Abdul Nasir Jangda | Istikharah: How to and Why?

Lecture by Abdul Nasir Jangda | Transcribed by Sameera

[The following is the video and transcript of Shaykh Abdul Nasir's lecture "Istikharah: How to and Why?."
The transcript includes slight modifications for the sake of readability and clarity.]
The word istikhrah comes from the root word of khayr. Khayr in the Arabic language in its origins is
representative of all that which is good. Khayr is an umbrella word that represents all that which is good.
Istikhrah means to seek the good and seek that which is good. This is the meaning of the word istikhrah
itself.
Just like the meaning, t
he prayer salt'-l-istikhrah,
which is from the Sunnah of the Prophet
, is an authentically narrated

Sunnah of the Prophet

and an extremely emphasized practice of the Messenger
. Just like the
meaning of the word istikhrah, the purpose of the salh
is similarly to seek that which is good from Allh

. I want to insh'Allh have this session to explain the procedure and the purpose of istikhrah.
I am going to split today's presentation into two parts. The first part will focus on the ritual itself, meaning
the technicalities, procedure, concept and outcome of istikhrah. The second part of the lecture will focus
on the purpose of the istikhrah, which is explaining the meaning and beauty of the supplication of
istikhrah itself because that unlocks the purpose and the reason why we even do istikhrah.

Basic Points
To begin with the technicalities, I would like to begin with a few basic points. The first is the concept of
istikhrah to understand istikhrah conceptually and what it is. I can explain best to you what istikhrah is
by explaining to you what istikhrah is not. As they say in Arabic, sometimes the best way to get to know
something is to know the opposite of it. The best way I can help you understand what istikhrah is
conceptually and the role and purpose of istikhrah is by explaining to you what it most definitely is not.
Istikhrah is not a Magic 8 ball. Did you ever buy that? You get it at the mall as a gag gift. You ask the
Magic 8 ball, Should I go to the mall today? [Shake it]. Maybe. This is the Magic 8 ball. What I am
trying to say by giving you this silly example is what people play around with when playing with the
Magic 8 ball is throw out a random question, shake the Magic 8 ball and get a magical answer and go with
it. It is kind of like rolling the dice. Istikhrah is not that.

Decision Making Process: 3 Steps

Istikhrah is the third of a three-step decision making process. The first step of a decision making process
is to use the God-given intellect, ability, and critical thinking that Allh
has blessed each and every
single human being with in different capacities. Allh has granted every human being the ability to take
factors into consideration and weigh different options and think about, ponder, contemplate, and process.
That is the first step of the decision making process in the life of the believer. He first uses his 'aql,
intelligence and ability to think that Allh has given him.
There is a reason that Allh
emphasizes the 'aql, uli'l-albb, and these types of things in the Qur'an
because these are from the greatest of Allh's
blessings. That is the first step of the decision making
process: Take your circumstances into consideration, look at the options available to you, and then sit down
and think and try to figure out and do some research and try to come to somewhat of a conclusion. At least
try to narrow your options and come to somewhat of a conclusion. This is number one.

