Why Are My Duas Not Being Answered?

[Muhaba]

"Why are my duas not being answered, you ask." Why can't i get married, get high grades, get into a good college, get a good job, etc etc. the complaints are endless. the duas are endless. the nawafil in the hopes of getting your duas answered are countless. You can't understand what you're doing wrong that makes you fail or why Allah isn't answering your prayers. IS God against me, you start to wonder.

You try again, this time making more duas than the last time and staying up almost the whole night praying nawafil and Qiyamul Layl and Salat-i-Hajjah.

Then you start preparing for whatever you are about to do (interview, exam, meeting potential spouse/their relatives, etc).

If you're a guy:
You wear your best suit, silk tie and all. put on an expensive perfume (even if just a little), etc.

If you're a woman, you put on a little makeup, wear a little perfume, and put on your best clothes, then wear your abaya/hijab.

Both: you may even use some nice smelling moisturizer, the best shampoo, conditioner, hair gel, deodorant, etc etc.

You can't help admiring how good and professional you look in the mirror. you're ready to face the world. this time you know you'll make it. after all, you've done everything in your hands; prepared really well; look like the perfect candidate, and have made lots and lots of duas. If nothing else, the duas will definately be accepted.

So grabbing your things, you head toward your destiny.

.
.
.

everything seems to be going well and you're confident you'll make it.

however, you flop this time too just like many other times.

you come back home disappointed, angry, sad, the emotions are endless.

you throw your fancy clothing and put on something casual, then throw yourself on the bed/sofa to think. nothing bothers you more than the question: Why is Allah not answering my prayers? why did i fail again? what am i doing to deserve this? In your opinion, you are doing nothing to deserve this.

however, you couldn't be more wrong. you don't realize that your duas are not being answered because of the haram things you are using (even if you abstain from haram foods) such as:

silk tie (haram for men)
perfume (haram if it contains alcohol)
make up (haram if it contains haram ingredients. a lot of them contain pork fat, alcohol, etc)
perfume (haram for women to wear outside)
moisturizer (haram if it contains haram ingredients)
shampoo/conditioner/hair gel/deodarant etc (haram if contains alcohol, haram ingredients)

those are the evident haram things in this scenerio. There may be more, such as food that is haram, items purchased with haram money, etc.

There is a statement of a scholar that states that a person will be at the Kaba making dua but his/her dua will not be accepted because of the food he ate which was haram, the clothes he wore were bought with haram money, etc.


So if you want your duas to be accepted, make sure that nothing you eat / wear / use / earn is haram or doubtful.


and good luck next time. Insha-Allah you'll make it!

 

[Hulk]

The fact that we even remember to make Dua is a blessing from God.

 

[Marina-Aisha]

i have to say i always check the ingredients for wotever i buy, when i was pregnant with my first child( i was non muslim then but i promised my partner i wouldnt eat pork) i bought this chicken wrap from gregs(barkery)and i took a bite and taste strange so i spate it out and it turned out there was bacon in the wrap..so you should always check. Also the other week i bought this lip bumper when i got home i decided to check just incase, and wot to u have it, turns out it had alcohol in it..so always check..i dunno how u can forgot to do duas i always do mine stright after my salat

 

[True-blue]

013.011 For each (such person) there are (angels) in succession, before and behind him: They guard him by command of Allah. Verily never will Allah change the condition of a people until they change it (their state of goodness) themselves (by committing sins and being ungrateful and disobedient to Allah). But when (once) Allah willeth a people's punishment, there can be no turning it back, nor will they find, besides Him, any to protect.

I firmly believe in this verse. :]

 

[Tyrion]

silk tie (haram for men)
perfume (haram if it contains alcohol)
make up (haram if it contains haram ingredients. a lot of them contain pork fat, alcohol, etc)
perfume (haram for women to wear outside)
moisturizer (haram if it contains haram ingredients)
shampoo/conditioner/hair gel/deodarant etc (haram if contains alcohol, haram ingredients)

Uhmm, I'm pretty sure that the mere presence of alcohol (or even animal parts that aren't for ingestion) isn't enough to make things forbidden. Doesn't make too much sense to me... At the very least, there are a wide range of opinions on that point, since I'm pretty sure most Muslims don't consider things like hand sanitizer forbidden. :

I don't think its fair or accurate to suggest that prayers aren't answered because someone used the wrong shampoo in the morning.

 

[glo]

So if you want your duas to be accepted, make sure that nothing you eat / wear / use / earn is haram or doubtful.

That sounds as if the prayers of a righteous person are always answered.
Do you believe that is the case?

Does Allah not still send tests and hardships on his righteous servants?
Are some prayers not only answered or redeemed in Jannah?

 

[sister herb]

Sometimes we ask from Allah something wouldn´t be good for us and He just protect us from it. Thats why we have to trust that Allah knows best - even we don´t understand it right now.

 

[glo]

Sometimes we ask from Allah something wouldn´t be good for us and He just protect us from it. Thats why we have to trust that Allah knows best - even we don´t understand it right now.

Well said, sis. That's another good reason why our duas may not be answered - no matter how righteous we are.

Of course we should always try to be as righteous as we possibly can be. But we should not think that it is a guarantee for our prayers to be answered.
In fact, if we think that, we may come away very disappointed and disillusioned in God ... :hmm:

 

[Qurratul Ayn]

^ Nah, my dear glo. I always believe whatever Allaah does, Allaah does for the best. ALWAYS. I always place my faith in Allaah, He has helped me so much, even when my Du'3a weren't answered the way I wanted them to be, I always place my faith in Allaah.

