world without it being God’s will. God is the Lord of this universe. When one says Bismillah, one invokes God to provide His help. This is like seeking the permission of God Almighty. So, saying Bismillah

find comfort in the remembrance of God—surely in the remembrance of God hearts can find comfort. (13:28) Here ‘remembrance of God’ does not mean that simply reciting the word ‘God’ (Allah) can give you

Remembrance and Prayer As has been recorded in different books of Hadith Ayesha said: “The Prophet Muhammad used to remember God on every occasion.” (Sahih Muslim, Hadith No. 373) This tradition does not

describe the real meaning of this tradition. The fact is that remembrance and prayer are the expressions of the soul which has discovered and realized God. A person has to face different types of occasions in

find that there is some aspect of remembrance of God on all occasions. By making these occasions points of reference he can transform them into a high level of remembrance and prayer. Ayesha found this very

the latent feelings, that is, godly feelings are awakened, and at that time such words of the remembrance of God come out as are of a creative nature. These words he had never heard from anyone, nor had such

from any book. This remembrance of God is of a very special nature. In other words, we can call it creative remembrance of God. It happens with the special divine blessing which God grants to His chosen

majesty defies all description, making man stand in awe of his Creator. The Quran states: “It was God who raised the heavens with no visible supports.”(13:2) This verse describes a great universal reality

in him. Thus he comes to fear, thank and glorify God. In this way, fasting enables a man to pray to God with sincerity. His prayer becomes one full of feeling; his prayer becomes that of a questing man;

IMPORTANCE OF PRAYING TO GOD“Recite what has been revealed to you of the book, and pray regularly. Surely prayer restrains one from indecency and evil and remembrance of God is greater. God has knowledge of all

prayer rather than simply the result of prayer. The second sign of true prayer is that with it remembrance of God should become uppermost in the suppliant’s feelings. And the

for God will find expression in many ways. Even uttering such words as praise (hamd), thanksgiving (shukr), and remembrance (zikr), as we find in the Quran, is also an expression of our love for God. It

praise be to God, signifies love for God (Alhub-bu-lillah). Praising God means loving God. Gratitude to God also means loving God. Remembering God also indicates a strong love and affection for God. The Quran

this to say: “Remembrance of God gives one’s heart peace of mind”. (13:28) This means, moreover, that it is only love of God which can give man peace of mind in the real sense. Belief in God begins with

Remembering God MuchOne of the commandments of the Quran is given in the chapter Al-Ahzab (The Confederates) in these words: Believers, remember God with much remembrance. (33:41) According to this

this Quranic verse believers must remember God very much, every day and every moment. This is the most important teaching of the Quran, and it is also the highest form of worship. One who does this will be

with the greatest reward by God Almighty. What is much remembrance of God? It is not in the sense of repetition of some word, but in the sense of thinking. Much remembrance, or zikr-e-kathir, is not a

SEPTEMBER 7 Remembrance of GodDhikr, meaning remembrance, that is, remembrance of God, is one of the basic teachings of Islam. The opposite state, that of forgetfulness of God, is unpardonable negligence

a reality of nature. At every moment man experiences those things which are directly related with God. He sees the sun, the moon, the rivers, the mountains, the air and the water. All of these are God’s

Similarly in the world, as man leads his life, day and night, his attention is drawn at all times to God. Being influenced by God’s creation, his heart and mind produce divine feelings. Dhikr is nothing but

lillah). Praising God means loving God. Gratitude to God also means loving God. Remembering God also indicates a strong love and affection for God. The Quran has this to say: “Remembrance of God gives one’s

love of God which can give man peace of mind in the real sense. Belief in God begins with the discovery of God. In the Quran this discovery is called Maarifah. Maarifah, or realization of God, in the

gratitude and remembrance of God come into evidence.SUBMISSION TO GODEmotional attachment is established not by observation, but at the conceptual level, through thinking. Then both belief in God and love of

intellectual awakening which in the Quran is called abundant remembrance of God (zikr-e-kaseer) (62:10). This abundant remembrance of God is not simply a matter of repeating words. It is, in fact, an

desires. These shall assuredly be lost” (19:59). The most sublime state of prayer occurs when remembrance of God has become ingrained in one’s nature. That is when one feels that one is truly drawing nearer

physical expression of the ultimate state of prayer in which the believer is in the closest proximity to God. But, seen in its true light, it is a posture which expresses man’s helplessness before his Maker

meant by the constant remembrance of God which true prayer entails? It is not something which can be materially analysed. Remembrance is a reciprocal act, with man at one extreme and God at the other. When