Istikhara, seeking guidance for the best course of action

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Istikhara, seeking guidance for the best course of action

2020. június 14. - 15:56

First, let's clarify something. My life is mine. It belongs to me, nobody else.

I have occupied certain areas of the existence by my profession what I deal with and by my home where I live. I have developed my own way of thinking, my sense of humor, my emotions, so I am in a constant struggle during my life in order to become satisfied with myself through the spaces that I occupy. I make decision about my life. If you give up this opportunity and others take decision over your emotions, feelings, thinking, then you are no longer you anymore but you become someone else who has occupied some of your spaces. If you are angry, your wrath will be shaped according to his/her aspects, or if you are happy, you will be happy according to his/her gladness. Anyone who does this is not normal, a zombie or whatever, because he/she is giving up his/her own life. That was the basic. However, life is much more complicated because I can't live in isolation. I am surrounded by family, friends, colleagues, my living environment. I am in constant compromise, where do I give up some of my spaces and what new space can I occupy? I have to reconcile these spaces in all my social relationships. In spite of emotion, love or whatever, my spaces are damaged, or just being completed and expanded. The real question is not the loss of space or the kind of decisions I make about myself, but whether I make these decisions myself, at my own discretion, or as a result of some kind of obligation or compulsion? If I am part of a compromise, my life will change according to my own will, but if I have to change due to compulsion, this is hell. Nobody likes that.

We have reached the final stage of derivation. Neither we nor others are perfect. So, don't expect perfection to surround you. If you still want this, die now and if you get to Heaven, your desire may be fulfilled. There you will find the perfection! And if you are unwilling to do so, stay on the earth and accept earthly realities.
When can you be satisfied? If you accept the facts: you don’t differ in the eyes of others than you think about them. You will be satisfied if, with this in mind, you make compromises without external compulsion that do not harm the spaces you occupy and you continue to make decision about your own life. Because one thing to keep in mind: your life is yours, only you can decide it. In making decisions we can get a guidance if we wish so. This is what Istikhara serves. That is, we ask the Creator to guide us for the best course of action.


Narrated Jabir bin `Abdullah:
The Prophet (peace be upon him) used to teach us the way of doing Istikhara (Istikhara means to ask Allah to guide one to the right sort of action concerning any job or a deed), in all matters as he taught us the Suras of the Quran. He said, "If anyone of you thinks of doing any job, he should offer a two rak`at prayer other than the compulsory ones and say (after the prayer): (O Allah! I ask guidance from Your knowledge, And Power from Your Might and I ask for Your great blessings. You are capable and I am not. You know and I do not and You know the unseen. O Allah! If You know that this job is good for my religion and my subsistence and in my Hereafter--(or said: If it is better for my present and later needs)--then You ordain it for me and make it easy for me to get, And then bless me in it. And if You know that this job is harmful to me in my religion and subsistence and in the Hereafter--(or said: If it is worse for my present and later needs) --then keep it away from me and let me be away from it. And ordain for me whatever is good for me, and make me satisfied with it). The Prophet (peace be upon him) added that then the person should name (mention) his need.

Sahih al-Bukhary 1166.

Warning: the supplication above is merely a call to Allah and a request for guidance from Him. The decision is not Allah's, but yours!

One more thought if you allow me. Let us not confuse the words of prayer and supplication with the magic words of the storybooks. A Jinn will never come out of the magic lamp and will not fulfill our needs. The role of a supplication is to purify ourselves with the power of words in order to make our decisions in a purified state.

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