The Eight Proof : The Proof of Answering Prayers
Prayer (dua) is divided into two. The first one is the prayer that is known by everybody, the one uttered by the tongue. The second one is the one that is done by the tongue of disposition.
Is it at all possible for a Being, who sees the smallest need of His smallest creature and who meets its need unexpectedly, who hears the most secret voice of His most secret creature and helps it, who answers the prayers uttered by the tongue and by the tongue of disposition, and who is the owner of endless compassion and mercy, not to know the need of His greatest slave and beloved creature, not to fulfill his desire and not hear the loudest prayer and not to answer it? Definitely not!
We will explain this proof under two headings:
1st STEP: WHO IS AL-MUJIB, WHO ANSWERS PRAYERS?
Prayer (dua) is divided into two. The first one is the prayer that is known by everybody, the one uttered by the tongue. The second one is the one that is done by the tongue of disposition. The prayers done by the tongue of disposition are divided into three:
1- Prayers uttered by the tongue of need: For instance, when a farmer digs the ground, it is a prayer uttered by the tongue of need. The farmer presents his need to God with his state. All of the prayers of disposition uttered by the bird for wings, by the fish for fins and by the tree for leaves and fruit are prayers uttered by the tongue of need.
2- Prayers uttered by the tongue of ability: The prayers of disposition by the egg in order to be a bird, by the seed in order to be a flower and by the seed in order to be a tree are examples of prayers by the tongue of ability.
3- Prayers uttered by the tongue of despair: The prayers of disposition uttered when all of the hopes are abandoned and all causes are ineffective and when all hopes are lost and in very troublesome situations. In those situations, a person prays God with his disposition and asks a way out.
Thus, prayers are divided into two: Tongue and tongue of disposition. Tongue of disposition is also divided into three: tongue of need, tongue of ability and tongue of despair.
However, we should state that not all of the prayers are accepted, due to some wisdom. For instance, a lobster lays 7 billion eggs in a year. All of those eggs pray God by the tongue of ability and want to be lobsters. If all of their prayers had been answered and if all of them had become lobsters, the seas would have been full of lobsters in a year and the rights of other living things would have been lost. The prayers of the other living things for their rights to be protected are answered due to some wisdom.
Now let us examine the proof:
A person who looks at this realm carefully will see that the prayer of all of the beings are answered and all of the voices are heard and answered.
For instance, the sustenance of the animals and plants are given perfectly and none of them are left hungry. The sustenance of the weak ones and the young ones is sent perfectly. This is answering their prayers uttered by the tongue of need. Who is the One that answers their prayers with compassion and mercy and that feeds them gently?
A bird wants wings and they are given to it. A fly wants eyes with five thousand lenses and they are given to it. An ant wants a telephone in order to be able to communicate with its friends and it is given antennae. Man wants eyes, ears, tongue, and endless material and spiritual organs and feelings and they are given to him. Man wants endless things like all other creatures and he is given all that he wants. All of these desires are prayers uttered by the tongue of need and they are answered. Who is the one behind the curtain that hears those prayers and answers them?
A seed wants to be a flower. Another seed wants to rip and grow under the ground and become a large tree. A drop of liquid wants to be a human being. An egg wants to transform into a colorful peacock… They are all prayers uttered by the tongue of ability and they are answered based on some wisdom. Who is the one that hears those prayers and trains them with his mercy?
Sometimes a plant is about to fade due to the lack of water; armies of clouds are sent to it. Sometimes an animal is in great trouble due to endless needs; it is sent special help. Sometimes a person feels like the whole world is against him; everything seems to squeeze him; he is sent help from an unexpected place. Sometimes all of the causes become invalid; even if all of the people and jinn come together, they cannot do anything; just then, help is sent. Sometimes all of the doctors lose hope but suddenly a cure is sent.
In short: Sometimes all of the causes become invalid; all of the helpers disappear and all hopes are lost; however, an unexpected help from nowhere is sent. It is the answer to the prayers uttered by the tongue of despair.
Who is the one that hears those prayers and helps the creatures who are in difficulty? Who helps those desperate people? Who is the one that knows and hears everyone who is in difficulty? Who helps them with mercy?
Sometimes man opens his hands and prays. He states what he wants and asks it from his All-Compassionate Lord. He throws all of the causes away and turns to Him only, bows down before Him and what he asks is given to him at once.
Is there anyone who can say, “I asked from Him but I was not given anything”? Definitely not. All of the prayers that are uttered are answered based on some wisdom. Those prayers that are regarded not to have been answered are either left to the hereafter or are given to them in a better form than they want.
For example, someone asks for a son, and God gives a daughter like Mary (Maryam). It cannot be said: "His prayer was not accepted,” but “It was accepted in a better form."
Sometimes a person wants something that will harm him. For instance, he wants to be rich but he does not know that when he becomes rich, he will commit a lot of sins. However, God, who knows the end of everything best, knows that His slave will commit a lot of sins and he does not give him richness by showing mercy to him; He leaves that prayer to the hereafter and enriches his hereafter.