The second step of a decision making process is istishrah. It is the Arabic word for seeking counsel and
seeking advice. The next step of the process is to then seek some counsel and advice, and it really depends
on what type of a decision you are trying to make. If you want to buy a car, you first do some research
online and do some car shopping and test drove and narrow down to about three or four different cars that
you are thinking about. Then what you could do, for instance, is go to a brother from the masjid who is a
car mechanic. Sit down with that brother and say, Brother, I want to take advice from you because you
are experienced and knowledgeable about cars. What do you recommend? These are the three or four cars
I am looking at. He says, I wouldn't buy that because it has transmission problems. This car wears out
really quickly, etc.
Now you are seeking counsel and advice. If it is a more personal issue, something that is a life type
decision, then you seek the counsel and advice from somebody who sincerely and honestly cares about
you, somebody who is experienced and mature and maybe even spiritually focused so that they have a
well-rounded perspective they can provide to you.
That is istishrah and seeking counsel. This is the second step of the decision-making process.
The third and final step of the decision making process is now istikhrah. What has occurred up to this
point is that you started with no idea of what to do. You narrowed it down to maybe half a dozen different
options and sought some counsel and got some advice from someone and are down to your last couple of
options. At this point in time, you are struggling with this or that and are starting to lean a little more
towards one direction. You are thinking about two cars and are leaning towards buying a convertible, for
instance random example. You are thinking about buying the Camaro over the mini-van. No brainer, but
nevertheless for some strange reason you are conflicted. Maybe you have two kids, but it doesn't matter,
they can sit in the backseat.
You are starting to lean in one direction, but you are little conflicted and just need a little bit of a push and
convincing. You are looking for that confidence to make your decision that you have come to by critical
thinking apply your intellect and do some research and you sought some counseling. You are leaning
in a direction but need some confidence and some clarity of heart. This is where istikhrah comes in.
What I have just explained to you removes many of the issues and questions that people have about
istikhrah itself. A lot of people are confused about istikhrah because they try to use it like the Magic 8
ball. I have got to buy a house. Let me do istikhrah. What do you think is going to happen? Are you
magically going to see a house in your dreams and going to go searching for it and find it and buy it? It
doesn't work that way. You don't decide that you need to buy a car and then pray istikhrah and a Honda
Civic is going to fall on you. It doesn't work that way.
When people try to utilize istikhrah in that way, then they walk away confused and say, Shaykh, I made
istikhrah and I can't figure anything out. It's not working. You don't change the batteries in your
istikhrah, right? What is basically going on is that you are not utilizing it properly. Anything that is not
utilized properly is not going to work right. You have to utilize it properly and appropriately. Make sure
you turn it into the third of a three-step decision making process. This is the concept and role of istikhrah.

Prerequisites of Istikhrah
The next thing I would like to explain are the prerequisites of istikhrah. What is required to do
istikhrah?
I am going to give you the actual narration, but for now we are just going to roll with it and speak a little
more generally. What is required for the istikhrah is what is required for any other prayer, which is you
need to make sure that you are pure and clean, clothed appropriately, have wud'.
You do not require a
bath of purification. You face towards the qiblah. That is what is required for istikhrah.
Basically whatever is required to normally pray is what is required for istikhrah. There are no other extra
prerequisites or requirements for istikhrah. You don't have to pray it immediately before you go to sleep.
You don't have to take a shower and then immediately pray istikhrah. You need wud'
for prayer; you

need wud'
for istikhrah. Istikhrah is a prayer just like dhuhr is a prayer and nafl would be a prayer.
You don't need to stop talking to people when you decide to do istikhrah. You don't need to wake up in
the middle of the night and do istikhrah. You don't have to go stand on top of a mountain on one leg and
do istikhrah. You get my drift at this point anything extra that you may heard, come across, or assumed
that is needed for istikhrah aside from what is needed for prayer. Wud ', dressing appropriately, facing
the qiblah, Allhu akbar that is istikhrah.
The only thing I will add in here is that according to the opinion of the majority of scholars, there are small
difference of opinion I'm going to tell you what the majority of scholars say. In s alt'l-istikhrah, there
are not major differences of opinion. There are a few minor opinions here and there that differ from the
vast majority. I'm just going to go ahead and share the majority opinion because it is an overwhelming
majority opinion.
The overwhelming majority opinion is that the only thing you have to watch out for is what you watch out
for in other prayers. Make sure you don't pray istikhrah at the times when prayer is forbidden. Those are
three basic times of the day: while the sun is rising, when the sun is at its peak (which lasts for a minute or
so), and the setting of the sun. Those three times of the day are when we are told not to pray. It is the same
requirements of salh
and for istikhrah.

These are the prerequisites of istikhrah.

Procedure
What is the procedure of istikhrah? There is a sequence of events or procedure. Once you fulfill the
prerequisites, you will stand up and pray two rakahs, two units, of nafl (voluntary, supererogatory) prayer.
Why am I emphasizing and specifying it to be two rakahs of a voluntary prayer? When we read the text
of the h adth together insh'Allh, at that time you will see it. It is mentioned explicitly within the text of
the h adth by the Messenger of Allh
. No debate and no question here.
What that means is that you can't pray salt'l-'ish'
and make the supplication of istikhrah two for one,

all done. You can't do that.

