Islam Blog

Salaamualaykum,

The other day, a friend of mine asked me for the correct way to pray istikhaarah. Alhamdulillah, I was able to help him out. But it made me realize how many misconceptions people have regarding this great form of dua and how few people are using is effectively. I thought I’d post some information on the correct way of praying istikhaarah and clearing some of the misconceptions regarding it.

First, for those who don’t know what istikhaarah is. This is a method of prayer that the Prophet (Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon him) taught. He advised his Ummah to pray salaatul-istikhaarah before taking a decision on a serious matter. For example, marriage, education, buying a house etc. The reason is - these being matters of the unseen (that is we cannot predict their outcomes) we are seeking Allah ’s help, with his perfect knowledge, to guide us and make the right decision.

The correct way to performing istikhaarah is quite lengthy, so I will provide the link for it. Click here to learn the correct way to perform Salaatul Istikhaarah.

Learning how to pray istikhaarah is the easy part. The difficult part, for most people, is letting go of the other ideas and notions that they have regarding this prayer. Some of the common misconceptions are:

1. Seeing a dream: There is no evidence in the Saheeh Sunnah which indicates that the istikhaarah prayer will result in a dream. Some people do see dreams and there is no harm and consulting people and seeking an interpretation for it. But hoping to see a dream and basing our decisions upon them or trying to find meanings in dreams that don’t exist are not established in the Sharee’ah. This may even result in a Muslim making the wrong choices.
2. Feeling at ease: Some people feel that they should feel good about the decision they are making and this is an indication of their decision being sound. Again, this is not the case.

The correct way is to consult people who can be trusted and are knowledgeable in the matter. And making a decision based on their advice.

Finally, it is good to keep in mind that not all decisions will seem apparently correct. Inshaallah, if Allah ’s help is sought, then the benefit of it may accrue in the long run, which may be difficult to understand initially. Another benefit is the fact that we followed the Prophet ’s (Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon him) command and this will be a source of reward for the Muslim in the hereafter.

I hope this article was beneficial. In case you have questions or need more resources, feel free to email me at ibnalkhattab@gmail.com