Tools of Resistance

Salaam Minara Family,

This week, it feels incumbent that we check up on each other and dig deep into those reserves of strength and solidarity that perhaps feel a little exhausted today.

The world is in an absolute state and to euphemise would be grossly unjust. We’ve crossed the one year mark into Israel’s genocide of Gaza and now the one week mark since Israel invaded South Lebanon.

How many of you read dystopian fiction? It’s a compelling genre with titles like 1984 by George Orwell, Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury and The Memory Police by Yoko Agawa in it's repertoire.

This genre is gripping because it depicts the grotesque absurdities of worlds that have lost all semblance of reality. These alternate worlds allow to us to examine issues in our realities, in a safe and cathartic space.

Except, the space isn’t just sub-text anymore. Now and today, this genre is no longer just speculative, or hyperbolic. These stories are descriptive, illuminating the corruption and agendas of states and their oppressive treatment of people within said nations.

The wretchedly sad undertone is, do we even need these stories anymore when brutalities are streamed live [Allah have mercy on all oppressed communities] and gross bias, twisted lies, and gas-lighting feed the complicity of corrupt organisations?

In a world that feels dystopian now, the Minara team wanted to dedicate this space today to a compilation of du’as for us all to lean in on.

Hope is a Muslim’s biggest weapon, and in sha Allah, our Ayah of the week and suggested du’a compilation anchor you in this storm and connect you with the Mightiest of them all 💟.

The process of navigating our own lives of privilege while bearing witness to atrocities committed against our Ummah is bewildering.

May the following du’as be a source of strength, light and healing for us all.

Comprehensive supplication for the Ummah:

“O Allah! Improve [help] the state of the Ummah of Muhammad. O Allah! Grant ease to the Ummah of Muhammad. O Allah! Have mercy on the Ummah of Muhammad.”

اللَّهُمَّ أَصْلِحْ أُمَّةَ مُحَمَّدٍ اللَّهُمَّ فَرِّجْ عَنْ أُمَّةِ مُحَمَّدٍ اللَّهُمَّ ارْحَمْ أُمَّةَ مُحَمَّدٍ

Allāhumma aslih Ummata Muhammad, Allāhumma farrij ‘an Ummati Muhammad, Allāhummarham Ummata Muhammad.

Seeking protection:

“O Allah, I seek refuge in You from the injustice of rulers and from the evil of the One who exercises power.”

اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ ظُلْمِ الْمُلْكِ، وَمِنْ شَرِّ الْقَهَّارِ

Allāhumma innī a’udhu bika min dhulmil-mulk, wa min sharril-qahhār.

“O Allah, I seek refuge in You from the tyranny of rulers”

اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ جَورِ السُّلْطَانِ

Allāhumma innī a’udhu bika min jawris sultān.

Seeking comfort:

“O Allah, I seek refuge in You from the oppression of the tyrant, from the injustice of the worshipper, from the trials of the world, and the torment of the grave.”

اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ جار الجبار، وَمِنْ ظُلْمِ العابد، وَمِنْ فتنة الدنيا وَعذاب القبر

Allāhumma innī a’udhu bika min jāril-jabbār, wa min dhulmil-‘ābid, wa min fitnatid-dunyā wa ‘adhābil-qabr.

“Allah is sufficient for us, and how fine a trustee (He is).”

حَسْبُنَا اللهُ وَنِعْمَ الوَكِيْلُ

HasbunAllāhu wa ni’ma al-wakīl.

‘There is no might and no power except with Allah.’

لَا حَوْلَ وَلَا قُوَّةَ إِلَّا بِاللَّهِ

Lā hawla wa lā quwwata illā billāh.

O Ever-Living, O Sustainer, in Your Mercy I seek relief.

يَا حَيُّ يَا قَيُّوْمُ بِرَحْمَتِكَ أَسْتَغِيْث

Yā Hayyu Yā Qayyoom birahmatika astagīth.

Distance from grief and anxiety

“Allah is enough for me. There is no true god but Him, in Him I put my trust, and He is the Lord of the Great Throne.”

