What is a dua?

[Zabel]

What is a dua? Is it just a prayer or supplication to Allah?

[Zabel]

No answer yet?

[Woodrow]

What is a dua? Is it just a prayer or supplication to Allah?

That is reasonably accurate. It is our personal prayers to Allaah(swt).

While Salat translate into English as prayer, it is more like a worship service. Du'a is much closer to the English language concept of prayer.

[crimsontide06]

So Salat is the required prayers. Dua is your personal extra prayers. right?

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[islamica]

Salat or salah is is the practice of formal worship in Islam. Salah consists of the repetition of a unit called a rakʿah (pl. rakaʿāt) consisting of prescribed actions and words. This is an example of it:

Dua literally meaning invocation, is an act of supplication. It similar to Christian's prayers of raising the hands and asking God for something. Duas can be taken from the Quran or duas recited by the Prophet (SAW) or they can be your personal duas for something you desire. There are also duas that can be recited as certain times, such as when calamity befalls you, when eating, finishing eating, going to sleep, waking up, going to the bath, etc. Below are some examples of them.



When Waking Up

	‘All praise is for Allaah who gave us life after having taken it from us and unto Him is the Resurrection.‘

[crimsontide06]

So when you are doing salat, u cannot include your dua prayers during the salat prayers right? Those have to be separate I think I saw this somewhere, want to make sure.

[Bint-e-Adam]

i also wanted to know is is allowed to pray or make dua between salat?or sajda?

[islamica]

We can make duas during salaah. There are specific duas that can be recited while in sajood, between prostrations and other places. if you go through this book http://makedua.com/ it mentions which duas can be recited where in the salaah. As for making personal duas within the salah, i've been hearing different things so i'm not sure.

According to islamqa:
Making du’aa’ in English or in any other language is permissible outside of salaah (prayer). But it is not permissible to say any part of the salaah in any language other than Arabic, according to the majority of scholars.
But if the Muslim can stick to Arabic in all cases, especially in acts of worship – and du’aa’ is an act of worship – that is preferable and is better.

http://www.islamqa.com/en/ref/11588
http://www.islamqa.com/en/ref/20953

OK so no duas in any other language within the salah but if it's in arabic then it's ok, however, best duas within salaah are those from the Quran and the sunnah.

That is my understanding of this, inshallah if someone knows more about it then they can share it with us here.

[sohail1234]

Assalam o alikum
Dua is the only factor which can change our lives and fate.. it is the strong weapon of the believer. it is the only way to conversant with the ALLAH almighty and can share your all sufferings with him. ...
Once Prophet Muhammad (sal-Allahu-alayhi-wa-sallam) passed by a people who were suffering from some affliction. “Why don’t they make dua (prayer) to Allah for protection?” he said. With all the suffering and disasters Muslims are facing in various parts of the world, the question can be directed to all of us today.