Dhikr - Zikr - ذكر - Remembrance
O You who believe! Remember Allâh with much remembrance. [Ahzaab
33:41]
The Messenger (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam)
said, “Shall I not tell you the best of your deeds, the nicest to Your
Owner, the highest in your ranks, better for you than spending gold and silver,
and better for you than meeting your enemy whereupon you strike their necks and
they strike your necks?” They said, “Yes, O Messenger of Allaah (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam).”
He said, “The remembrance of Allaah (dhikr).”[1] (i.e.
Dhikr is better than giving in charity, jihaad and martyrdom)
Download the pdf with the full dhikr charts and explanation by saving the link below:
Full Dhikr Charts and Hadeeth
Understand and Pay Attention to Dhikr
First, it is important to mention that it is not enough to say the
phrases of dhikr on your tongue without understanding the meanings or paying
attention to what you are saying. This will have little benefit and no affect.
To reap the fruits and achieve the benefits of the remembrance you must
understand what you are saying and pay attention to what your tongue is saying
(i.e not repeat phrases automatically without thinking about them).
Four Phrases[1]
The best dhikr is the Qur’aan. After that come the four phrases SubhaanAllaah,
al hamdulillaah, laa illaaha illAllaah, Allaahu akbar which
are also from the Qur’aan.
Tasbeeh and Hamd go together (salah, hadeeth,
Qur’aan)
Tahleel and takbeer go together (adhaan, on Mounts
Safaa and Marwa, Battles, on high place etc.)
Tahleel best out of the four phrases because of what it contains of
tawheed, difference between people of paradise and Hell; no-one’s Islaam is
correct without it; say it before a person dies he will enter paradise; highest
branch of faith. Best good deed. Tahleel is the foundation (asl)
and tasbeeh and hamd are branches from tahleel.
All of Allaah’s Names are included in these four phrases:
SubhaanAllaah includes His Names of tanzeeh (removing
imperfections) such as al Quddoos and as Salaam.
Alhamdulillaah includes the confirmation of the types of
perfection that Allaah has in His Names and Attributes.
Allaahu Akbar includes exalting Allaah’s greatness.
Laa ilaaha illAllaah means ‘None has the right to be
worshipped except Allaah’.
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1. Tasbeeh: SubhaanAllaah[2]
Tasbeeh negates all imperfections and anything unsuitable being attributed
to Allaah such as the sayings of the Mumaththilah (those who say Allaah
is like His creation) and the Mu'attilah (those who deny Allaah's Attributes)
Tasbeeh negates imperfections and tahmeed affirms
completeness to Allaah's attributes.
Tasbeeh and tahmeed are mentioned together in the Qur'aan.
2. Tahmeed: Alhamdulillaah[3]
Allaah is 'al Hameed' in His Self, His Names, His Attributes
and His Actions. He deserves all praise and love.
Out of all the creation, Prophet Muhammad (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam)
was the person who praised Allaah the most and in the most complete way. Allaah
will give him the flag of praise on the Day of Resurrection. He will hold it in
his hand and those who praise Allaah will gather behind him and those who
praised Allaah the most will be nearest to the flag.
Those who praise Allaah in ease and in hardship and are patient
with what is decreed for them will have a house in paradise called 'House of
Praise. '
The Messenger (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam)
said, "When a servant's child dies, Allaah says to His angels, 'Have you
taken (the soul) of My servant's child?' They will say, 'Yes.' He will say,
'Have you taken the apple of his eye?' They will say, 'Yes.' He will say, 'What
did My servant say?' They will say, 'He praised You and said innaa lillaahi
wa innaa ilayhi raaji'oon.’ (To Allaah we belong and to Him is the return).So
Allaah will say, ‘Build a house in Paradise for My servant and call it ‘the
House of Praise’” (Saheehah 1408)
When is hamd required from a Muslim? It is required at all
times as he is constantly enjoying Allaah’s blessings apparent and hidden, in
his religion and his worldly life. Allaah repels evil and harm from him. Allaah
deserves praise from His servants at all times. He deserves praise due to His
Great Names and perfect Attributes. There are certain situations where praising
Allaah is emphasised more. For example, when starting matters, in the khutbah,
in prayer, after eating and drinking, when getting dressed, after sneezing,
when seeing someone afflicted with a harm, etc.
Two types of praise:
- Praise for Allaah’s good treatment of His servants, which is shukr (thanks).
- Praise for what Allaah deserves Himself due to His perfect Names and Attributes and Noble descriptions.
A servant’s having the correct knowledge of Allaah’s Names and
Attributes is the best, most complete and greatest way of fulfilling the duty
of praising Allaah.
