Raise Your Dua: Lessons from a Ramadan Challenge
Before the start of Ramadan, I saw multiple ads for a "Raise Your Dua Challenge" on Instagram. I thought this could help me craft better duas and give me some pointers. In previous years, I would copy duas from others and ask for the same things. After all, don't we all want similar blessings? As humans, we desire closeness to Allah, entry into Jannah, protection from Hellfire, and the blessings of success, love, and goodness in this world.
I joined this program hoping to develop more meaningful supplications than my current practice. I had always wanted to incorporate Allah's 99 names into my duas. While I knew about optimal times for dua acceptance and maintained a daily list of supplications, they were often vague and non-specific. The "Raise Your Dua Challenge" taught me the following valuable lessons:
The Art of Making Dua
Powerful Times and Methods
- Make duas during special moments: before breaking fast, during Laylatul Qadr, in sujood, and the last third of night
- Utilize proper form: hands flat (not from the back), heart engaged, and displaying humility
- Begin with praising Allah, then request your needs—both worldly and spiritual
- Remember that Allah guarantees results when proper effort is applied
Transforming Our Approach (by Shaykh Muhammad Alshareef RA)
Dream bigger with your duas and raise your standards. Never express displeasure with Allah in your supplications. Choose to be a student of gratitude (shukr) rather than pain.
For duas that seem delayed:
- Release supplications you're not truly committed to
- Improve your wording for duas you still desire
- Consider pausing overwhelming duas and returning to them later
Reviving the Spiritual Heart
Our environment influences heart cultivation. A spiritually alive heart feels humbled when remembering Allah. Recognize signs of a spiritually dead heart:
- Disconnection from your life's purpose
- Laziness toward religious duties
- Unrepented sins
The remedy includes increased dhikr (remembrance of Allah) and sincere dua.
Elevating Our Supplications
Bold Duas from Prophetic Examples
Follow the examples of Prophets Ibrahim, Sulaiman, and Muhammad (peace be upon them) who made bold requests of Allah. Focus on developing one sincere, defining dua, a supplication you cannot stop making.
Use Allah's beautiful name "Al-Wahab" (The Bestower of Gifts) in your duas. Recognize Allah's gifts to prevent your heart from hardening, and don't let closed doors blind you to the open ones.
Practical Steps for Spiritual Growth
- Simplify your goals and maintain realistic expectations
- Find fulfilling acts of worship that resonate with you
- Seamlessly integrate ibadah (worship) into daily life
- Accept when things don't proceed according to plan
- Protect your duas from doubters and negative influences
- Don't limit yourself or allow others to interfere with your spiritual vision
- Continuously renew your trust (tawakkul) in Allah
Understanding the Essence of Dua
Dua as Action
Dua is not passive prayer but active engagement with Allah. Make supplications for things you genuinely care about, not just what you think a "good Muslim" should ask for.
Allah inspires you to ask because He wants to give. Have positive expectations of Allah, understanding that He gives because of His perfect attributes, not because of who we are. Allah loves to forgive, to give, and to be asked.
Writing Your Destiny Through Dua
- Design your duas and follow them with appropriate action
- Stop assuming things aren't written for you, you cannot know what Allah has decreed
- Recognize that your decisions, including making dua, help shape your destiny
- Express gratitude and avoid verbalizing complaints
- Write down your duas for clarity and consistency
- Choose companions wisely, as they influence who you become
The Etiquette of Dua (From Prophet Zakariyya's Example)
- Call upon Allah softly and in private, giving yourself time to understand your feelings and desires
- Describe your situation with presence and attention
- Express gratitude, which attracts more blessings
- State reasons for your requests
- Maintain optimism and hopeful expectations
- Ask for things that please Allah and benefit you in both worlds
- Call upon Allah using His beautiful names and attributes
This Ramadan challenge transformed my approach to supplication from vague, borrowed duas to personal, specific, and heartfelt conversations with Allah. By implementing these principles, we can all elevate our duas to become powerful instruments of change in our lives and our relationship with our Creator. I hope you will find these tips helpful during the last 10 nights of Ramadan.
