What Supplications Help Purify the Heart?
Answered by Shaykh Dr. Muhammad Abu Bakr Badhib
Question
Are there specific supplications or remembrances (adhkar) that help purify the heart and cleanse the soul?
Answer
In the name of Allah, and all praise is due to Allah, and blessings and peace be upon our master Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah, his Family, his Companions, and those who follow him.
The purification of the heart plays a significant role in bringing a servant closer to their Lord, as hearts find tranquility in the remembrance of Allah. Allah (Most High) says:
“Surely in the remembrance of Allah do hearts find comfort.” [Quran, 13:28]
Here are some spiritual remedies for cleansing the heart and purifying the soul:
Recitation of the Quran
The Quran is a powerful tool for polishing the heart. The Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) said:
“These hearts become rusty just as iron does.” The Companions asked, “O Messenger of Allah, what can cleanse them?” He replied, “The recitation of the Quran.” [Abu Nu‘aym, Hilyat al-Awliya’; Bayhaqi, Shu‘ab al-Iman]
Quranic Supplications
There are several supplications in the Quran that are beneficial for the heart, such as:
“Our Lord! Do not let our hearts deviate after you have guided us. Grant us Your mercy. You are indeed the Giver (of all bounties).” [Quran, 3:8]
“And those who come after them will pray, ‘Our Lord! Forgive us and our fellow believers who preceded us in faith, and do not allow bitterness into our hearts towards those who believe. Our Lord! Indeed, You are Ever Gracious, Most Merciful.’” [Quran, 59:10]
The Prophet’s Supplication on the Day of Uhud
In a narration by Nasa’i, Ahmad, and others, Rifa‘a al-Zuraqi (Allah be pleased with him) reported that after the battle of Uhud, the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) made the following supplication:
“O Allah, all praise is for You. O Allah, none can withhold what You give, nor can anyone give what You withhold. No one can bring near what You have made distant, nor distance what You have brought near. O Allah, spread upon us Your blessings, mercy, grace, and provision.
O Allah, I ask You for permanent delight that will never cease or diminish. O Allah, I ask You for delight on the Day of Poverty, and security on the Day of Fear. O Allah, I seek refuge in You from the evil of what You have given us and from the evil of what You have withheld from us.
O Allah, instill in our hearts love for faith and adorn it in our hearts, and make disbelief, wickedness, and disobedience hateful to us. Make us among the rightly guided. O Allah, let us die as Muslims and live as Muslims, and join us with the righteous without disgrace or trial.
O Allah, fight against the disbelievers who deny Your way and reject Your messengers, and send upon them Your punishment and wrath. O Allah, fight against the People of the Book who deny the truth.”
These are among the many supplications and remembrances that aid in the purification of the heart. For further study, I recommend “al-Adhkar” by Imam Nawawi, a comprehensive and valuable resource on the subject.
May Allah grant us guidance and success on the straight path.
[Shaykh] Dr. Muhammad Abu Bakr Badhib
Shaykh Dr Muhammad Abu Bakr Badhib is a prominent Islamic scholar from Yemen born in Shibam, Hadhramaut, in 1976. He received his degree in Shari‘a from Al-Ahqaf University, a master’s degree from the Islamic University of Beirut, and a PhD in Usul al-Din from Aligarh Muslim University (AMU).
He studied under great scholars such as Shaykh al-Habib Ahmad Mashhur al-Haddad, Shaykh Fadl Ba‘ fadl, Habib Salim al-Shatiri, Habib Ali Mashhur bin Hafeez, and others. He has served as the Director of Publications at Dar al-Fiqh, the former Deputy Director of Cultural Relations at Al-Ahqaf University, a former Assistant for Employee Affairs at Atiyah Iron Company, a researcher at the Sunna Center affiliated with the Dallah al-Baraka Foundation, and a researcher at Al-Furqan Foundation’s Makka al-Mukarrama and Madina al-Munawwara Encyclopedia branch.
Currently, he is a researcher at Al-Furqan Foundation’s Makka al-Mukarrama and Madina al-Munawwara Encyclopedia branch, teaches traditionally through the Ijaza system at Dar al-Fuqaha in Turkey, supervises the Arabic department at Nur al-Huda International Institute (SeekersGuidance), and is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Manuscript House in Istanbul.
His works include “The Efforts of Hadhramaut Jurists in Serving the Shafi‘i School,” “Contributions of Hadhramaut Scholars in Spreading Islam and its Sciences in India,” “Hada’iq al-Na‘im in Shafi‘i Fiqh,” in addition to verifying several books in Fiqh, history, the art of biographies, and Asanid (chains of narration).