“Praising Allaah for a blessing is a greater blessing than the
blessing itself.”[4]
Allaah granting a person the ability to give thanks and praise Allaah for a
blessing is greater than the blessings of health, wealth, children etc.
3. Takbeer: Allaahu Akbar[5]
Takbeer means that Allaah is greater than everything to the servant. It is
exaltation (ta’dheem) and reverence (ijlaal) of the Lord and
believing that there is nothing greater (akbar, a’dham) than Him.
Takbeer is said hundreds of times a day in salaah, adhaan, during the two
‘Eids, on high places etc.
Allaahu Akbar cannot be replaced by other phrases such as Allaah
‘Adham in the salaah. ‘adham also has the meaning of greatness but akbar
is more complete in meaning ‘greatest’. Our minds cannot comprehend Allaah’s
greatness. We cannot even comprehend much of the creation, so what about the
Creator.
Ibn Mas’ood (RadiAllaahu anhu) narrated
that the Prophet (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam) said, “Between
the sky of the world and the heaven that is above that, is 500 years. Between
each heaven there is 500 years. Between the seventh heaven and the Foot stool
is 500 years. Between the Foot stool and the water is 500 years. The Throne is
above the water and Allaah is above the Throne. Nothing is hidden from him of
your actions.”[6]
4. Tahleel: Laa ilaaha illAllaah[7]
Tahleel is the best and greatest out of the four phrases. The
creation was created because of it, Messengers were sent and books were
revealed. It makes the difference between the Muslim and the Kaafir, the people
of Paradise and the people of Hell. It is the greatest pillar of the Religion
and the most important branch of faith.
It is called by different names in the Qur’aan:
kalimah at Tayyib [Ibraaheem: 24];
al qawl ath Thaabit [Ibraaheem:27];
kalimah baaqiyyah [Zukhruf :28];
kalimat Tawheed; kalimat ash Shahaadah; Miftaah Dar as Sa’aadah;
‘Urwatul Wuthqaa [Luqmaan :22], [2:256]; kalimat at Taqwaa [Fath :26];
as Sawaab [Naba’ 79:38];
da’watul Haqq [Ra’d :14].
Sufyaan bin ‘Uyaynah (RadiaAllaahu anhu)
said, “Allaah has not given one of His servants a greater blessing than ‘laa
ilaaha illAllaah”[8]
It is the true connection which gathers the people of Islaam – al
walaa’ wal baraa’, love and hate, one body, one building supporting each
other.
Shinqeetee said the phrase laa ilaaha illAllaah unites the
Muslims and links the angels to Banee ‘Aadam. Eemaan in Allaah links the angels
to man and makes them make du’aa for him. The connection of laa ilaaha
illAllaah is what links the inhabitants of the heavens (the angels) to the
inhabitants of the earth:
“Those (angels) who bear the Throne (of Allâh) and those
around it glorify the praises of their Lord, and believe in Him, and ask
forgiveness for those who believe (in the Oneness of Allâh) (saying): "Our
Lord! You comprehend all things in mercy and knowledge, so forgive those who
repent and follow Your way, and save them from the torment of the blazing Fire!
Our Lord! And make them enter the 'Adn (Eden) Paradise (everlasting Gardens)
which you have promised them – and to the righteous among their fathers, their
wives, and their offspring! Verily, You are the All-Mighty, the All-Wise. And
save them from (the punishment for what they did of) the sins, and whomsoever
You save from (the punishment for what he did of) the sins (i.e. pardon him)
that Day, him verily, You have taken into mercy." And that is the supreme
success.”
[Soorah al Ghaafir 40:7-9].
It is the best of the good deeds:
Whoever brings a good deed (i.e. belief In the Oneness of Allâh
along with Every deed of righteousness), will have better than its worth, and
they will be safe from the terror on that Day. [an Naml
27:89]
Whosoever brings good (Islâmic Monotheism along with righteous
deeds), He shall have the better thereof, and Whosoever brings evil (polytheism
along with evil deeds) then, those who do evil deeds will Only be requited for
what they used to do.
[al
Qasas :84].
In part of a hadeeth the Prophet (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam)
said that the best good deed is laa ilaaha illAllaah (Ahmad 5/169).
Itbaan (RadiAllaahu anhu) narrated that
the Prophet (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam) said, “Indeed
Allaah has prohibited Hell Fire for the one who says laa ilaaha illAllaah
seeking Allaah’s Face.” (Bukhaaree 6938; Muslim 33).
There are seven conditions of laa ilaaha illAllaah that must
be present for it to be correct: knowledge, certainty, sincerity, truthfulness,
love, compliance and acceptance.
