The Munajah of 'Ali Zainal 'Abidin
" Dear Allah,
guide me to the paths leading to You
direct me to the nearest route towards You
shorten for me a distant journey
ease my burden and difficulty
unite me with Your servants
who run fast to answer Your Call
who always knock upon Your Door
who worship You day and night
who tremble in fear of Your Might
You cleanse their containers
You grant their favors
You fulfill their wishes
You satisfy their hopes
You fill their hearts with Your Love
You rid them of thirst
with Your drink of Goodness
they call out for You with longing
You take them to the peak of their dreams
Dear Allah Who welcomes His guests
Who accepts them with warmth
Who cares for those who remember Him
Who loves those who approach Him
Ya Ilahi,
make me the one who receives the most from You
the one with the best place beside You
for whom You reserve
the biggest portion of Your Love
for whom You grant
the most of Your Knowledge
i devote myself only to You
my desires are focussed on You
You are the only place i relish
there is no other
because of You i'm alive and awake
not because of other
being close to You is my only comfort
meeting You is a dream revered
how i yearn for You
Your Love do i crave
Your Mercy i covet
Your Blessing is my end
calling You is my peace and serenity
with You lies the elixir for my misery
the cure for my pains and injury
the solace for my anxiety
the healer of my agony
Ilahi,
be my friend in loneliness
help me conquer my evilness
save me from falling
forgive all my sins
answer my plea
raise me from poverty
never separate me from You
do not keep me far from You
O my Paradise and Pleasure
O my Beloved
of this life and the hereafter.
"
Imam 'Ali Zainal 'Abidin (rodhi-Allaahu 'anhu) began his du'aa` by
asking Allah to guide him to the paths leading to Him. 'Ali did not
ask for worldly gains or pleasures
of paradise. What he asked was for union with Allah and His
appointment of him as His lover in the highest place beside Him with
the prophets, martyrs and upholders of Truth.
'Ali had not focussed on only 1 path (sabil) towards Him but he
mentioned 'the paths leading to You' (subul al-wushul ilaika). Allah
has laid out for us paths/ ways, which we can follow. Each path lies
on the line of shirath al-mustaqim (the Straight Way).
Some among us follow the path of knowledge and logic towards Him.
Some pass the path of emotion and inspiration. Then there are those
who discover Allah through trade and mu'amalah with Him. This is the
noblest of paths.
Allah proclaimed:
" O ye who
believe!
shall I lead you
to a bargain*that will
save you from
a grievous penalty? "
(Al Shaf: 10)
Note: * Tijaarah: bargain, trade, traffic,
transaction:
something given or done, in
return for something which we
desire to get. It is truly a
wonderful bargain: what we are
asked to give is so little; what
we are promised in return
is so much.
" And there is
the type of man
who gives his life
to earn the pleasure of Allah;
and Allah is full of kindness
to (His) devotees. "
(Al Baqarah: 207)
If we go through a few paths towards Allah, our steps will be
stronger and sturdier.
True, the path towards Allah is not without obstacles. Al-Quran
describes it as difficult (dzat al-syaukah). Many who begin their
journey with determination and confidence have succumbed to defeat
midway. Imam 'Ali Zainal 'Abidin seeked from Allah the ease of a
difficult journey and asked to be united with the pious servants who
had surpassed him. Companionship of the reverent ones is vital for
the solitary person who walks the rough route towards the
Destination. The devout friends would
help toughen the spirit and strengthen the willpower of the
individual during his journey. With mutual support and
encouragement, a rough journey would not feel that tough after all.
When Imam 'Ali prayed to be united with the pious, he mentioned how
Allah has 'cleansed their containers, granted their favours, filled
their hearts with Your Love, rid them of thirst with Your drink of
Goodness.' What is this drink of Goodness that Allah has given to
His lovers in this world? What containers have Allah filled with His
Love? Indeed the drink of Goodness is a concoction of love, faith,
truthfulness and knowledge. The container is in fact, the heart.
Whatever comes out from the heart resembles what enters it. If what
is poured into the heart comes from a clean and pure source, then
what flows from it will be good and sincere actions, speech,
thoughts and manners. However, if what enters the heart is impure
and is further dirtied by the devil's incitement, then the end
products are nothing but hypocrisy, lies, greed and disloyalty
towards Allah and His Messenger.
From Tafsir Al-Mizan, Rasulullah (sollaAllahu'alaihi wasallam) was
quoted as saying:
" 2 kinds of
'voices' vibrate in the heart. The
vibration, resulting from the angels' reminder
towards performing goodness and upholding
truth.
The vibration that comes from the enemies,
instigating
to do evil and renounce truth. Whoever
perceives the
first vibration, let it be known that it has
come from Allah.
And whoever perceives the second, he should
seek
refuge with Allah from the provocation of the
devil. "
~ extracted & translated by jannah
from the Indonesian version (edited
by K.H. Jalaluddin Rakhmat)
of 'Al-Hubb Al-Ilahiy Fi Ad'iyah Ahl Al-Bayt'
by Shaikh Muhammad Mahdi Al-Ashify
n.b. All Quranic translations &
footnotes extracted from
'The Meaning of The Holy Quran'
by 'Abdullah Yusuf 'Ali
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