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The Honored | Part Two | Sh. Ahsan Hanif

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In part one of this article, we looked at the five times that Allah subḥānahu wa ta'āla (glorified and exalted be He) mentions the honoured in the Qur’ān, and how they are two of the creations of Allah subḥānahu wa ta'āla (glorified and exalted be He). The first is the angels and the second is the believers who will enter Paradise. In part two, we will look at some of the ways we can ensure that the angels supplicate for us.

The following simple good deeds enable the angels to supplicate for you by the permission of Allah subḥānahu wa ta'āla (glorified and exalted be He). We often take small deeds for granted, not realising the immense good Allah subḥānahu wa ta'āla (glorified and exalted be He) has placed within them. Perchance, through these deeds Allah subḥānahu wa ta'āla (glorified and exalted be He) will make us from among the honoured on the Day of Judgement.

Those Eligible for the Angels Supplications
1. Purifying Oneself
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The Prophet ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam (peace and blessings of Allāh be upon him) said in the ḥadīth of ʻAbdullāh ibn ʻAbbās raḥimahā Allāh (may Allāh have mercy upon her), “Purify these bodies may Allah purify you. There is no person who sleeps in a state of ritual purity except that an angel sleeps alongside him. He does not turn throughout the night except that the angel says, ‘O Allah forgive Your slave for he slept in a state of ritual purity.”[1] Thus, the simple deed of performing wuḍū before sleeping is a means of mercy and having an angel by your side as you sleep.

2. The Prayer

There are many aspects of the prayer, and in particular the congregational prayer, that bring about the supplications of the angels, and more importantly of Allah subḥānahu wa ta'āla (glorified and exalted be He) . It is these small deeds which are often ignored and neglected that can make the difference.

The first of these acts is to arrive slightly early for the prayer at the mosque and wait. Abū Hurayrah raḥimahullāh (may Allāh have mercy upon him) narrated that the Prophet ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam (peace and blessings of Allāh be upon him)  said, “One of you does not sit waiting for the prayer except that he is counted as being in the prayer, so long as he does not break his ablution. The angels supplicate for him saying, ‘O Allah, forgive him. O Allah, have mercy upon him.’”[2]

As you wait, try your utmost to find a space in the first row. Do not just laze around at the sides or the back of the prayer hall allowing others to precede you in good. The famous scholar, Ibn Ḥibbān collected on the authority of Al-Barā’ ibn ʻĀzib raḥimahullāh (may Allāh have mercy upon him) that the Prophet ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam (peace and blessings of Allāh be upon him) said, “Indeed, Allah and His angels supplicate[3] for those who pray in the first row.”[4]

In the first row or any row, fill the spaces to the right of the imām before the left. A number of ḥadīth books record the narration of our mother, ʻĀ’ishah raḥimahā Allāh (may Allāh have mercy upon her) that the Prophet ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam (peace and blessings of Allāh be upon him) said, “Indeed, Allah and His angels supplicate for those who stand on the right side of the row.”[5] It was also mentioned by the Companions that they used to prefer to stand to the right of the Prophet ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam (peace and blessings of Allāh be upon him) in their rows behind him.[6]

Then, once the iqāmah is called and people stand for the prayer, straighten the rows and more importantly fill in the gaps. If there is a space in the row ahead of you, hasten to fill it. If during the prayer someone leaves the prayer and a gap emerges in front of you, fill it. ʻĀ’ishah raḥimahā Allāh (may Allāh have mercy upon her) narrated that the Prophet ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam (peace and blessings of Allāh be upon him) said, “Indeed, Allah and His angels supplicate for those who connect the rows.”[7]

After the prayer concludes, remain seated for a while making your adhkār. Unless you need to leave do not be in a hurry to rush off. Imām Aḥmad (rahimahu) reported that the illustrious Companion, ʻAlī raḥimahā Allāh (may Allāh have mercy upon her) narrated that the Prophet ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam (peace and blessings of Allāh be upon him) said, “If a person stays in his place after the prayer, the angels supplicate for him. Their supplication is, ‘O Allah forgive him. O Allah, have mercy upon him.”[8]

In addition to all of the above, praying Fajr and ʻAṣr in congregation is extremely virtuous. The Prophet ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam (peace and blessings of Allāh be upon him) said in the ḥadīth narrated by Abū Hurayrah raḍyAllāhu 'anhu (may Allāh be pleased with him), “The angels of the day and the angels of the night meet at the Fajr and ʻAṣr prayers. They meet at the Fajr prayer and the angels of the night ascend, while the angels of the day remain. They then meet at the ʻAṣr prayer, and the angels of the day ascend while the angels of the night remain. Their Lord asks them, ‘How did you leave my slaves?’ They reply, ‘We came to them and they were praying and we left them and they were praying, so forgive them on the Day of Judgement.”[9]

3. Charity & Fasting

One of the ways to attain the blessings of Allah subḥānahu wa ta'āla (glorified and exalted be He) and the supplications of the angels is to spend a small amount in charity every day. Abū Hurayrah raḥimahā Allāh (may Allāh have mercy upon her) said that the Prophet ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam (peace and blessings of Allāh be upon him) stated, “A day does not rise upon the slaves except that two angels descend. One of them says, ‘O Allah, give the one who spends more. The other says, ‘O Allah, give the one who withholds misery.’”[10]

