“And those who say: “Our Lord! Bestow on us from our wives and our offspring who will be the comfort of our eyes, and make us leaders for the Muttaqun.” (Al-Furqan 25:74)
Our Master. Our Lord. Gift us. Grant us. In Quran we find ‘آتِنَا’ give us, ‘اعطنا’ to give a grand gift, gift us an expected gift, a beautiful gift,’ لَنَا هَبْ this is a gift you are asking Allah (swt) to give you; this prepositional phrase is brought earlier especially for us. We are asking for a special favour from Allah (swt), and what is this favour that we are asking of Allah (swtَ)? Grant us from our spouses, and not just our children which is ‘اولاد – ذُرِّيَّتِنَا’ future generations of us. In other words, you are not even asking for your immediate children, but your lineage for generations to come. Grant us from all of them coolness of eyes. Make our eyes cool by means of spouses, and by means of our children.
Afflicted by an indoor storm?
All of us have to appreciate the power of this Dua because of the crisis of the world today. The world’s fundamental institution of family is under attack. Most of the people here, even Muslims are not immune to this problem. You find refuge from the storm in your home. But today, the storm is not outside the house, the storm is inside the house, and you have to get away from home to get away from the yelling, the screaming, and the name calling, and the insults, and the depression, and the sadness, and the friction between husband and wife, and parent and children. Our homes are broken. Brother is not talking to brother. Parents are not talking to children. This is a crisis inside the home. The family has become a place of sorrow, of depression, of sadness, of anger, of rage.
So what’s the escape plan?
People feel like they want to escape this indoor storm, and here Allah (swt) tells us to ask so perfectly, so eloquently that the home should become the place of refuge. It’s like the outside world is a storm, and you suffer on the outside, and your refuge, your safe haven is the door to your home, to your spouse, to your children. When you see them, your worries disappear. But for most of us, when you see them, your worries begin.
And so, we ask Allah (swt) to give us from our spouses, and our children- coolness of eyes, that’s what we ask Allah (swt). When somebody says I want to get married- go further, not just get married, I want to get married to a spouse that will cool my eyes. That I will be coolness of his/her eyes and he/she will be the coolness of mine. And, Allah (swt) took the Dua further, and then we understand why talk about future generations.إِمَامًا’لِلْمُتَّقِينَ ‘وَاجْعَلْنَا –and make us leaders over those who are cautious, conscious, fearful, pious, righteous. Those who are fearful before Allah (swt) and it makes you realize your relationship right now isn’t just about you.
Be the proud leader of your generation
You are setting a precedent in your family for generations to come. So, when you are not acting as good husbands, and good wives, and good parents, and good children- what are your future generations going to do? And, who is going to be answerable for that negative trend that was started by you? Who is going to be answerable for that? It’s an intelligent Dua that we should find coolness of our eyes- not only in our immediate family- but the future generations should be people that are righteous too. Because, when we are raised on the Judgement day, we are Imam over the entire family- whether they were messed up or not. We better ask for the kind of people if they are underneath us- not those who are dragging us down on the Judgement day- but those who are elevating us. And, we beg Allah (swt) that He gives all of us those kinds of families. I beg all of you sincerely that we all make this sincere Dua to Allah (swt)…
I sincerely pray that Allah (swt) gives all of us, and makes from our spouses, and our children those that our coolness of our eyes, and that he makes us Imam, a leader over those that are pious and righteous. May Allah (swt) forgive all of our shortcomings; accept all of our Dua, and make the means of our forgiveness easy upon us. Ameen.
Transcribed for hiba by Sarah Saqib Teli
About author