The Prophet
explicitly said that you have to invest two more extra rakahs of prayer that are voluntary
and optional. You pray those two rakahs of prayer. There is nothing different about those two units of
prayer. You pray them as you should pray any other s alh. There's obviously room for improvement in my
prayer, and I'm pretty sure everybody feels there is room for improvement within their prayers, so aside
from that entire discussion, basically you pray istikhrah like you would pray any other prayer, which is
two rakahs, qiym, ruk', sujd. You sit at the end, tashahhud, salawt
on the Messenger
,

supplication, salm, and that's it. That is the procedure of the istikhrah.
There is no extra special srah that should be recited here. There's nothing that is authentically narrated
from the Prophet
about reciting this in the first rakah and that in the second rakah. There is nothing
of that sort. Just pray two rakahs of prayer.
Once you finish these two rakahs of prayer, which means the taslm, you then at that time recite the exact
supplication taught to us by the Prophet
in the Arabic language. You read it in Arabic. Again, here, the
vast overwhelming majority of scholars are of the opinion that the supplication of istikhrah is to be done
after the prayer. There are a couple of opinions here and there to do it before the taslm; however, the vast
majority overwhelming majority, and again, if you analyze the text of the h adth, which I'm going to point
out to you when we do read the h adth of the Prophet
, you will see that the Prophet
mentions a
word which makes it very clear that the supplication is meant to be said after the prayer is done.
Now at this point we recite the supplication. Read the supplication in Arabic. Why am I explicitly saying
that? Again, the h adth very clearly mentions that fact. A question comes up here: what if I don't have it
memorized? Read it off of a piece of paper. Fuqah' have stated that very clearly if somebody needs to

read it off of a piece of paper, that is ok. Read it out of a book, read it off of a piece of paper, photocopy it,
do what you have to do. Nevertheless, read the actual Arabic of the supplication. Don't read the
summarized English translation. When we read the text of the h adth, we see the Prophet
explicitly
said, Read it as I have taught you.
The other thing I want to state is just in case anyone is watching the video or listening to the lecture
what if somebody can't read Arabic? Use a transliteration or something of that nature to the best of your
ability. Of course if somebody recently took shahdah or somebody recently came into connection with
their dn, there is always an exception to the rule.
We do not give enough consideration to people who have had a major turning point in their life, whether
we are talking about people who may have been born in Muslim families but just not raised with the dn
and come to practice the dn later on in their lives, or if we are talking about reverts and converts, people
who took shahdah later in life. Consideration should always be given to them, and it should be
understood that they are doing the best that they can, and they should definitely make an effort to try to
learn Arabic as much as possible and as quickly as possible, but until and unless they are able to get to that
point, they are completely capable of practicing their dn to the best of their ability, and it is ok for
somebody like that to read it in English or to read the translation of it. That is a very, very specific
situation and consideration should be given to those types of cases.
Nevertheless, going back to the procedure. We talked about praying two rakahs, completing the prayer,
reading the supplication in Arabic to the best of your ability. That is the procedure of istikhrah. Read the
supplication in Arabic, and it is done. You don't have to make any extra du'' after that. The supplication
that you read in Arabic is the supplication and du'' itself. There is no other extra procedure after. Once
you are done reading the supplication, you are done.

Outcome of Istikhrah
The next issue I would like to address is what is the outcome of the istikhrah? Again, I can start by telling
you what is not the outcome of the istikhrah. You will not wake up in the middle of the night and have a
3D vision of what you should. I can tell you that is not going to happen. It is istikhrah and not Avatar.
That is one thing we need to be clear on. While it might seem like a joke or silly to some people,
sometimes people just don't know. The outcome of the istikhrah is nothing out of this world.
The primary outcome of the istikhrah is the clarity of mind and confidence to make the decision that you
need to make that I alluded to earlier. You feel confident and good about making your decision. You were
already leaning towards one option option A and there is another option on the table, but you are a lot
more confident about option A or maybe you have come to a decision about option A but you just need that
extra little confidence.
You do your istikhrah and naturally start to feel more confident and feel clearer and feel ready to make
that decision. That is the outcome of your istikhrah. The outcome of the istikhrah is to reflect internally
and be a bit introspective and look inside and see if you feel good and confident about making your
decision.
How do you know that the outcome of the istikhrah is maybe this isn't the best decision for you? You will
naturally feel down. You will feel conflicted, doubtful, very scared or anxious or hesitant about making
your decision. Then at that point, this is your response of istikhrah that maybe this isn't the best decision
for you. That is how simple and easy istikhrah is.
The reason why istikhrah has become complicated for us a lot of times is because we are looking for
something out of this world and something supernatural and really far out. We look for something crazy
like that, and when we don't find it, we feel unfulfilled.

