Spiritual Secrets from the Sunnah to Overcome Hardship and Have Your Prayers Answered

When hardships pile up and every door seems closed, many of us wonder: why aren't my prayers being answered? Are there spiritual keys I'm missing? In a remarkable lecture on the Taghreedat Muslim channel, Dr. Haitham Talaat offers practical answers drawn directly from the Quran and the prophetic Sunnah.

Invoking Allah by the Right Name for Your Specific Need

The first secret lies in the art of targeted supplication. Allah has the Most Beautiful Names (Al-Asma al-Husna), and the Sunnah teaches us to use them with discernment based on what we need.

To recover what is lost: When Prophet Yaqub (Jacob) lost his sons, he said: "Perhaps Allah will bring them all back to me. Indeed, it is He who is the Knowing, the Wise (Al-Alim, Al-Hakim)." A contemporary account tells of a man whose child had gone missing — he repeated these two Names for three days straight, and his son returned home safely.

To seek victory against oppression: In Surah Ash-Shu'ara, the verse "And indeed, your Lord is the Exalted in Might, the Merciful (Al-Aziz, Ar-Rahim)" appears nine times — always following the account of believers triumphing over their oppressors. These are the Names to call upon when facing injustice.

To attract blessings (Barakah): In the Tashahhud, we say "Hamidun Majid" (Praiseworthy and Glorious) right after invoking blessings upon the Prophet ﷺ and his family. Use these Names to invite Barakah into your finances, your children, and your home.

The Power of "Subhan Allah wa Bihamdihi"

This phrase is among the most potent forms of remembrance in Islam. The Quran itself links it directly to inner peace:

"...and glorify the praise of your Lord before the rising of the sun and before its setting [...] that you may be satisfied." (Surah Ta-Ha, 20:130)

The Prophet ﷺ taught that saying Subhan Allah wa bihamdihi one hundred times a day wipes away sins, even if they are as abundant as the foam of the sea. But beyond the count, it is the inner posture that matters:

• Subhan Allah (Glory be to Allah): acknowledging God's absolute perfection, which naturally elevates our consciousness of Him.
• Wa bihamdihi (and His praise): recognizing His countless blessings, which cultivates gratitude and drives ingratitude from the heart.

Making this dhikr the engine of your mornings and evenings builds a daily spiritual shield.

The Three Practices the Prophet ﷺ Entrusted to Abu Hurairah

Among the most precious guidance the Prophet ﷺ ever gave, his counsel to his companion Abu Hurairah stands out for its accessibility and depth.

1. Fasting three days per month Every good deed is multiplied tenfold. Fasting three days therefore earns the spiritual reward of fasting an entire month. Practiced consistently — ideally on the "white days": the 13th, 14th, and 15th of the lunar month — it is spiritually equivalent to perpetual fasting.

2. The Duha (Forenoon) Prayer The human body has 360 joints. Every morning, a charity is owed for each one of them. Two Rak'ah of Duha prayer — performed after sunrise and before noon — fulfill this entire debt of gratitude to Allah.

3. Never sleep without praying Witr The Witr prayer seals the day with light. To forgo it is to leave the day's spiritual account open. Accessible to all — even in a single Rak'ah — it is a nightly protection and elevation.

The Hidden Obstacle: How Sins Block Answered Prayers

These practices only bear their full fruit when we acknowledge the main barrier: our own unrepented shortcomings. The stories of past nations are telling — Iblis, the people of Lut, Qarun — a single unaddressed sin can be enough to close the doors of divine mercy.

Among the most devastating and underestimated sins: backbiting (Ghibah) and seeking to expose others' private faults. The Prophet ﷺ warned with striking clarity: whoever pursues the faults of his brother, Allah will expose his own faults — even in the privacy of his home.

Guarding the tongue is therefore inseparable from the effectiveness of our supplications.

A Final Word

Transforming your spiritual life doesn't require extraordinary deeds — just consistent commitment to small, regular practices. Start with these three keys, and watch how your circumstances change.

For those who wish to delve deeper into the psychology of the heart and the mechanisms of answered prayer, Al-Da' wa ad-Dawa' (Sickness and the Cure) by Ibn al-Qayyim al-Jawziyya is an essential read — a work that quietly, steadily transforms one's relationship with Allah.