On November 20th, I wrote:
A couple of nights ago, I was reminded of the remembrance of Allah (God).
On the bus ride home, one evening, there was a guy who appeared to be saying something under his breath as he counted his repetitions with a string of beads. I thought perhaps it was a prayer bead, maybe he was also Muslim. Then and there, I googled the term “prayer bead” and like many web searches, Wikipedia had something to offer. I learned Islam wasn’t the only religion that used prayer beads. And the suspense killed me. I couldn’t help glaring at him every so often, as he went about his process. I almost didn’t approach him but thankfully, we were both taking the same connecting bus. I pushed myself and popped the question. To my surprise, he replied, “it is a rosary”. He briefly explained what it was and what he was using it for. I believe he said, he was saying reps of “God is good” and etc. In the 4-6 minutes we spoke, we covered so much ground. We touched up on the purpose of being created with a purpose and God’s Plan. I always knew we Muslims had a lot in common with some faiths but on that night, I was able to conclude just how much, first hand.
As the night passed, I thought to myself, when was the last time I made Dhikr(remembrance) of Allah. And like I mentioned in my Why I Stopped Praying post, remembrance at some point of my life was at a peak and now it’s just a mere recollection. I remember the Ramadan I started this blog, I took the initiative of studying Islamic Figures as listed in my Ramadan Checklist post. SubhanAllah, I recall the day, I learned that Imam Ibn Taymiyyah after Fajr prayer used to say in his place remembering Allah until sunrise. At my tender age, at the time, I implemented it and it changed my Ramadan forever. I remember taking the time to Glorify Allah 33 times, Praise him 33 times and magnify him 33 times and finish off with “There is no god except Allaah Alone, with no partner, His is the power and His is the praise, and He is Able to do all things” in hope of reward and removal of sin. It didn’t take me more than 2 minutes, 5 times a day. It wasn’t a burdened but rather it was a portion of my day that I looked forward to.
I distinctly remember coming across new remembrances/duaas and their respective reward/protection/purification and being nothing but motivated. I was young and Mashallah on the hunt. Alhamdulillah, some duaas have stuck with over the years and I would love to share all of them with you. But for the sake of this post, I will end with one of my favourite duaas:
يَا مُقَلِّبَ الْقُلُوبِ ثَبِّتْ قَلْبِى عَلَى دِينِكَ
Ya Muqallib al-Quloob, Thabbit Qalbi Ala Deenik
“Oh Turner of Hearts, keep my heart firm on Your Deen.”
and you can check my post: أذكار الصباح و المساء for more duaas, inshallah.
Words of a Ramadan Addict 
Wow nicely written and so true different religions have lots in common, but humans like to nit pick over the differences which is very sad. Thanks for sharing
A beautiful post on rememberance. It resonates deeply in me. Alhamdulillah one of my first few blogs to read this Morning and I’m glad I came across this. Jazakallah.
Ohhh… living in a Catholic home, I remembered how this was. The community we were in (mostly my dad’s colleagues) have what they call “block rosary”, where the children do the rosary in groups, at each homes… and it will go for one week in each house. I was like really young, like 9 or something. I remember it was like just meeting my friends and playing. I don’t remember about “God is good” being part of the recitation. Anyway, what do I know. That was about the only time we did something in a sense “religious” — my family weren’t very practising.
Even I pray to Allah always to make me the way HE wants me to be! Alhamdolillah for everything he has blessed me with.
It is inspiring to see other people of faiths be committed to their way of life. It gives you that reminder to persevere in matters of deen and worshipping Allah. Jazakillah for the reminder x
A beautiful reminder to keep remembering Allah especially the Morning & Evening words of remembrance. Jazak Allah Khayr.
This reminds me of something school teachers always said ‘if you have any questions , always put your hands up and ask’ . That way we really can learn new things everyday .
Subhan’Allah, It’s amazing to know ours isn’t the only religion to use prayer beads. Remembrance of Allah is so important to us and can benefit us in so many ways!
I really needed this reminder, it is true when we are first trying to learn the deen we are more motivated. In Sha Allah I want to get back to it. I love the dua you have selected.
Ameen, wa iyyakum.