Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.  (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

Assalamalaikum, I am writing this on behalf of my sister. She had bought a gas station and it is doing very poor business due to which she is in great financial distress. She is trying to sell the gas station but has no buyers. Please can you suggest some dua for financial problems, with its procedure (how many times, and how long and the best time to perform the dua). Thank you.

My second question is, can you suggest a dua to reduce debt with the procedure. Thank you very much and Allah bless you for providing this service.

Thank you.

(There may be some grammatical and spelling errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in confidentiality.)

Answer:

Dua for debt

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol, no person, no grave, no prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 29 Surah Ankabut verse 62:

62 Allah enlarges the sustenance (which He gives) to whichever of His servants He pleases; and He (similarly) grants by (strict) measure (as He pleases): for Allah has full knowledge of all things.

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 42 Surah Shura verse 12:

12 To Him belong the keys of the heavens and the earth: He enlarges and restricts the sustenance to whom He Wills: for He knows full well all things.

Dear and beloved brother in Islam, the amount of sustenance (rizk) of each and every animate being depends entirely and solely upon the Will and Decree of the Lord Most Gracious, Most Bounteous.

The Lord Most High, Most Supreme tests some amongst His slaves by providing with abundant sustenance…to see whether or not they are grateful and thankful to their Lord for His innumerable favors. Similarly, the Lord Most Gracious restricts the sustenance of some of amongst His creation as a test to see whether or not they are patient with the Decree of their Lord. These alternate conditions in life whereby one touches dust and it becomes gold or one touches gold and it becomes dust is no more than a test from their Lord….only to determine who amongst man is grateful to their Lord and who is impatient and ungrateful.

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 21 Surah Anbiyaa verse 35:

35 Every soul shall have a taste of death: and We test you by evil and by good by way of trial: to Us must ye return!

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 2 Surah Baqarah verses 155-157:

155 Be sure We shall test you with something of fear, and hunger, some loss in goods, or lives, or the fruits (of your toil); but give glad tidings to those who patiently persevere.

156 Who when afflicted with calamity say: "To Allah we belong and to Him is our return."

157 They are those on whom (descend) blessings from Allah and Mercy, and they are the ones that receive guidance.

Thus my beloved brother in Islam, when afflicted with a trial, never never ever despair of your Mercy and Grace of your Lord….but rather remain patient and grateful and keep your hope and trust in none save your Lord Most Gracious, Most Bounteous. The good and evil condition one experiences in life are no more than a trial and a test bestowed upon man by their Lord to see and determine who amongst His slaves are grateful and who amongst them are ungrateful.

Your Question: Please can you suggest some dua for financial problems, with its procedure (how many times, and how long and the best time to perform the dua).

Beloved brother, the absolutely best dua or supplication one can make when afflicted by a trial of a financial nature is the one which the Prophet (saws) taught the believers to make; it is expected that your Lord will respond to your supplications and make your trial easy for you.

Fiqh-us-Sunnah Fiqh 4.131b

Ali related that a slave, who had agreed on terms of his freedom with his master, came to him and said, "I cannot pay my master as I agreed in the terms of freedom, so help me." Ali said to him, "Let me teach you the supplication that the Prophet (saws) taught me. If you say it, Allah will cause your debt to be paid even if it be as great as a mountain. Say, 'O Allah, make Your lawful bounties sufficient for me so as to save me from what is unlawful, and from Your Grace grant me sufficient abundance to make me free from the need of all except You'."

Related by Tirmidhi.

Unless and until the Messenger of Allah (saws) has himself endorsed a procedure for an act of worship, one should never invent or innovate a procedure for themselves. When supplicating to one’s Lord Most Gracious, one may beseech their Lord as often as they like or is easy and convenient for them…at any time of the day and/or night…for the Lord Most Majestic Most Supreme always, I repeat, always responds to every good supplication made by His repentant and believing slaves.

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 2 Surah Baqarah verse 186:

And if My servants ask you, O Prophet, concerning Me, tell them that I am quite near to them. I hear and answer the prayer of the suppliant, when he calls on Me. So let them respond to My call and believe in Me. (Convey this to them), perhaps they may be guided aright!

The All Knowing, All Wise Allah knows what is good and what is bad for us; therefore, if one asks for something good, Allah will give him/her one of three things:

1.      Allah will give the believer what he/she has supplicated for.

2.      If what the believer is asking is not good or harmful for the believer in this world, Allah will store it for him for the world of the Hereafter.

3.      If what the believer is asking is not good or harmful for the believer in this world, Allah will turn away from the believer an equivalent amount of evil.

Al-Tirmidhi Hadith 2257 Narrated by Abu Sa'id al-Khudri

The Prophet (saws) said, "Any Muslim who makes a supplication containing nothing which is sinful, or which involves breaking ties of relationship, will be given for it by Allah one of three things: He will give him swift answer, or store it up for him in the next world, or turn away from him an equivalent amount of evil." Those who heard it said they would then make many supplications and he (saws) replied that Allah was more ready to answer than they were to ask.

Nu'man b. Bashir reported that the Prophet (saws), said, "Verily supplication is worship."

Narrated by Ahmad and Sunan.

Abu Hurairah reported, "The Prophet (saws) said, "Nothing is more dear to Allah than one's supplication to Him.''

Narrated by Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah.

Ibn Mas'ud reported that the Prophet (saws), said, "If any servant of Allah afflicted with distress or grief makes this supplication, his supplication will be accepted: 'O Allah, I am Your servant, son of Your servant, son of your maidservant. My forehead is in Your hand. Your command conceming me prevails, and Your decision concerning me is just. I call upon You by every one of the beautiful names by which You have described Yourself, or which You have revealed in Your book, or have taught anyone of Your creatures, or which You have chosen to keep in the knowledge of the unseen with You, to make the Qur'an the delight of my heart, the light of my breast, and remover of my griefs, sorrows, and afflictions'." A supplication in these words will be answered. Allah will remove one's affliction and replace it with joy and happiness.

Salman reported that the Prophet (saws), said, "Your Lord, the Blessed and the Exalted One, is Modest and Generous, and He loathes to turn away His servant empty-handed when he raises his hands to Him in supplication."

Narrated by Ahmad and Ibn Hibban.

Abdallah b. 'Umar reported that the Prophet (saws) said, "Hearts are like vessels, some more attentive and capacious than others. When you supplicate Allah you should be certain of being answered, and know that Allah does not answer a supplication that comes from a careless and inattentive heart."

Narrated by Ahmad

Al-Tirmidhi Hadith 2248 Narrated by Abu Hurayrah

Allah's Messenger (saws) said, "There are three whose supplication is not rejected: one who has just ended a fast, a just imam, and one who has been wronged, whose supplication is raised by Allah above the clouds and for which the gates of Heaven are opened. The Lord says, 'I swear by My might that I shall certainly help you, though it be after some time.'"

Abu Hurairah reported that the Prophet (saws) said, "Your supplication will be answered if you are not impatient, and if you do not say, 'I supplicated but my supplication was not heard'."

Narrated by Malik.

In light of the above aayah and the various narrations from the Messenger of Allah (saws), it is evident that no supplication to Allah of a believer, is ever left unanswered.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me alone. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your brother and well wisher in Islam,

Burhan