How to attain Allah’s Guidance

The servant is granted success in many things, the most important and the highest in reward among them are:

First: Seeking and asking Allah in supplication

Constantly ask Allah for guidance

That’s why the Prophet (peace be upon him) used to say: “O Allah, guide me,  have mercy to me, and support me.”

It was reported in authentic Hadith that he used to say this between the two prostrations

Ask Allah constantly

O Allah, give us the strength to do the things that You love and what pleases You, O Allah protect me

During Hajj and `Umrah and when climbing (the mountains of) As-Safa and Al-Marwah `Abdullah ibn `Umar (may Allah be pleased with both of them), as Al-Baihaqi reported, used to recite: “O Allah protect me by obedience to You and obedience to Your prophet (peace be upon him)”

Ask Allah sincerely for benefit and steadfastness in religion

As Allah says: “Call upon Me; I will respond to you.” (Ghafir 40:60)

How many people has honestly asked Allah to be among  the righteous people so Allah raised them (their knowledge and deeds) to the degrees of the righteous

He set right for them their intention, faith and deeds

and it’s all by the guidance of Allah

Ask Allah (Exalted be He) to guide you

It is reported in the sahih Hadith that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “Allah (the Almighty) says: O My servants, all of you are astray except for those I have guided, so ask Me for guidance and I will guide you”

O Allah, we ask You for guidance, so guide us

It was narrated from Al-Hassan (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet taught him the supplication to say in Qunut: O Allah, guide me among those whom You have guided”

So, ask Allah always to guide you, and don’t depend on your righteousness and steadfastness

Always fear relapsing and deviation of the heart

and say: O Allah I seek refuge in You from the deviation of the heart

No one deviates from Allah but one who is doomed

one may be steadfast in obedience and looking at his obedience, he is, in a moment, deceived and misled by it; his heart deviates (may Allah protect us) as he turns on his heel

Beware

He who fears will be secure. Better safe than sorry

this is the first matter: supplicating a lot

Always ask Allah (Exalted be He) for this as it is a favour no one grants except Allah

The second thing that help the servant attain success is to seek the means to achieve success

the greatest of these ever is the Book of Allah (Exalted be He) and the Sunnah of His Prophet ( peace be upon him)

You will never achieve success except with the Qur’an and Sunnah

One to whom Allah grants  love for Qur’an so he recites it frequently, pay utmost attention to and deeply ponder on its meanings, internalize its words and act upon it , love listening to it and cannot help shedding tears when listening to it, is the closest to attain success, and the nearest to the straight path

May Allah make me and you among them

Love the Book of Allah

and he who loves something is influenced by it

That’s why the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “On the day of Resurrection, one will be with those whom he loves”

that’s because he is influenced by them, saying what they say and doing what they do

So love the Book of Allah, and make it a goal to develop a strong relationship with the words of Allah (Exalted be He)

don’t be satisfied with a little of the Qur’an

Beware of being satisfied with such a little of the Qur’an

Rather you have to strive and work hard

trying to memorize the Qur’an, and then to understand and reflect upon its meanings

and to live by its teachings and percepts

It is a form of success that you find a man, when reading the Qur’an, feels that Allah is commanding and forbidding him

so he weeps out of fear of Allah’s threats and punishment

and when the Qur’an speaks about Paradise you find his heart overflow with joy out of longing to it

that he cannot wait until he is done with reciting the Qur’an to act by a command he just read in the Book of Allah (Exalted be He)

Listening to the Book of Allah (Exalted be He) ordering him to pray, he hurries up and follow the commands of Allah, i.e. prayer, being forward in doing good deeds

Inspired and influenced by listening to the imams and reciters of the Qur’an, when listening to the Qur’an they are humbly submissive

hoping for the highest and most honorable rewards for their prayer

Humiliating themselves drawing nearer to Allah (Exalted be He)

when he listens to the Book of Allah ordering to give charity, he never passes a poor or needy whom he can help without giving them something in charity

and he never passes an afflicted or distressed person whom he can help without fulfilling their need

The slave is in the ranks of the successful as long as he continues to follow the Book of Allah (Exalted be He) and act upon it

in all good deeds

Reading the book of Allah (Exalted be He) he learns each of  its prohibitions and limits

Reading a verse that forbids him to commit something, he stop to know where he stands from this, and where he stands from the Qur’an which prohibits him

and that this verse which he recited is a proof against him between the hands of Allah (Exalted be He) so he fears

and then be led to success; success in avoiding sins, in forsaking them, in detesting them and those who commit them

Keeping himself far away from their places, their reasons, theirs allures and temptation

the Qur’an came for this

when you read the Qur’an you find it calling you to refrain from disobedience to Allah (Exalted be He)

To hate sin and disobedience to Allah, to fear disobeying Allah

by unveiling the truth of sin

Look at the Book of Allah (Exalted be He) – how it guides man towards true success, unveils the truth about things

Therefore,  he on his eyes is a veil is deprived of true success and guidance

He is like the blind who sees not

On the other hand, he who is successful and guided sees clearly the truth by virtue of their fear of Allah

“if you fear Allah, He will grant you a criterion.” (Al-Anfal 8:29)

and this criterion is the Qur’an

“Alif, Lam, Meem.This is the Book about which there is no doubt, a guidance for those conscious of Allah” (Al-Baqarah 2:1-2)