Similarly for those who fast to eat the pre-dawn meal (suḥūr) is blessed. Imām Ibn Ḥibbān reports that the Prophet ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam (peace and blessings of Allāh be upon him) said, “Indeed, Allah and His angels supplicate for those who make suḥūr.”[11]

4. Being in the Service of Others

Serving others and helping them is an easy yet effective way of achieving Allah’s blessings and mercy. We often have needs and wants or sorrows and griefs, and for all of this we ask Allah subḥānahu wa ta'āla (glorified and exalted be He) for His assistance. An additional way to do this, is to actually supplicate for our brothers and sisters in their absence. The Prophet ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam (peace and blessings of Allāh be upon him) said, “The supplication of the Muslim for his absent brother is answered. There is an angel appointed to it. Every time he supplicates for his brother with good, the angel says, ‘Āmīn, and may you have the same.’”[12]

Another good deed that is often neglected is visiting the sick. ʻAlī raḥimahā Allāh (may Allāh have mercy upon her) narrates that the Prophet ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam (peace and blessings of Allāh be upon him) said, “A Muslim does not visit his brother except that Allah sends seventy thousand angels who supplicate for him, whichever hour of the day it is until the evening, or whichever hour of the evening it is until morning.”[13]

The angels also supplicate for those who teach others what is good and beneficial. In the ḥadīth of Abū Umāmah al-Bāhilī raḥimahā Allāh (may Allāh have mercy upon her), the Prophet ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam (peace and blessings of Allāh be upon him) said, “Indeed, Allah, His angels, the inhabitants of the heavens and the inhabitants of the earth, including the ant in its hole and the fish supplicate for those who teach others good.”[14]

The above are just some of the good deeds by which we attain the supplication of the angels, most of them are easily performed and not very time consuming. Yet at the same time there are other actions that incur the curse of the angels. It would be too lengthy to discuss these in detail here. However they include cursing the Companions, not being forgiven in the month of Ramadan, one whose parents are alive and they do not manage to save themselves from the Fire, hearing the name of the Prophet ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam (peace and blessings of Allāh be upon him) and not sending salutations upon him and the one who draws a weapon against another Muslim.

I ask Allah, the Most High, with His Beautiful Names and Lofty Attributes to make us and our families from among the honoured.

 

 

 

[1] Ṭabarānī in Al-Awsaṭ, vol. 1, p.408.
[2] Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, no. 276.
[3] There are a number of opinions as to what Allah’s supplications refer to. Some scholars stated that it refers to Allah mentioning that individual in this highest companionship. Other said it is the mercy of Allah or His blessings. Yet others said it refers to Allah purifying that person. The supplication of the angels is explained as being an actual duʻā’ or the angels seeking forgiveness for that person.
[4] Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Ḥibbān, no. 2157.
[5] Sunan Abū Dāwūd, no. 672 and Sunan Ibn Mājah, no. 991.
[6] Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, no. 709.
[7] Sunan Ibn Mājah, no, 981.
[8] Musnad Aḥmad, no. 1218.
[9] Musnad Aḥmad, no. 9140.
[10] Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, no. 1442 and Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, no. 1010.
[11] Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Ḥibbān, no. 3467.
[12] Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, no. 2733.
[13] Musnad Aḥmad, no. 754.
[14] Jāmiʻ al-Tirmidhī, no. 2825.

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The Prophet (SAW) has taught us the best of deeds are those that done consistently, even if they are small. Click here to support MuslimMatters with a monthly donation of $2 per month. Set it and collect blessings from Allah (swt) for the khayr you're supporting without thinking about it.

Shaykh Ahsan Hanif, PhD, was born and raised in Birmingham, UK. He memorised the Qur’an at a young age and at the age of 17 received a scholarship to study at the Islamic University of Madinah, Saudi Arabia. As well as attaining an ijazah in the Qur’an and a diploma in Arabic, Shaykh Ahsan graduated from the Faculty of Shari’ah Studies in 2006. Upon his return to the UK he attained his PhD from the University of Birmingham. He is currently an imam at Green Lane Masjid, Birmingham as well as the head of the Qur’an & Hadith Studies Department for AlMaghrib Institute. He has spoken at Islamic conferences in various countries, published translations of Arabic works and is a presenter of IslamQA for Islam Channel.

5 Comments

5 Comments

  1. Amatullah

    November 27, 2014 at 4:58 AM

    In point no. 3, “Indeed, Allah and His angels supplicate for those who make suḥūr.” looks incorrect. “Allah supplicates” doesn’t make sense. May He be Glorified.

  2. Shameemah

    November 27, 2014 at 7:54 AM

    Shukran Sh Hanif and MuslimMatters for this article. very insightful and helpful

  3. Umm Hadi

    November 30, 2014 at 11:46 AM

    Jazak Allahu Khair Sheikh. May Allah accept your efforts.

  4. Ekran Jibril

    June 16, 2015 at 6:57 PM

    Assalamualaikum rahmatullahi wa barakatuh,

    In certain places i.e #3. Charity and Fasting, it mentions Abu Hurayrah as may Allah be pleased with her, as it should say may Allah be pleased with him, it does so in other places as well with other names, I notice it as I was reading through may you make the changes correctly.

    May Allah (SWT) reward you for your efforts, and forgive you for your errors and make it easy for you to do good and may all our intentions be pure in pleasing Allah (SWT)

  5. Ekran Jibril

    June 16, 2015 at 6:57 PM

    Also thank you so much for this knowledge!

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