It is not enough to simply say laa ilaaha illAllaah with the
tongue without accompanying it with actions.
“Whoever dies and he knows that laa ilaaha illAllaah
will enter Paradise.” (Muslim 26). (This shows the need for knowledge).
laa ilaaha illAllaah means that “There is no true object
worthy of worship except Allaah.” It is worshipping Allaah alone sincerely and
avoiding the worship of taaghoot (false gods). It is negation and
affirmation. It is distancing oneself from the worship of everything other than
Allaah such as intercessors and partners. It is singling out Allaah alone for
worship not simply saying it. There has to be knowledge and belief in the
heart, action of the limbs and truthfulness. A hypocrite does the actions but
is not truthful.
And those whom they invoke instead of Him have no power of
intercession; except those who bear witness to the Truth (i.e. believed In the
Oneness of Allâh, and obeyed his Orders), and they know (the facts about the
Oneness of Allâh). [Zukhruf :86]
5.
Al Hawqalah: Laa hawla wa laa quwwata illa billaah[9]
The Four Phrases (SubhaanAllaah,
alhamdulillaah, laa illaaha illAllaah, Allaahu akbar) and the hawqalah (la
hawla wa laa quwwata illa billaah) together encompass tawheed
(worshipping Allaah alone) and qadr (Pre-Decree).
Ibn Abee Awfaa said, a man came to
the Prophet (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam) and said, “I
cannot learn the Qur’aan, so teach me something that will suffice me. He said, SubhaanAllaah,
wal hamdulillaah, wa laa illaaha illAllaah, wAllaahu akbar, wa la hawla wa laa
quwwata illa billaah...” (Aboo Daawood 832; Nisaa’ee 2/143; Daarqutnee
1/313-314).
Aboo Hurayrah (RadiAllaahu anhu)
“Shall I inform you of a phrase which is under the throne and from amongst the
treasures of Paradise? Say, ‘la hawla wa laa quwwata illa billaah.’
Allaah will say, ‘My servant has submitted himself in intention, action and worship.
(aslama wastaslama) (Haakim; Dhahabee. Saheeh). Similar narration in
Fath al Baari (11/501).
A servant does not control any of
his affairs. He does not have the means to repel harm or the ability to attain
goodness except by Allaah’s Will. A servant cannot change disobedience to
obedience, sickness to health, weakness to strength, deficiency to perfection
except by Allaah’s Help. He does not have the ability to take care of his
affairs or realize any of his goals except by Allaah’s help. What Allaah Wills
will happen and what He does not Will will not happen. The affairs of creation
are tied to His Decree and Pre-Destination.
la hawla wa laa quwwata illa billaah is
a weighty phrase which means being sincere to Allaah alone in asking for help.
Just as the phrase of tawheed: laa ilaaha illAllaah means being sincere
to Allaah in worship.
In Soorah al Faatihah: “iyyaaka
na’budu wa iyyaaka nasta’een” You alone we worship (This phrase is tawheed
al ibaadah. Distancing oneself from shirk) and You alone we ask for
help (sincerely asking Allaah alone and referring all power and might to Allaah).
Worship is the goal which is connected to Allaah’s Worship (Uloohiyyah)
and asking for help is the means which is connected to Allaah’s Lordship (Ruboobiyyah).
Ibn Taymiyyah mentions in Istiqaamah
(2/81) that many people wrongly use la hawla wa laa quwwata illa billaah
in situations of calamity and say it out of fear not out of patience. The hawqalah
is a phrase to seek help and not a phrase of calamity (innaa lilaahi wa
innaa ilayhi raaji’oon).
Ibn Abbaas (RadiAllaahu anhu)
defined la hawla wa laa quwwata illa billaah as:
“We have no ability to act in
obedience except through Allaah and we have no power to leave disobedience
except through Allaah.”
Zaheer bin Muhammad defined it as: “You
cannot take what you like except by Allaah and you cannot be prevented from
what you dislike except by Allaah’s help.”
Ibn Taymiyyah mentions that the
reason behind saying the hawqalah after the mu’aththin says ‘come
to prayer/come to success’ is to seek Allaah’s help in performing the salaah.
Istighfaar and Tawbah (Asking for Forgiveness and Repenting)[10]
Piling up sins can be a reason why a
du’aa is not answered. Tawbah on the other hand can lead to the
acceptance and answering of a du’aa.
Yahyaa bin Mu’adh ar Raazee said, “When
you make du’aa, do not seek to slow down the answer by blocking its path
with sins.” (Bayhaqi in Shu’ab al Eemaan 2/54).
