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Seeking Divine Guidance in
Decision Making

!idhwan Mohd Basor
!-./$,)" '
O Daniel is ready for marriage, however he is
confused as to whom he should choose.
O He know two ladies who are relatively equally
good and met the spousal qualities as
recommended in Islam.
O He need to choose and be convinced which
of these two he would want to propose for
marriage.
!-./$,)" ''
O Lydia just received her GCE A level result.
O She has applied to a local and an overseas
university.
O Alhamdulillah, she was offered places at both
university.
O However, her parents prefer her to study
locally.
O She is in dilemma as to choose which
university as both offers opportunities for
her.
!-./$,)" '''
O Ahmad has recently applied for a new job in
a different sector.
O His application has been successful.
O However, he is not sure if the new job offered
will be better than his existing workplace.
O He need to be convinced with his decision.
!"#0%)"/1
Istikharah
Daniel
Lydia
Ahmad
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even though it be hateful to you; but it may well be
that you hate a thing the while it is good for you, and
it may well be that you love a thing the while it is bad
for you: and God knows, whereas you do not know.

(Al-Baqarah 2:216)
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AND IF My servants ask thee about Me - behold, I am
near; I respond to the call of him who calls, whenever he
calls unto Me: let them, then, respond unto Me, and
believe in Me, so that they might follow the right way.

(Al-Baqarah 2:186)

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The person who makes Istikharah (seek
good) from his Creator and makes
'mashwarah' (consults) the creation never
regrets

(Ibn Qayyim Al-Jauziyah)
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O Istikharah means to seek the good and seek
that which is good.
O The purpose of the prayer is similarly to seek
that which is good from Allah s.w.t.
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O The thing that we need to ask from Allah
s.w.t. must be something that is permissible.
O It is not a decision between two compulsory
(wajib) acts, such as solat, covering the
aurat etc.
O It is also not a decision between two
forbidden (haram) acts

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O Jabir r.a. reports that Rasulullah s.a.w taught us to make Istikharah
concerning all matters just as he would teach us a surah of the Qur'an.
O He would say: "When any of you wishes to take up any task, he should
perform two rakaat of Salah other than that of fard. He should then say
(in supplication):

"O Allah, I ask of You the good through Your knowledge and I ask You to
grant me the ability through Your power and ask You of Your great bounty.
For surely You have power and I have none, You know all and I do not
know, and You are the Knower of the unseen. O Allah, if in Your
knowledge, this matter be good for me with regards to my Din (religion),
my livelihood and the outcome of my affair [in the near and distant
future], then ordain it for me and make it easy for me and bless me there
in. But, if in Your knowledge, this matter be bad for me with regards to my
Din, my livelihood and the outcome of my affair [in the near or distant
future] then turn it away from me and turn me away from it, and ordain for
me good where ever it may be and cause me to be pleased [with it].

(Narrated Imam Bukhari)
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O Be in the state of purity, with wudu
O Face the Qiblat
O Two-rakaat prayer
O Can also be performed in any of the sunnah
prayer
O Can be performed at any time of the day
except the forbidden times for prayer
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O Intention
O Takbir
O Doa Iftitah
O Surah Al-Fatiha
O Any other surah from the Quran
O Takbir and rukuk
O Iktidal and its recitation
O Sujd and its recitation
O Sit between two sujds and its recitation
O Sujud with its recitation
O Standing for second rakaat with takbir
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O Surah Al-Fatiha
O Any other surah from the Quran
O Takbir and rukuk
O Iktidal and its recitation
O Sujd and its recitation
O Sit between two sujds and its recitation
O Sujud with its recitation, followed by istikharah
supplication
O Tahiyat akhir
O Salam
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O Istikharah prayer can be performed more
than once per day, with just two rakaat each.
O Doa istikharah can also be included during
any of the sunnah prayers.
O One can choose to recite any surah after Al-
Fatiha.
O Doa istikharah can also be recited after the
prayer instead of during the prayer.
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O You will not wake up in the middle of the night
and have a 3D vision of what you should choose.
O The primary outcome of the istikharah is the
clarity of mind and confidence to make the
decision that you need to make.
O You feel confident and good about making your
decision.
O You were already leaning towards one option -
option A - and there is another option on the table
O You are a lot more confident about option A or
maybe you have come to a decision about option
A but you just need that extra little confidence.

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O You do your istikharah and naturally start to
feel more confident and feel clearer and feel
ready to make that decision.
O That is the outcome of your istikharah.
O The outcome of the istikharah is to reflect
internally and be a bit introspective and look
inside and see if you feel good and confident
about making your decision.
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O How do you know that the outcome of the
istikharah is maybe this isn't the best
decision for you?
O You will feel conflicted, doubtful, very scared
or anxious or hesitant about making your
decision.
O Then at that point, this is your response of
istikharah that maybe this isn't the best
decision for you.
?.-)()"/ @$*)/: 4,"-.((
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O Istikharah should not be used as the only tools in
decision making.
O The first step when making decision, we must
think using our critical mind and the intellectual
ability bestowed by Allah s.w.t.
O Think of the pros and cons of a decision
O Apply relevant decision making technique
O Secondly, we should consult relevant people to
help us better understanding our choices
O Istikharah prayer will supplement our decision
making process by instilling confidence in our
choice.