Dr. Abd al-Hayy al-Arifi رحمه اللّٰه was a senior khalifa of Shaykh Ashraf Ali Thanwi رحمه اللّٰه. One day in his gathering, he advised his audience to follow four steps to attain closeness to Allah.
1) Talk to Allah: Speak to Him throughout the day. Before starting any work seek His assistance first, for we have no power of ability except by His grace. Before a speech, ask Allah to guide you through it. Before cooking, ask Allah to make it easy and to enhance the flavour. Speak to Him before shopping, studying and working. By talking to Him in this manner, we will remember Allah hundreds of times daily.
2) Remember Him in every condition: We are always faced with one of four conditions: 1) our situation is according to our wishes, 2) it is against our wishes, 3) in reflection on past mistakes, 4) or in worry about future concerns. When your condition is in accordance to your wishes, praise Allah. If it is against your wishes, recite Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi rajioon. Seek Allah’s forgiveness over past mistakes, and seek His protection for the future.
3) Acquire knowledge: Acquire knowledge of what is halaal and haraam, and act upon it. Stay away from major sins and seek forgiveness for the minor sins. The major sins include but are not limited to, omitting Salah, engaging in interest dealings, backbiting, lying, jealousy and pride.
4) Make Dhikr daily: Read istighfar and durood shareef. At the very minimum, our Ulama have stated that we should read 300 durood daily. There is no maximum. In Fazaail Durood it is mentioned that the one who reads Durood 1000 times every Friday will not pass away, except that Allah will show him his place in Jannah. Furthermore, read Tasbih Fatimi after every Salah. Read the masnoon Surahs daily (Surah Yaasin, Waqiah, Mulk, Sajdah etc).
Lastly, make dua to Allah that I want to become Yours. Bless me with Your love. You will see how quickly you attain closeness to Allah!
— Shaykh Dawood Seedat حفظه اللّٰه
Above is an extract from Shaykh’s talk on 19/5/19. To listen to the full audio, please click here.