Sometimes a person utters prayers for his own happiness in this world, and it is accepted for the hereafter. It cannot be said: "His prayer was rejected,” but “It was accepted in a more beneficial form.”
Since Almighty God is All-Wise, we seek from Him and He responds to us. However, He deals with us according to His wisdom. A sick person should not cast aspersions on the wisdom of his doctor. If he asks for honey and the expert doctor gives him quinine, he cannot say: "The doctor did not listen to me." Rather, the doctor listened to his sighs and moans; he heard them and responded to them. He provided better than what was asked for.
It is understood from the explanations we have made so far that there is a Being behind the curtain; He hears every voice and answers every prayer; He hears even the smallest need from a small creature and answers that prayer. The proof for it is that all of the prayers uttered by the tongue and by the tongue of disposition are answered based on some wisdom.
Now let us move to the fact that this truth and the name al-Mujib necessitate the hereafter
2nd STEP: THE NAME AL-MUJIB NECESSITATES THE HEREAFTER
The owner of this realm is al-Mujib; that is, He answers every prayer; He hears every voice and helps the owner of that voice. Is it at all possible that God, who most compassionately fulfils the smallest need of His lowliest creatures in the most unexpected fashion, who heeds the muffled plea for help of His most obscure creature, and who responds to all the petitions He hears, whether vocal or mute - is it at all possible that such He should not pay heed to the greatest petition of the foremost among His servants, the most beloved among his creatures, human beings, that He should not hear and grant his most exalted prayer? Is it at all possible that He should not know, hear and fulfill what Muhammad (pbuh), who is the greatest slave and creature among human beings, wants and accept the highest prayer among the prayers that he utters for endless bliss? Definitely not.
A person who listens to his heart and spirit will hear the voice and prayer of “eternity, eternity, eternity”. The prayer of the stomach uttered by the tongue of hunger caused the creation of endless food; and the prayer of the stomach uttered by the tongue of need was answered by making the earth a dinner table; similarly, the heart, spirit, mind and all of the other faculties pray for the eternity and ask for the eternity with the tongue of need, ability and despair.
Is it at all possible that God Almighty, who hears the most secret voice of the fly, which is a lowly creature, and answers its prayer by giving it wings, should not hear and accept the prayer uttered by human beings by the tongue and by the tongue of disposition for endless bliss and Paradise? Is it at all possible that He should hear the buzz of a fly and not hear the roar of the thunder?
It is definitely not possible; then, He will answer and answered their prayers and created the hereafter and Paradise, which is as easy as creating a flower for Him, to answer their prayers.
Among those who pray for the endless bliss are His friends, who are prophets and saints. Among those prophets and saints, there is such a person that he is the reason why this realm was created and he is the most beloved slave of the Owner of this realm. He is Muhammad (pbuh). Is it at all possible that God Almighty should not accept the prayer of this person, whom He addresses as “my beloved”, for eternity and should not create Paradise due to his prayer?
If there were not endless reasons for the existence of the hereafter, only a single prayer of this person would be enough for the creation of the hereafter and it would be enough to prove the existence of the hereafter.
He asks from such a Being for whom to create Paradise is as easy as to create the spring. How can creating Paradise be difficult for the Absolute Powerful One, who turns the season of spring into a gathering place, who creates hundreds of thousands of creatures out of nothing and who shows us hundreds of thousands of examples of resurrection?
The prophethood of our Prophet caused the area of testing to be launched; similarly, his worshipping and prayer cause the launch of the hereafter.
We, as “Marmara Education”, prepared a special book regarding the fact that Muhammad (pbuh) is the messenger and beloved of God; and we proved the prophethood of Muhammad (pbuh) with the certainty that two plus two equals four. Therefore, we do not want to mention the truthfulness of our Prophet here and refer it to that book.
Now, let us strengthen this proof in items:
1. The prayers of humans, animals and plants uttered by the tongue and by the tongue of disposition are answered based on some wisdom.
2. That answering makes us know the Being behind the curtain with His name al-Mujib (the Responder to Prayer).
3. Since He is al-Mujib and since he answers every prayer fulfilling even the simplest requests, He will definitely respond to prayers regarding the issue the hereafter.
4. Among those who pray for the hereafter and endless bliss is Muhammad (pbuh), His most beloved slave and creature; this person prays on behalf of all prophets and his ummah; and he makes those prophets say ‘amen’ for his prayer and uses the most beautiful names of God as an intercessor for the acceptance of his prayer. It is definitely not possible for this prayer not to be accepted and for the hereafter not to be created.
- Belief in the Hereafter # 8: The Proof of Answering Prayers
- What is investigative belief?
- Al-Asma Al-Husna (The most Beautiful Names)
- Will you give information about Allah's names?
- The Fifth Proof: The Proof of Justice
- Al-Wahhab (The Liberal Bestower)
- The First Addendum to the Twenty-Fourth Letter: It explains the interpretation of the following verse and states the importance of supplication (dua): “O people! No importance would your Sustainer attach to you were it not for your supplication.”
- The reason for the severe threats about abandoning prayers
- As-Sami’ (The All-Hearing)
- About death