We’ve all heard about barakah at some point of time in our lives. However, people often associate the term barakah with wealth. Rather, barakah is all inclusive and covers several aspects of your life apart from wealth. For instance, Allah can place barakah in your time, health, talent and even your sleep!
Have you often wondered how some people are able to accomplish so many goals in 24 hours while you sit and wonder how the day went? They have barakah in time.
Have you seen how person A, who earns the same amount as person B, is able to give so much in charity and have a huge savings, while person B struggles to make ends meet? Allah has placed barakah in person A’s money.
You see how person A is able to wake up for tahajjud every single day and feel super refreshed and energetic while person B struggles to open his eyes before 7.00 AM, is always feeling drowsy, moody and lethargic? Well, person A had barakah in his sleep!
So what is barakah?
Barakah means an “increase” and “growth”- and also, happiness. It is the establishment of divine goodness in something; from where it exudes cannot be sensed by people, nor can it be outwardly quantified, nor is it limited by anything, but rather, something with barakah in it is called mubarak, and has an unexplainable increase and benefit in it from Allah. [al-Isfahani, Mufradaat al-Quran]
In other words, the word barakah covers the following concepts:
- A thing that has barakah will grow and increase
- It will continue to grow and increase above and beyond expectations
- And these two qualities will not go away.
Amazing isn’t it. So how can we attain barakah? Read on.
Dua
As clichéd as it sounds, dua can do what you can’t. We often associate dua with our immediate “needs and wants.” We ask Allah for a new job, a nice house, to help find our dream spouse, etc; but dua is not just limited to that. Dua is your ultimate conversation with Allah, where you can talk about anything at any given point of time. You require no prior appointments or special settings for making dua so use this beautiful weapon for every single thing you ever need in dunya and akhirah!
Nothing is more powerful than dua, so ask Allah to put barakah in your time so you can accomplish more in terms of deen and dunya goals.
Ask Allah to put barakah in your wealth so you can lead a lifestyle you wish to (without being extravagant) and help others in charity.
Ask Allah to pour his barakah in your health so you can help others around and not depend upon anyone for your physical needs until your last breath.
We often make dua in a robotic voice, repeating the same set of pleas in every prayer. Starting today, transform your dua-making ritual. Beseech Allah in a manner you’ve never done before. Make your duas come to life!
Intentions
What are your intentions? You want barakah in your life to please Allah or to please the creation? Goodness begets goodness, so a pure, sincere and noble intention seeking Allah’s blessings and mercy will help you gain tremendous amount of barakah and blessings in your life. You will find Allah opening doorways of prosperity from places you never imagined! So, purify your intentions to lead a life that pleases Allah alone and you will automatically find your life be filled with barakah.
Quran
There is something about reciting the Quran and reflecting upon the words of Allah SWT! When you open the Quran to understand what Allah has to say, you will automatically find your heart yearning to follow His commandments.
Suddenly, staying away from haraam seems easier, you yearn to stick to the halal path no matter how difficult the path seems, your heart will push you to pray on time and do deeds which Allah SWT loves.
You will find your day-to-day dealings be blessed in an inexplicable manner. You will find your productivity levels peak, making you utilize your time, talent and health to the fullest without getting burnt out. Try it out today and see the changes for yourself.
Allah says,
“ [This is] a blessed Book which We have revealed to you, [O Muhammad], that they might reflect upon its verses and that those of understanding would be reminded.” [Quran, 38: 29]
Halal income
Having your income pour in from halal sources is fundamental to achieve barakah. If you are going to earn through means that displease Allah, He will not pour His barakah and blessings upon your wealth, so even if a person is a multi billionaire but is earning through haraam means, he will never feel satisfied or content with the wealth he has.
Gratitude to Allah
The more grateful you are to Allah, the more He will give you. So the next time you feel sad about not getting something you wanted badly, refocus your mind and condition it into thinking about all the other things that are present in your life at this point of time. Say a heartfelt Alhamdulillah and recognize the thousand different ways in which you have been blessed – your family, loving parents, spouse, beautiful healthy children, the hot food on your plate, a roof over your head, your closet full of clothes, your ability to see, hear, breath…when you sit down to analyze how blessed you are, you will be amazed at the amount of things you take for granted. And what’s more, the more you thank Allah for what you have, the more He has promised to increase for you!
“And [remember] when your Lord proclaimed, ‘If you are grateful, I will surely increase you [in favor]…” [Quran, 14: 7]
Use the morning hours
The time after Fajr is blessed with barakah.
The Prophet (Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) prayed, “Oh Allah, give barakah to my Ummah in their early-morning work.” [Ibn Majah, Sunan]
For some of us, it’s become a habit to sleep after fajr. The bed looks super cozy and alluring, so you think of a quick nap after fajr before starting your day… but instead of falling asleep, seize those moments. You can do more in one hour after fajr than you would do during the whole day! Try it out and you will see the difference yourself.
Over to you! Share your tips and techniques on how we can achieve barakah in our lives, in the comments section below!
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