The Benefits of Remembering Allah

 Allah said in the Qur’an: 

 ﴾يَآ أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ ءامَنُوا اذْكُرُوا اللهَ ذِكْرًا كَثِيرًا، وَسَبِّحُوهُ بُكْرَةً وَأَصِيلاً﴿

Verses 41-42 of Surat al-Ahzab mean: “O you who believed mention Allah frequently (i.e. in praising) and make tasbih (i.e. to say ‘subhanallah’) at the beginning and at the end of the day.”

Dhikhr (mentioning Allah in praising) is of many types: All of what is said in praising Allah is dhikr;  tasbih (i.e. “subhanallah”) is dhikr, tahmid (i.e. “alhamdulillah”) is dhikr, takbir (i.e. “Allahu akbar”) is dhikr, and tahlil (i.e. “la ilaha illallah”) is dhikr.  The best type of dhikr is tahlil (i.e. “la ilaha illallah”).

It was mentioned in regards to the merit of tasbih that the one who says “subhanallah wa bihamdihi” will have a palm tree planted for him in Paradise. 

The palm tree in Paradise and all the trees in Paradise are not like the trees of this world. Every tree in Paradise has its trunk made of gold, its beauty and taste is beyond imagination.

Istighfar (i.e. to ask Allah for forgiveness) is a type of dhikr too; it is performed by saying: “Astaghfirullah”, “Rabi-ghfirli”, “Ghufranak”, “O Allah forgive me” or the like. All of these statements share the same meaning which is: Asking Allah for forgiveness and are all classified as istighfar.

Moreover, if one asks Allah for forgiveness for himself and for others when making istighfar then the reward is greater. Such istighfar is like saying: “O Lord forgive me and forgive my parents”. However, if one goes beyond that and asks Allah to forgive the Muslim masses by saying for instance: “O Lord forgive me and forgive all the male and female believers” then for each of these believers a unit of reward will be granted to the person making this type of istighfar.

Unfortunately, people nowadays have deprived themselves from much goodness due to their keenness to watch TV and listen to the radio. Rather than making istighfar, many people would spend their time watching TV, becoming sleepy and consequently ending up in bed.

What do most of the children offer to their parents? They neither make istighfar for them during their lifetime nor after their death, although the parents take good care of them for years and make lots of efforts to raise them.

So let us keep our tongues warm mentioning Allah and all that which is beneficial for us in this life and in the Hereafter.