If we learn to just think of it internally and learn to be a little more reflective and introspective, naturally
you will find the response to your istikhrah to be a lot more facilitated for you. You are thinking
internally and feel naturally confident in your decision. That is the outcome and result of the istikhrah.

What about Dreams?

The question always comes up: what about dreams? The issue of dreams is one thing that needs to be
understood. We don't completely dismiss dreams altogether. Authentic narrations of the Prophet
tell us
that dreams are something that a believer derives inspiration from. Even the greatest of scholars like Ibn
Sirn of the tabi'n and great scholars of interpretation of dreams, one of the first things they would say or
one of the first things they taught their students was that dreams are not a basis of making decisions.
Decisions should not be based on dreams. These were the first and foremost to tell their students that even
though these were the scholars of the interpretation of dreams. They said at the most it is inspiration,
motivation, encouragement. That is all it is. It is not something you base a decision on.
I would like to clarify that right here. If you have a dream and it kind of inspires you or motivates you,
alh amdulillh. Don't read too much into it because you are not supposed to.

Two Miscellaneous Issues

That is the outcome of the istikhrah. There are two miscellaneous issues I would like to explain. The first
issue is related to the outcome.
What if I make istikhrah and I just still don't feel comfortable or confident in my decision? I still don't
feel confident or clear and am still not comfortable making a decision, and I made istikhrah and followed
the procedure properly. What do I do at that time? The course of action at that time is: do it again. If it
doesn't work again, then do it again. If you are still not comfortable, then do it again. Keep doing it until
you feel confident and comfortable in making your decision.
There is even a narration from 'Abdullh b. Zubayr
, one of the companions of the Prophet
and
probably ''ishah's best and brightest student. He says, I made istikhrah with Allh three times. Then I
was comfortable and confident in making my decision. He explicitly mentions while explaining to his
students that if you have to make istikhrah multiple times, then you have to make istikhrah multiple
times and that's ok. He said, I had to pray istikhrah three times one time to make a decision. Don't be
afraid of repeating the istikhrah multiple times.
A lot of times, it is just a matter of and this is a tragedy of our times becoming spiritually numb and we
are not very introspective and not very reflective. Sometimes the superficial nature of the culture we live
in or activities make us a little spiritually dull or numb. We might have to do istikhrah a few times to
break through the surface or crack the shell, and that's ok.
The last issue I want to mention here that is associated with istikhrah is that there is one very commonly
asked question and issue that comes up quite often. That is: can I have somebody else do istikhrah for
me? There is no precedent. There is no religious verification for having someone else do istikhrah for
you. There is nothing mentioned in the ah adth of the Prophet
. There is no precedent from the
generation of the sah
bah. The classical fuqah' have explicitly stated that istikhrah is meant to be done
by the individual himself or herself. That is a rule. That's it. A person has to do the istikhrah himself or
herself.
There is a very honest and sincere question and concern that is in the mind's of people who ask this
question. The question or that concern is often: I am not a very good person, I don't pray five times a day,
I have a lot of sins and issues in my life, I feel distant from Allh, I don't know if I make istikhrah if it
will be clear or won't be clear, so I want to ask someone to make istikhrah who is a lot more righteous and
pious, and someone who is a lot better person than I am. That is a concern a lot of people have.