All my Brothers & Sisters suffering out there, in pain, in tears, heartbroken due to circumstances that aren't even imaginable and happening to us, still believe in Allaah and always make Du'3a to Him with all their heart, mind and soul.

So who are we, to complain and say, "My Du'3a is not being answered!"

We should all try to be hugely grateful for what we have and make Du'3a for those who haven't got we have.

Sooo, don't complain and say "My Du'3a is not answered, what's happening?!?!?!" and keep smiling y'all

 

[dqsunday]

Allah answers all Du'as, but it is not always in the way we expect or it may be answered/fulfilled only in the life hereafter. Allah knows best.

 

[tigerkhan]

Allah answers all Du'as, but it is not always in the way we expect or it may be answered/fulfilled only in the life hereafter. Allah knows best.

exactly...actually i blv the concept the acceptance of dua that, u got what u want is not 100% true. we have to keep in mind that Allah SWT always accept dua (with due requisites as to avoid haram etc) but it can be accepted in diffrent ways. eg if a person want some high paid job, or wana go some specific profession, maybe Allah SWt accept his dua and give him some other thing that is better than what he was asking and he dont know it.

 

[Muhaba]

Thank you for all your replies. Since I no longer have internet at home, I can't come online as much as i used to.

There are hadith that state that using hair oil with pig fat or using paint that contains pig fat is haram. I don't remember the exact hadith but I'll try to find them and post here.

We are greatly dependent on Allah for accepting our duas and while it's true that we don't get whatever we want simply becuase we are righteous , still we don't want to risk our duas not being accepted only because we used haram products. of course that isn't the only reason for refraining from haram products. the main reason is obedience to Allah.

 

['Abd-al Latif]

That sounds as if the prayers of a righteous person are always answered.
Do you believe that is the case?

Does Allah not still send tests and hardships on his righteous servants?
Are some prayers not only answered or redeemed in Jannah?

The supplication is never rejected. Either the person gets what he wants in this world, or Allah wards off an equivalent amount of harm by not giving the caller exactly what he wants or saves mountain-folds of reward for the caller in the hereafter.

Du’aa’ is one of the most beneficial of remedies; it is the enemy of calamity; it wards it off, remedies it, prevents it befalling, alleviates it or reduces it if it befalls. It is the weapon of the believer. In the case of calamity, one of three scenarios must apply:

1. It (du’aa’) is stronger than the calamity, so it wards it off;
2. It is weaker than the calamity, so the calamity overpowers it and befalls the person, but it may reduce it even if it is weak
3. They resist one another and each impedes the other.

Ibn al-Qayyim (rahimullah) al-Jawaab al-Kaafi (p. 4)

The righteous will always be tried and/or afflicted. Trials and tribulations are beneficial for one's soul just as water is beneficial for the Earth. Trials and tribulations separate sins and negative traits from one's self just as a furnace separates impurities from gold, leaving nothing but pure gold as a result.

You can read more on my blog: http://portraitofatraveller.wordpress.com/2009/10/17/the-blessings-of-calamities/

 

[Endymion]

There is another case when our doaas not being answered.

Al-Tirmidhi from Abu Hurayrah, who said:-
“The Messenger of Allaah(sallallaahu alayhi wa sallaam) said:-

“There is no man who prays to Allaah and makes 'Duaa' to Him,

and does not receive a response.

#1/ Either it will be hastened for him in this world,
or

#2/ It will be stored up for him in the Hereafter,

so long as he does not pray for something sinful,
or to cut the ties of kinship,or seek a speedy response.”
They said:-
‘O Messenger of Allaah,
what does seeking a speedy response mean?’
He said:-
‘Saying, “I prayed to my Lord and He did not answer me.”



[Source:-Al-Tirmidhi, 3859; classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh al-Tirmidhi, 852]

however, you couldn't be more wrong. you don't realize that your duas are not being answered because of the haram things you are using (even if you abstain from haram foods) such as:

silk tie (haram for men)
perfume (haram if it contains alcohol)
make up (haram if it contains haram ingredients. a lot of them contain pork fat, alcohol, etc)
perfume (haram for women to wear outside)
moisturizer (haram if it contains haram ingredients)
shampoo/conditioner/hair gel/deodarant etc (haram if contains alcohol, haram ingredients)

Yup,this is indeed very important to save yourself from Haram but another thing to know is that if these things contain halal ingredients,a women should not wear make up and perfume while going out so Non Mahram could see her beauty.

 

[Imaduddin]

Uhmm, I'm pretty sure that the mere presence of alcohol (or even animal parts that aren't for ingestion) isn't enough to make things forbidden. Doesn't make too much sense to me... At the very least, there are a wide range of opinions on that point, since I'm pretty sure most Muslims don't consider things like hand sanitizer forbidden. :

I don't think its fair or accurate to suggest that prayers aren't answered because someone used the wrong shampoo in the morning.

It's not about what damage could a little bit of it do, it's about the damage a whole lot of it could do. Although alcohol has some benefits, it's harm surpasses it's benefits, therefore what is forbidden in large amounts is also forbidden in small amounts. It's through little amounts that a bigger amount is formed.

There are some types of gels/creams that contain certain types of chemicals which are derived from alcohol/same process as alcohol which are permitted, depending which Madhhab you follow and if they allow it.