية]
«لَا يَكُنْ تَأَخُّرُ أَمَدِ العَطَاءِ مَعَ الإِلْحَاحِ في الدُّعَاءِ مُوجِباً لِيَأْسِكَ؛ فَهُوَ ضَمِنَ لَكَ الإِجَابَةَ فِيمَا يَخْتَارُهُ لَكَ لَا فِيمَا تَخْتَارُهُ لِنَفْسِكَ، وَفي الوَقْتِ الَّذِي يُرِيدُ لَا في الوَقْتِ الَّذِي تُرِيدُ»