Dua – The Secret to Changing One’s Destiny

The Quran and Sunnah are full of duas, supplications. The Quran mentions how the messengers, prophets and other righteous people were always fully engaged in making dua to Allah on a continuous basis. One of the most famous supplications, which we learn from a young age, is
:وَمِنْهُم مَّن يَقُولُ رَبَّنَا آتِنَا فِي الدُّنْيَا حَسَنَةً وَفِي الْآخِرَةِ حَسَنَةً وَقِنَا عَذَابَ النَّارِ 
“But among them is he who says, "Our Lord, give us in this world [that which is] good and in the Hereafter [that which is] good and protect us from the punishment of the Fire." [2:201] 

There is a hadith that shows the power of making dua. The Prophet ﷺ narrated a story about three men from Bani Israel. The three men were on a journey. It suddenly began to rain and so they took shelter in a cave. A big rock fell from the top of a mountain and blocked the entrance of the cave. The three men tried to push the rock, but they could not move it. The three men were in a difficult situation in which no one could hear them and no one could respond to them. It was pitch black and the mountains were shaking. In this difficult situation, one of them said, “We should ask Allah with the best deed we have done, and as a result, maybe this rock will move.” 

One of them raised his hands and said, “O Allah, every night before my parents go to sleep, I would give them milk and then they would go sleep. After giving milk to my parents, I would give it to my wife and children. One day I had to do extra work, and therefore, I arrived home late. When I came home, I found my parents sleeping and my children were hungry and thirsty, and they wanted to drink the milk. I told my wife to put them to sleep, even though they were hungry and thirsty. I stood with the milk in my hands the whole night, I didn’t want to disturb and wake my parents up. When they woke up from sleep, I gave them the milk and they drank it. O Allah, if you know that I did this for Your sake, seeking Your pleasure, then please remove the rock. The rock moved, but not enough for them to come out.” 

Then, the second one stood up and said, “O Allah, I loved this beautiful woman, more than any man can love a woman, and we were about to have a relationship with each other, but when she said, “Fear Allah!” I let go of the relationship. O Allah, if you know that I have done this action solely for your sake, then remove the rock.” So, the rock moved again, but once again the gap was too small for them to pass through. 

The third one got up and said, “O Allah, I hired some labourers. One day one of workers came late to work. When it came to giving people’s salary, everyone said to pay him less, and consequently, he got offended and left. I used his wages to invest in a business (it was to do with agriculture and livestock), and the business prospered greatly. After a long time, that same labourer came back and was desperate for his wages. I took him to the valley and said, “Everything here belongs to you – camels, cattle, goats, and slaves.” The servant replied, “Are you mocking me? Are you laughing at me.” I replied, “No, all of this is for you, because I invested your wages and this is the result of the investment.” So, the labourer took everything and he did not leave anything behind. O Allah, if you know that I have done this action solely for your sake, then remove the rock.” The rock moved and the three men exited the cave. 

Let’s take a step back and just ponder the fact that Allah brought these three men inside a cave to show us the power of dua and good deeds. The incident took place. Allah then preserved this story by revealing it to the Prophet ﷺ, who then narrated it to his companions, and this story has been passed down for generations. Now, we are listening to the same story. One should ask the question, what lessons and benefits could we derive from this ancient but powerful story. Obviously, Allah did not preserve this story and reveal it to this Ummah, just for us to listen to it and feel good about ourselves. Rather, it seems that Allah has revealed it to us for us to take lessons from it and share it with others. 

1) Your decision can change the course of history. If the three men did not advise each other to make dua, they probably would have died in the cave. In a different context, imagine if your teachers decided not to take education seriously. In that case, they would not have been teaching you. So, decide upon the type of person you want to be, decide upon the types of deeds you want to do, and decide upon whom you want as your intimate friends. These three factors will affect your life and your contributions towards humanity. 

2) Make dua to Allah. Exams are a few months away. You should start making dua from now. Don’t wait for the night before the exam, start making dua now. 
- Learn duas related to memory and duas pertaining to protection from laziness. 
- Ask your parents to make dua for you. 
- Give some charity with the intention of overcoming hardships you might face in the exam. 
- Just like the three men, do special deeds and mention them in your duas. 
- Make dua for your fellow brothers and friends. Abu reported, “I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ saying, "Whenever a Muslim supplicates for his (Muslim) brother in his absence, the angels say: 'May the same be for you too.” [Muslim] 
Get into the habit of making dua, especially when you are free and not under a lot of pressure. 

3) The third benefit one may take from this story is to have a positive mindset and to not give up. The men in the cave could have been despondent and said, “We are going to die; no one can save us. We might as well do nothing and just cry until death overtakes us.” But, no! They tried to find a way out. As students, you should always have a positive mindset. Set some goals. If you’re a level 4 or 5 grade student, aim for the grade above and aim for level 7 and 8 every now and then. When you have a challenging question in front of you, don’t give up. Attempt it. If you get it wrong, go home and read up on the topic. Become an expert on that very topic you couldn’t answer. There is a saying, “Tough times never last, but tough people do.” So, be someone who is academically, mentally, and emotionally tough. 

May Allah give us the tawfeeq to make dua to him on a regular basis. May Allah give us the tawfeeq to have a positive mindset and contribute to humanity with our intentions and actions. Ameen.