I would like to answer that concern by first saying that maybe part of the reason that you feel that way
about your relationship with Allh is because of the mentality and approach that you have where you don't
feel like you are good enough to talk to Allh. You feel like you don't have access to Allh.
The first thing that you have to get over is the simple fact that Allh
is just as available and just as
accessible to the sinful person as He is to the most righteous and pious person. Allh is available and
accessible to everyone. We can all pray to Allh. We can all ask Allh for whatever we need. We can all
do istikhrah with Allh.
The second answer to that concern is if you are feeling a bit guilty and self-conscious about the fact that
you are distant from Allh and not praying and maybe that is why you should not be doing istikhrah, then
why not fix the problem? Why not say, I have a situation. I need to do istikhrah. I don't pray five times
a day and that's why I don't feel comfortable doing istikhrah. Well, it's time for salt'l-maghrib
right now

or time for s alt'l-'ish' right now, why don't I go ahead and take that first step? Why don't I go make
wud ', stand up and pray salt'l-'ish'
and then pray two rakat to do my istikhrah. Get it out of the

way and get it done. That is the answer to the question.

There is no validity to having somebody halfway across the world in some village do istikhrah on your
behalf and that person doesn't even know who you are and what's going on with you. By the way, as a side
note and a word of advice, if that person is charging you, it's probably a scam. Just a little note of caution.
If a person is charging you, you need to stay away from that entire situation.
Nevertheless, I did want to address that in a serious issue and serious manner. There is no validity, there is
no precedent, and there is absolutely no authenticity to having somebody do istikhrah on your behalf.
The person him or herself needs to be doing their own istikhrah whatever situation they are dealing with.
Their might be situations where a decision affects multiple people. Then everybody involved in the
situation makes their own istikhrah. If I will be implicated by this decision, then we all make our own
istikhrah. Nevertheless, it is not like doing a business deal. If I'm getting into a business deal with a
couple of people and we need to come to the decision whether it is good or not, we decide we've looked at
the facts, crunched the numbers, and spoken to a couple of people and gotten some consultation, we need
to do istikhrah. Let everybody go and do their own istikhrah. Even when it is a joint decision,
everybody should be doing istikhrah. Definitely when it is your own personal decision, make your own
istikhrah. Don't put it off on somebody else. Nobody can do your istikhrah you do your own.
The concern that is there that I'm not good enough, I'm not pious enough, I'm not righteous enough, it
doesn't make any sense. Allh is Allh. He is accessible to you. All you have to do is go get clean, make
wud ', face the qiblah, Allhu akbar, and you are talking to Allh. Done deal.
Secondly, if you do feel that you are distant from Allh, then fix the problem. Don't create another
problem. Repair the relationship and fix the issue.
It obviously goes without saying that we don't make istikhrah for anything that is impermissible. There is
no istikhrah for: Should I drink alcohol (na'dhu billh) of course that is very bad. Should I gamble,
what should I put my money on. It goes without saying and it is common sense that you don't make
istikhrah about the things that are impermissible.
Also, we do not make istikhrah about things that are obligatory. There is no making istikhrah about
should I pray salt'l-'ish'
or not. That goes without saying that things that are obligatory and things that

are a part of the dn and things that we are supposed to do like fasting Ramad n, there is no making
istikhrah should I fast in Ramad n or not. Similarly, we do not make istikhrah for things that are
impermissible. Of course that is common sense, but I just wanted to mention that.

Supplication of Istikhrah
Now, let's go ahead and discuss the supplication of istikhrah itself. I'll go ahead and read the h adth to
you. This is a h adth from S ah h Bukhri.

Jbir (may Allh be pleased with him), a very knowledgeable companion of the Prophet of Allh (peace
and blessings be upon him), says, The Messenger of Allh
would regularly teach us to do istikhrah in
all of our affairs and issues just like he would teach us a srah from the Qur'an. What does that mean?
He is drawing a parallel. This is the same type of verbage used to talk about the tashahhud in the prayer.
He would teach us the tashahhud like he would teach us a srah from the Quran. It is also said about the
istikhrah supplication.
That means two things and has two implications. Implication #1: he emphasized the importance of
memorizing it. Just like we memorize a srah of the Qur'an, similarly he emphasized the importance of
memorizing the supplication of istikhrah. Implication #2: read it in the Arabic language like we read a
srah in the Arabic language. When we read a srah from the Qur'an in our prayers, we read it in Arabic.
Again, there is that rare exception that I talked about, nevertheless the general rule is that we read the
supplication in Arabic. The Prophet
taught us to read the supplication of istikhrah in Arabic like we
read a srah in Arabic.
He would say, 'When any one of you is concerned with an issue or a matter, then he should pray two
rakahs of optional, voluntary prayer aside from the fard obligatory prayer.' This is where I was explicitly
saying it has to be voluntary optional prayer because the Prophet
explicitly in the h adth in the narration
says it must be voluntary optional prayer.
Then the Prophet
says, Thumma Thumma in the Arabic language in classical Arabic, the Quranic
and prophetic language, is to say afterwards, after that, then afterwards. It states that this occurs after the
previous thing has been completed or concluded. Based on this, the vast overwhelming majority of
scholars are of the opinion the supplication of istikhrah is to be read after the prayer has been completed,
after the taslm.
The Prophet
reads the supplication for us and teaches us the supplication. I'm going to explain the
meaning of the supplication.

