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:

Assalaamoalaikum again, hope you are doing well by the grace of Allah(swt). my question again is related to istikhara. this time i want to know if there is such a thing of taking istikhara from a molvi by Quran. and if there are other type of istikharas where other people take istikharas for us? please do pardon me if i say something wrong, n hope Allah(swt) forgives me for it.hope to hear from you as soon as possible. jazakallah, fee aman Allah 

(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:

Istakhara

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.

It is preferred that in almost all circumstances, the prayer and supplication of ‘istakhara’ should be done by the person himself. In some cases, it is permitted that a close guardian or relative do the ‘istakhara’ for someone under his care. For example, a parent may do ‘istakhara’ for his child when they are confronted with option to determine what is best for their child; like which school to attend, which girl to marry, etc.

But in general circumstances, it is preferred that the person himself should do the ‘istakhara’ for themselves.

Firstly, there is no such thing as a ‘moulvi’ in Islam! Islam does not divide its followers into castes. Thus, to go to a ‘professional’ moulvi, who promises to do Istakhara for a person in exchange for some goods or money is absolutely impermissible! There is only one type of ‘istakhara’, and that is the one done by a humble slave who, when choosing between two or more good choices, consults His All Knowing, All Wise Lord in helping him make the right choice.

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

Your Brother in Islam,

Burhan