حَسْبِيَ اللَّهُ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا هُوَ عَلَيْهِ تَوَكَّلْتُ وَهُوَ رَبُّ الْعَرْشِ الْعَظِيم

ḤasbiyAllāhu lā ilāha illā huwa ʿalayhi tawakkaltu wa-huwa rabbulʿarshil ʿaẓīm.

“O Allah, I hope for Your mercy. Do not leave me to myself even for a blink of an eye. Correct all of my affairs for me. There is none worthy of worship except You.”

اللَّهُمَّ رَحْمَتَكَ أَرْجُو فَلَا تَكِلْنِي إِلَى نَفْسِي طَرْفَةَ عَيْنٍ وَأَصْلِحْ لِي شَأْنِي كُلَّهُ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَا أَنْتَ

Allāhumma rahmataka arju falā takilnāi ilā nafsī tarfata ‘aynin wa aslih lī shā’nī kullahu lā ilāha illā anta.

Supplications of the Prophets [peace be upon them]

Prophet Musa: ‘My Lord! I am truly in desperate need of whatever good You may have in store for me.’ [al-Qasas, 24]

 رَبِّ إِنِّي لِمَا أَنزَلْتَ إِلَيَّ مِنْ خَيْرٍ فَقِيرٌ 

Rabbi ‘innī limā ‘anzalta ‘iilayya min khayrin faqīr.

Prophet Yunus: ‘None has the right to be worshipped except You. How perfect You are. Verily, I was among the wrong-doers.’ [al-Anbiyā, 87]

لَآ إِلٰهَ إِلَّآ أَنْتَ سُبْحَانَكَ إِنِّيْ كُنْتُ مِنَ الظَّالِمِيْنَ

Lā illāha illā anta subhānaka ‘innī kuntu minadh dhālimīn.

Prophet Ayub: Indeed, distress has befallen me, and You are the Most Merciful of the merciful.’ [al-Anbiyā, 83] 

أَنِّي مَسَّنِيَ الضُّرُّ وَأَنتَ أَرْحَمُ الرَّاحِمِينَ 

Annī massaniyad durru wa anta arhamur rāhimīn.

“Indeed, Allah made you victorious at Badr when you were ‘vastly’ outnumbered.”

Surah Ali ‘Imran [3:123]

The Battle of Badr. Not a clash in arms but an extraordinary feat where faith defied all odds and Allah’s army of angels accompanied the warriors on earth.

The ‘data’ should have forecasted one story:

Yet, the Muslims triumphed.

Drawing courage through the conviction of their iman, tawakkul and du’a, a formidable spiritual strength enveloped them, unlocking their access to Unseen help that surpassed military might.

Learning Points

1. The Battle of Badr was the first confrontation of the Muslims with their enemies who had oppressed them for 13 years. With the Permission of Allah, the Muslims fought back, resisted and won. Resistance is powerful. 💪🏽

2. The Muslims fought with taqwa and tawakkul. It was this that unlocked the magic of Allah’s assistance and it was this assistance that led to their victory. 🪄

3. Islam is a religion of movement and revolution. Friends, let’s ask ourselves. How can we write our histories and paint our futures in the language of revolution? (Tech advancements, scientific research, education, political engagement, protest to name a few!) 🪧

4. The unity of the Muslims, though small in number, fed their collective strength. One person’s voice is powerful so can you imagine what a collective voice can achieve?!🫂

5. The Prophet [peace be upon him] spent the entire night before the battle in du’a. If tawakkul and taqwa are the gateways to success, du’a is the key to opening that gate. 🤲🏽

Above all dear friends, dig deep and hold high your hope in Allah Almighty.

What may seem like wins for the tyrant is merely a tapestry of delusion, woven over the fabric of justice and retribution that awaits them.

Our mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, children - all who have and are suffering do not in vain. Allah’s retribution will come while our martyrs, shrouded in the love of their Creator, revel in their eternal home: the plains of Paradise.

And even in this dystopian reality of ours, hope prevails.

With prayers and duas,

The Minara Team