Sins remove blessings and cause
disasters. Alee (RadiAllaahu anhu) said, “No
calamity befalls a person except due to a sin, and it is not removed except
through repentance (Ibn al Qayyim in Jawaab al Kaafi p85).
‘Abdullaah bin Mas’ood (RadiAllaahu anhu)
said, “Good deeds brighten the face, are a light in the heart, an expanse in
provision, strength for the body and love in the hearts of the creation. (On
the other hand) bad deeds darken the face, are a darkness in the heart, a weakness
for the body, a decrease in provision and cause hatred in the hearts of the
creation. (Ibn al Qayyim mentioned this in Al Jawaab al Kaafi p62).
Tawbah leads to success. Without it a person is oppressing himself.
Tawbah is compulsory to do immediately without delay. If a person delays tawbah
that’s another sin to repent from. There are general du’aas for asking
forgiveness for what we know we have done wrong and also for what we do not
know.
Tawheed (laa
ilaaha illAllaah) removes shirk and istighfaar wipes away the
rest of the stumbling blocks. All sins branch from shirk. Tawheed
removes the origin of shirk and istighfaar wipes away its
derivatives. (Ibn Taymiyyah in Majmoo Fataawaa 11/696-7).
Az Zubayr (RadiAllaahu anhu)
narrated that the Prophet (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam)
said, “Whoever wants to be pleased with his book (of account on the Last Day)
should increase in saying istighfaar (seeking Allaah’s forgiveness).”
(Tabaraanee in Awsaat no. 839; Saheehah 2299).
‘Abdullaah bin Busr (RadiAllaahu anhu)
narrated that the Prophet (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam)
said, “Toobaa, glad tidings are for the one who finds lots of istighfaar
in his book (of account).”
The Prophet (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam)
used to ask for Allaah’s forgiveness more than 70 times a day and in another
narration, a hundred times a day. This was so even when he knew that his past
and present sins were forgiven but he wanted to be a grateful servant.
Virtues of Aayatul Kursee[11]
Aayatul Kursee is the greatest aayah in the Qur’aan. It directs you
to the tawheed of Allaah, to exalt Him and praise Him. It mentions a few
descriptions of Allaah, the Mighty and Majestic. It is the only aayah that
contains all of these descriptions in one aayah. It contains five of Allaah’s
Names (Allaah, al Hayy, al Qayyoom, al ‘Alee, al ‘Adheem) and over 20 of
Allaah’s Attributes. It is also reported that it contains Allaah’s Greatest
Name.
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Virtues of Dhikr
Ibn 'Umar (RadiAllaahu anhu) narrated
that AlIaah's Messenger (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam)
said: "For everything there is a polish, and the polish for the hearts is
the dhikr (remembrance) of Allaah. There is nothing more potent in saving a
person from the punishment of Allaah than the dhikr of Allaah." It was
said: Not even Jihaad in the path of Allaah. So he replied: "Not even if
you were to continue striking with your sword until it breaks." (Saheehul-Jaami'
no.5644).
Mu'aadh ibn Jabal (RadiAllaahu anhu) narrated
that the Prophet (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam) said:
"The people of Paradise will not have any regrets except for those moments
in which they were not engaged in the dhikr (remembrance) of Allaah." (Saheehul-Jaami'
(no.5446).)
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Dhirkr is counted on the right hand
‘Abdullaah bin ‘Aamir (RadiaAllaahu anhu) said
‘I saw the Prophet (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam) make tasbeeh[12]
with his right hand.’
[1] P140-149, p255-258. Fiqh al Ad’iyah wal Adhkaar
[2] P180-199. Fiqh al Ad’iyah wal Adhkaar
[3] P 200-236. Fiqh al Ad’iyah wal Adhkaar
[4] P226 Fiqh al Ad’iyah wal Adhkaar
[5] P246-254 Fiqh
al Ad’iyah wal Adhkaar
[6] Daarimee in A Refutation of the Jahmiyyah
p26-27; Tabaraani in al Kabeer 9/228; al Bayhaqee in The Names and
Attributes 2/290; and others.
[7] P150-179. Fiqh
al Ad’iyah wal Adhkaar
[8] Ibn
Rajab in Kalimatul Ikhlaas p53.
[9] P259-268. Fiqh al Ad’iyah wal Adhkaar
[10].Fiqh al Ad’iyah wal Adhkaar P498-510
[11] Fiqh al Ad’iyah wal Adhkaar , vol.1 p81
[12] Here it
means saying, ‘subhaanAllaah, alhamdulillaah, Allaahu akbar.’
[1] Tirmidhee 3377; Ibn Maajah 3790; Ahmad 195/5. Authentic
Supplications of the Prophet (r) by Waleed K.S. Al-Essa.1996. pg5.
