What Supplication Should Be Read for Someone With Heavy Emotional Issues?
Answered by Shaykh Riad Saloojee
Question: Assalamu alaykum
1. I currently know someone with a lot of emotional baggage. He has developed a sense of bitterness.
What supplication can I read for him so that Allah can heal the dark places in his soul and replace it with serenity?
2. I am also considering marrying this person.
What can I read to alleviate all fears I might have?
Answer: Wa’alaykumsalam wa rahmatullahi wa barakaatu,
I pray you are well, by the grace of Allah.
There are numerous supplications transmitted from Messenger of Allah (peace & blessings be upon him) to help remove and alleviate emotional distress. Two come to mind. In the plural form, they read:
اللّهُمَّ إنّا عَبِيدُكَ، أَبْنَاءُ عَبِيدِكَ، أبْنَاءُ إمَائِكَ، نَواصِيْنَا بِيَدِكَ، مَاضٍ فِيْنَا حُكْمُكَ، عَدْلٌ فِيْنَا قَضَاؤُكَ، اللَّهُمَّ إِنّا نَسْأَلُكَ بِكُلِّ اسْمٍ هُوَ لَكَ، سَمَّيْتَ بِهِ نَفْسَكَ، أَوْ أَنْزَلْتَهُ فِي كِتَابِكَ، أَوْ عَلَّمْتَهُ أَحَداً مِنْ خَلْقِكَ، أَوْ اسْتَأْثَرْتَ بِهِ فِي عِلْمِ الغَيْبِ عِنْدَكَ، أَنْ تَجْعَلَ القُرْآنَ العَظِيمَ رَبِيعَ قُلُوبِنا، وَنُورَ صُدُورِنا، وَجَلاَءَ أَحْزَانِنا، وَذَهابَ هُمُومِنا وَغُمُومِنا
O Allah, we are the children of Your male servants, the children of Your female servants. Our forelocks are in Your Hand. Your judgement is carried through in us. Your decree over us is just and equitable. We ask You by every name that you have named Yourself, or that You have revealed in Your Book, or that You have taught any of Your creation, or that You have chosen to keep in the knowledge of the unseen with You, that You make the Qur’an the Spring of our hearts, the light of our chests, and the removers of our worries and sadnesses.
اللَّهُمَّ رَحْمَتَكَ نَرْجُو فَلَا تَكِلْنا إِلَى نُفْوسِنا طَرْفَةَ عَيْنٍ، وَأَصْلِحْ لَنا شَأْنَنَا كُلَّهُ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا أَنْتَ
O Allah, Your loving-mercy we seek. Do not entrust us to ourselves for even the blinking of an eye, and rectify for us every affair of ours. There is no god besides You.
You may also supplicate for him with your personal supplication in English while sending abundant prayers of peace and blessings upon Messenger of Allah (peace & blessings be upon him). May Allah alleviate our brother’s distress and grant him serenity and emotional stability. Amin.
With regard to marrying him, I am not able to ascertain whether this is an advisable marriage for you, apart from the fact that there are, as you mentioned in the question, the challenges of his “emotional baggage” and “sense of bitterness.” The waswasa that you mention could be from the Shaytan; but it could also be legitimate rational or spiritual concerns. Allah knows best.
I would advise you to consult a trustworthy, knowledgeable and experienced individual for counsel. As well, you should be sincere and steadfast in supplicating with Istikhara, or the Prayer of Seeking Guidance. I suggest that you pray it with the conscious effort of surrendering your choice to Allah and seeking clarity in what He wills, loves and knows is good for you. I recommend that you not hasten in your decision and hold fast to it until matters become clearer. May Allah grant you clarity and certainty from Him. Amin.
Warmest salams,
[Shaykh] Riad Saloojee
Shaykh Riad Saloojee graduated and taught in an Islamic seminary in Cape Town, South Africa. He is a lawyer by training and worked in the field of civil rights advocacy. Currently, he teaches and translates.