'O Allh, I seek most definitely that which is good from You by
means of Your Knowledge' because O Allh, You know what is good for me, and I don't know what is
good. The yah of the Qur'an says, You may like something initially and it turns out to be bad for you.
You might dislike something initially and it turns out to be something good for you. Based on that, Allh
is the only One who knows what is good for me, so that is why I am saying, O Allh, I seek that which
is good from You by means of Your Knowledge.

'And I seek the ability to do what I have to do by means of Your Power and
Your Ability.' Meaning: I am weak and I am incapable, but I seek the ability to make my decision and to
do what I need to do by means of Your Ability and Power.

'And I ask You, to grant me from Your great, majestic benevolence

and great blessing to bless me.' I ask You to bless me from Your Blessings and to grant me some from
Your Blessings.
This is personally my favorite part of the supplication. This states the mentality behind istikhrah.

'because most definitely You are fully capable, and I am completely

incapable.'

'And You know everything and I don't know anything.'

'And O Allh, You are 'Alm. 'Alm is the exaggerated, hyperbolized noun
which basically means the Complete Knower of al-ghuyb. Ghuyb is the plural of the word ghayb all
those things that are unseen, all those things that are hidden, all those things that are unknown. You are the
Complete Knower, inside out, of all those things that are unseen, unknown, and hidden.
Now here comes the crux of the supplication:

'O Allh, You know that this issue, decision, matter if this is good for me in my religious affairs and my
worldly affairs and in the end of my affairs' What do you think 'the end of my affairs' is referring to?
The khirah. 'If You know, O Allh, that this decision that I'd like to make and have been struggling with
is good for me in my dn and my religion, in my worldly matters and issues, and if this is good for me in
the khirah '
Another narration of this same supplication, the Prophet

said,

'In my short term and in the long term'

What do you think short term refers to? Dunya, this life. 'jilihi, the long term, makes reference to
khirah, the life of the hereafter.
'O Allh, You know if this is good for me in the short term and the long term, dunya and khirah.'

'Make it possible for me. Make it happen for me.'

But that's not it. Now we get to see the real beauty and magnificence of the supplication.
'Don't just make it possible and available to me, make it easy and facilitate it for me. Make it simple, easy,
and accessible for me.'
Thumma means after the fact. After what fact? After I have achieved it. Put blessing in it for me. We are
going for the premium package. I want the works, all the options. I want it to be possible for me, O Allh.
I want it to be easy, simple, accessible, and facilitated for me, O Allh. Then after I have it, I want barakah
and blessing in it, O Allh.
What a comprehensive supplication. What a beautifully comprehensive supplication. It then goes on:

'O Allh, You know if this issue, decision, matter is bad for me in my dn, in my worldly matters and in the
end of my affairs in the khirah.

Another narration again says:

'in my short term and in the long term' meaning my dunya and my
khirah.

Here we get to again see the beauty and eloquence of the

supplication, the prophetic eloquence on full display. Let me explain the words to you here. The word s ar
means to turn something. There are two entities here: you and what you are making istikhrah for. The
supplication says, If this is bad for me in my dunya and khirah, then turn it away from me and turn me
away from it. Do you see the eloquence in the supplication and the visual that it provides? Imagine you
and what you are making istikhrah for.
O Allh, if this is bad for me in my dunya and my khirah, then I want nothing to do with it. Don't just
turn it away from me but turn me away from it. I want nothing to do with it. I got no business with it. If
there is no khayr, then what would I want with it? This is what the supplication teaches us to say.
That doesn't solve the problem. There is still an issue left. What is the problem? Whatever it is you are
making istikhrah for your need, your necessity, your situation, your decision is still not complete. You
made istikhrah and realize that this is not good for you and felt uncomfortable, hesitant, or apprehensive
about the decision and backed away, but your need still remains.
The Prophet

doesn't leave us hanging. He completes the supplication.

