Introduction:
Istikhara is a Sunnah method of seeking goodness and guidance from Allah Almighty when one is faced with an important matter and the mind is not settled on a particular course of action. It involves performing two Rak‘ahs of voluntary prayer and then reciting the supplication of Istikhara, asking Allah to decree what is better, make it easy and blessed, and turn away what is harmful. Guidance after Istikhara does not necessarily come through a dream; an inclination or aversion toward a particular matter may also develop while one is awake and may be understood as the result of Istikhara.
The Sunnah Supplication for Istikhara:
The words of the Istikhara supplication are as follows:
اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَسْتَخِيرُكَ بِعِلْمِكَ وَأَسْتَقْدِرُكَ بِقُدْرَتِكَ، وَأَسْأَلُكَ مِنْ فَضْلِكَ العَظِيمِ، فَإِنَّكَ تَقْدِرُ وَلاَ أَقْدِرُ، وَتَعْلَمُ وَلاَ أَعْلَمُ، وَأَنْتَ عَلَّامُ الغُيُوبِ، اللَّهُمَّ إِنْ كُنْتَ تَعْلَمُ أَنَّ هَذَا الأَمْرَ خَيْرٌ لِي فِي دِينِي وَمَعَاشِي وَعَاقِبَةِ أَمْرِي - أَوْ عَاجِلِ أَمْرِي وَآجِلِهِ - واقْدُرْهُ لِي وَيَسِّرْهُ لِي، ثُمَّ بَارِكْ لِي فِيهِ، وَإِنْ كُنْتَ تَعْلَمُ أَنَّ هَذَا الأَمْرَ شَرٌّ لِي فِي دِينِي وَمَعَاشِي وَعَاقِبَةِ أَمْرِي - أَوْ عَاجِلِ أَمْرِي وَآجِلِهِ - فَاصْرِفْهُ عَنِّي وَاصْرِفْنِي عَنْهُ، وَاقْدُرْ لِي الخَيْرَ حَيْثُ كَانَ، ثُمَّ أَرْضِنِي به۔
“O my Allah! I seek goodness from You through Your knowledge, and I ask You through Your power for Your great bounty, because You have power while I have no power, You have knowledge while I have no knowledge, and You are the Knower of all matters of the unseen. O Allah! If, in Your knowledge, this matter is better for me, with regard to my religion and my worldly life, then decree it for me and make it easy for me, then make it blessed for me. And if, in Your knowledge, this matter is bad for me, with regard to my religion, my livelihood, and its outcome, then turn this matter away from me and keep me safe from it. And decree goodness and خير for me wherever it may be, then make me pleased and content with it.”
The Correct Method of Performing Istikhara:
The Sunnah method of performing Istikhara is that when one is faced with an important matter and the mind is not settled or satisfied with regard to any particular course of action, one should perform two Rak‘ahs of voluntary prayer at an appropriate time, avoiding the disliked times, and then recite this supplication, either after reciting Durood Sharif before saying Salam, or after saying Salam, with or without raising the hands. If the supplication is recited after saying Salam, it is blessed and more conducive to acceptance to first recite Durood Sharif. And in place of أِنَّ ھٰذَاالْاَمْرَ, one should mention the name of the matter for which Istikhara is being performed. Istikhara should be continued until the mind becomes satisfied with one particular aspect of the matter at hand. As حضرت Abdullah bin Zubair رضی اللہ عنہما performed Istikhara for three days regarding the rebuilding of the Ka‘bah.
According to my limited knowledge, there is no indication in any Hadith as to how guidance from Allah Almighty will be obtained. Some people believe that one should go to sleep after performing Istikhara so that one may find out in a dream whether this matter is better or not. However, this is their personal opinion; there is no mention of it in the Hadith. There can also be an inclination and tendency of the heart while one is awake. It is also possible that one develops an interest in this matter or develops an aversion to it. Both of these states should be understood as being from Allah and as the result of Istikhara.
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