Arafah: the main day of Hajj. The Prophet (صلى الله عليه و سلم) said in one hadith: “Hajj IS Arafah.” [Sunan Abu Dawud, book 10, #1944] How true that is–if you go to Arafah, but miss everything else, your Hajj is sound; and if you do everything else, but miss Arafah, your Hajj is not valid.
How much more important can you get than that?
Arafah, the day when millions of poeple gather in one place at one time to praise and supplicate to Allah.
So how can you make the best use of the Day of Arafah, while you’re in Arafah? The Prophet (صلى الله عليه و سلم) said: “The best du’a you can make is the du’a on the day of Arafah.” [Malik’s Mutawatta, Book 10, #20.76.255]
So this is it–your chance to change the world insha’Allah, because the du’a you make on Arafah will be accepted, bi idhnillah. And you have a whole day to do it.
And remember–when you make du’a for someone who’s not around, the angels make the same du’a for you! The Prophet (صلى الله عليه و سلم) said: “He who makes du’a for his brother behind his back (in his absence), the Angel commissioned (for carrying supplication to his Lord) says: Ameen, and it for you also (something similar).” [Saheeh Muslim, Book 35, #6589]
The best preparation you can make for the Day of Arafah is to write a du’a list. Write it out ahead of time, and make it long–at least twenty pages. What are some of the benefits of doing it ahead of time?
- You can think of anything you want in this life and the next, and add that; you won’t forget anything.
- You can plan ahead, see where you want to be in 5, 10, 50 years, in the akhira, and incorporate that in your du’a list.
- You have time to make du’a for all your brothers and sisters in Islam and your close relatives.
- You can ask your friends and relatives what they want you to make du’a for, on their behalf. They will be extremely happy if you tell them you’ll make du’a for them on arafah!
And trust me, twenty pages is not enough–if you squeeze every ounce, every second, of your time on Arafah making du’a–as you should–you can easily cover your du’a list a few times. So make it long, as long as possible.
Insha’Allah here are some ideas to help get you started on your du’a list–just some things to think about. Insha’Allah think up your own additional categories and personalize your list more.
- Your eman
- Your rank in Jannah (and Al-Firdaus)
- Your knowledege of Islam
- Your memorization of the Qur’an
- Your health
- Your wealth
- Your job
- Your kids–their eman and akhira, health, etc.
- The ummah at large
- Those oppressed in Palestine, Chechnya, Somalia, and worldwide
- People you want to become Muslim–including presidents and world leaders
- Countries you want to become Muslim–including your current residence
- Guidance for every human being on the planet
- Your Islamic work and projects
- People who you know who aren’t very practicing, to become more practicing
- People you know who are practicing, to become better and more practicing.
- Any weakness you have–any sin you commit–to be overcome
This is just a list to get you started. Insha’Alalh work on it, and you’ll find ideas flowing.
Before that day, brush up on and make sure you know the etiquettes of du’a–praise Allah, glorify Him, thank Him, and send salaam and salaawaat on His Prophet (صلى الله عليه و سلم). Call Him by His great names–including Allah, Al-Hayyu, and Al-Qayyum–then ask what you want.
And does this apply to people who are not on Hajj? Allahu ‘alim.
We ask Allah to accept our Hajj and the Hajj of all the Hujjaaj, and to make Hajj easy for everyone who goes or intends to go (ameen).
For more information on your Hajj Du’a list, check out the video below, courtesy of HajjCoach.com.
Prepare a MASSIVE Dua List. Perf. Muhammad Alshareef. 2007. HajjCoach.Com. 21 Nov. 2007 <http://youtube.com/watch?v=znaAS26jkpk>.