'And then make possible for me that which is good.' This particular situation wasn't good for me, so I
asked Allh, Turn it away from me and turn me away from it. I want nothing to do with it. O Allh, make
that which is good possible for me. The problem is I don't know where, how, when, or anything about it.
Where do I start? Haythuka wherever and however that good may be. Make that which is good possible
for me whenever, wherever, and however it may be. I leave it to you, O Allh. I will still do my due
diligence and stay at work trying to find the right option, but O Allh, lead me to that khayr. I was saved
from sharr, but make something good for me down the road.
This is consolation at the end of the supplication. This situation didn't work out, which is actually good
because it wasn't khayr. You are asking Allh for khayr, and Allh will make khayr possible for you.
The yaqn, the conviction, needs to be there when you make supplication. Allh will make that which is
good possible, you just have to keep sticking to what you are doing and keep your hopes high in Allh
.

'So make that which is good possible for me wherever and however it may
be. Then make me pleased and satisfied with it.

In another narration, the Prophet

says the words, Then make me
satisfied with it. Make me content, satisfied, fulfilled with it. Make me pleased with it.
Again, it sounds like the same thing. Even somebody who doesn't have any background in formal Arabic
studies can hear the difference. Thumma ardini
bihi and thumma rad d ini bihi. Ardini
and rad d ini sound a

lot alike, but are they completely the same word? There is a little bit of a difference, which is a difference
in verb pattern. The thing about these verb groups and verb patterns is that they all have their own special
implication. In the classical form of the language, they have their own special implications.
When you have the same root word coming in two verb patterns, the subtle difference between the two is
that ardini
means 'make something happen all at once.' Make me all at once completely satisfied and
fulfilled with it. Radd ini
has the implication for something to happen continuously, little by little, step by
step.
Subh nAllh, the Prophet
said it with the two different verb forms, and this shows us not only the
eloquence of the Prophet
but how well he understood people. There are two types of people when it
comes to making a decision. Some people might take their time and do their due diligence and research
and take time to come to a decision. When they finally come to a conclusion, they are done. The decision
is made, and khals they are confident and going forward now.
Some people are a little different. They come to a conclusion and decision and feel good and everything is
ok and they are going for it. Then later at midnight you get a text message from that friend saying, I'm
freaking out. I don't know what to do. I'm nervous. You say, Don't worry about it. It's all ok. It's
midnight, go to sleep. Everything will be alright insh'Allh. Then they say, Ok, I'm good. You wake
up to pray salt'l-fajr,
and he calls you. You answer the phone and he says, Bro, I need to talk to you right

now. I'm not sure about this. That's ok some people are like that and need that constant reassurance.
Subh nAllh look at the Messenger of Allh
and how well he knows his people and understands
people. He accommodated both types of people. Thumma ardini
bihi for the type of guy who might take
his time to make a decision but once he makes it, he is done. Thumma rad d ini bihi for the person who
O Allh don't just make me pleased with it, but keep me pleased with it. Constantly reassure me about
my decision, O Allh.
At the end of the supplication in the narration of Bukhri, the Prophet
says, And then he mentions his
need. When you go back into the supplication, remember the part that I said was the crux of the
supplication?

O Allh, You know that this decision, if this is good

for me that is the moment where the Prophet
says the person should mention his or her need. The
scholars explain that there are two options. Somebody could just simply think of whatever it is that they
are making istikhrah about, and that would suffice. If somebody just visualizes or conceptualizes or
thinks of what they are making istikhrah about, that is sufficient. Otherwise, a person can feel free and
should feel free to go ahead and verbalize it. They don't need to verbalize it in Arabic if that is not their
language. They can say it in their own language. Allhumma in kunta ta'lamu anna hatha'l-amra and
then at that time the person says, Buying this particular car, purchasing this house, marrying so-and-so
that this is good for me. Then the supplication goes on and continues.
Similarly, there is a second moment when you mention it as well when you mention the other part of it. O
Allh, you know that if this decision and issue is bad for me, then again you can think about it,
conceptualize it, or verbalize it. The Prophet
taught us to do that. It becomes very practical and real. It
is a real experience and you are literally stating your need, and this is something the Prophet
taught us
to do.
That concludes the discussion on the meaning of the supplication of istikhrah and it gives you an insight
as to why we do istikhrah and what the purpose is and the spirit of istikhrah.

