Bismillah Rahman Raheem
Salam alaykum:
A question comes from one of our younger brothers in Islam. He states:
I have a question that is really bothering me. The other night while I was listening to 99 names of Allah swt, I had a shirk thought for a second. I dont belive in it (shirk thought) but it just came to me. I guess i had a doubt for a second about Allah swt. I know that its the biggest sin to do shirk, but dont no if i did it because i really believe in Allah swt. So my question to you is how does one know if he did this sin, how does one repent and how can you be sure that allah has forgiven you. Is there some sort of Istikara prayer? Please respond. Please pray for me because I am really scared. I am 16 yrs old committed such a big sin.
I read your question and if I understood it correctly, it appears that the problem is not you, as much as it is shayton. The shayton has come to you and made a statement of doubt in your ear and wants you to think that it came from you. However, it was only his statement and not from you. Therefore, I would do as the prophet, peace be upon him told us to do, seek refuge with Allah and leave that kind of thinking, inshallah.
Shaytan is our open enemy. He hates us and wants to take us all to Hell. He has no real power, only the "wiswas" or "whispering."
Say, "Authobillah minish-shayton irajeem." [read the attached for details and explanation]
Now, I would like to reproduce something for you that I believe should come in handy for any Muslim experiencing problems with the shayton (which is pretty much all of us, right?).
Please take your time, print this out if you like, or view it on our website at:
www.IslamTomorrow.com/articles/shaytan.htm