One thing I would like to explain here about the supplication of istikhrah is that it is the perfect example
of prophetic eloquence of the Prophet
and how beautiful the supplications are that he taught us. There
is a lot of good and khayr in learning the prophetic supplications, and we should invest some time and
energy in learning these beautiful supplications.

Quotes from Scholars

The last little note I wanted to mention here is a few little basic quotes from some scholars about the
blessing of istikhrah and why we do istikhrah.
Ibn Abi Jamra (rah imahullh), a great scholar, said, The wisdom behind putting the s alh before the
istikhrah is the istikhrah combines both the good of this world and the next. Just like in this dunya a
person needs to go the one he needs something from and win their favor and then put their need before
them, the salh
precedes the supplication is like knocking at the door of the King and presenting yourself

before Allh
and making sujd and humbling yourself and putting your face on the ground before Allh
and then spreading your hands and presenting your need before Allh
. This is the beauty of the
sequence of events.
Ibn Taymiyyah says, He who seeks guidance from the Creator and then consults with the creation (people)
and then once he comes to a decision that he is confident in and goes forward with, such a person will
never regret and have no remorse about the decision that he makes.
Imam Al-Nawawi says, After performing the istikhrah, when a person is wholeheartedly inclined and
feels good about a decision, then the person should say bismillh and go ahead with the course of action
and the conclusion and decision.
Istikhrah is like a training in adab with Allh. O Allh, I will not make a decision without praying to
You. Even though I'm fully confident, I will still do istikhrah. It shows adab with Allh, and part of the
adab with Allh is that when you do come to a conclusion and decision and did make istikhrah and feel
confident about your decision, then you go with it. You remove doubt at that time and don't second guess
and don't doubt because that would show disrespect to Allh and this practice of istikhrah.

Final Note
The last and final note I want to mention here is one other requirement for istikhrah. I didn't mention this
in the prerequisites because I was talking about more in terms of fiqh. The primary ingredient of the
istikhrah is conviction. Know who you are praying to. You are praying to Allh, rabb'l-'alamn. You are
praying to the One who created each and every single thing. He watches and controls every single thing.
He sustains and maintains each and every single thing. He is capable of doing whatever He wills.
Have that level of confidence when you do istikhrah. I am not just consulting with anyone. I am talking
to Allh, and Allh will help me in my situation. Allh will give me clarity of mind, and Allh will bless
me with confidence. When you do make istikhrah and you do feel hesitant, remember what the end of the
supplication said. Don't feel disheartened at that time because at the end of the supplication, you do ask
Allh for khayr, and if you have the level of conviction in Allh, you will have the conviction that Allh
will provide to you that which is best for you.
Have that conviction. Have that level of mn and yaqn in Allh
and His Ability to take care of you
and Allh will insh'Allh take care of us. As it says in the h adth qudsi, I deal with My slave according
to how he perceives Me. If he perceives that I can take care of him, I take care of him.
When he is doubtful, maybe he won't be taken care of. The onus is on us. How do we perceive our
relationship with Allh?

May Allh

give us the ability to practice everything that we said and heard.

I will end with this one last h adth mentioned in the Musnad of Imam Ah med and narrated by Sa'd b. Abi
Waqqs
who said that the Messenger of Allh
said, From the blessing of the son of dam is the
ability to seek good from Allh, doing istikhrah with Allh. Also from the blessing of the son of dam is
that they are pleased with whatever Allh has decreed for them. From the wretchedness of the children of
dam is when he leaves doing istikhrah with Allh. Also from the wretchedness of the human being is
that the human being is displeased with what Allh has decreed for him.
May Allh
bless us all to do istikhrah and to be pleased with Allh's Decree and decision in our affairs
and issues. Jazkum Allh khayran. Al-salmu 'alaykum wa rah matullh.