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Intrusive Thoughts, Doubts and Anxiety in Worship

Assalamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh,

Dear Shaykh,

“I am struggling with intrusive thoughts, doubt and anxiety in worship. Am I sinful? Any advice would he helpful, JzkAllah“

Answer:

First and foremost, I want you to know that you are not alone in this struggle. What you are experiencing, intrusive thoughts, doubts, and anxiety in worship, is something many sincere believers have faced, including some of the sahabah.

1️⃣ You are NOT sinful, these thoughts do not make you a disbeliever.

I know these thoughts make you anxious and distressed, but they do not define you or your Iman. In fact, feeling upset by them is a sign of faith!

📖 The Sahabah once told the Prophet ﷺ:

“We have thoughts that are so terrible we would rather be burned than speak them.” The Prophet ﷺ replied, ‘Allahu Akbar! Praise be to Allah who has reduced shaytan’s influence to mere whispers!'”

(Sahih Muslim 132)

💙 This means shaytan whispers to believers to make them doubt themselves. But these thoughts are not yours, and Allah does not hold you accountable for them.

2️⃣ Creating these thoughts are shaytan’s trick, your job is not to engage with them, just learn to ignore them.

These thoughts only become stronger when you pay attention to them. Shaytan wants you to repeat wudu, repeat shahada, repeat salat until you feel so exhausted that you stop praying. DO NOT LET HIM WIN.

📖 The Prophet ﷺ said:

“Shaytan will come and say: ‘Who created this? Who created that?’ until he says, ‘Who created Allah?’ If this happens, let him seek refuge in Allah and STOP thinking about it.” (Sahih al-Bukhari 3276, Muslim 134)

✅ What to do:

– IGNORE the thoughts completely. Do NOT debate them in your head.

– Say: “A’udhu billahi min ash-shaytan ir-rajim” (I seek refuge in Allah from shaytan).

– Distract yourself immediately, shift your focus to Qur’an, dhikr, or any other task.

➡️ Remember: The less you engage with the thoughts, the weaker they become.

You might be getting these thoughts even in Ramadan despite shaytan being locked away, this is normal as shaytan lays down his traps and gets us used to listening to these thoughts even without him being here.

3️⃣ STOP repeating shahada, wudu and salat

I know it feels like you have to redo everything because of doubt, but repeating wudu and salat is exactly what shaytan wants.

📖 The Prophet ﷺ said:

“If one of you feels doubt in his wudu, let him not leave (his prayer) unless he hears a sound or smells something.” (Sahih Muslim 362)

✅ What to do:

– Do wudu ONCE, even if you have doubts, move on.

– Pray ONCE and do not repeat salat at all.

– If thoughts come, keep praying and ignore them.

➡️ If you fight the urge to repeat, it will get easier, inshaAllah.

4️⃣ Make salat a place of comfort again

I know salat has become a source of anxiety, but it is supposed to be your place of peace. Take small steps to make it easier:

– Keep your prayers simple and try to focus on one posture at a time.

– Listen to soothing Qur’an before salat to get into a peaceful mindset.

– Take deep breaths before praying to relax your mind.

📖 Allah says:

“And seek help through patience and prayer, and indeed, it is difficult except for the humble.” (Surah Al-Baqarah 2:45)

5️⃣ Seek assistance through duas & ruqyah.

📖 Allah says:

“And if an evil whisper from Shaytan reaches you, then seek refuge in Allah. Indeed, He is the All-Hearing, All-Knowing.” (Surah Al-A’raf 7:200)

✅ Duas to Recite:

– A’udhu billahi min ash-shaytan ir-rajim

– Ayatul Kursi (Surah Al-Baqarah 2:255)

– Surah Al-Falaq & Surah An-Nas (morning & evening)

– La ilaha illa Allah, wahdahu la sharika lahu, lahu al-mulku wa lahu al-hamdu, wa huwa ‘ala kulli shay’in qadeer.

➡️ These will help ease your heart and push away these intrusive thoughts.

6️⃣ Sometimes, waswasah(intrusive thoughts) can be linked to anxiety or OCD, which is a condition many people face. If these thoughts are making life extremely difficult, it might help to speak to one of our therapists. There is no shame in seeking help.

💙 You are NOT sinful. You are NOT a bad Muslim.

💙 Allah is Most Merciful, and He knows your struggle.

💙 You will NOT go to Hell for thoughts you didn’t bring into your mind.

📖 Allah says:

“Do not despair of the mercy of Allah. Indeed, Allah forgives all sins…”

(Surah Al-Zumar 39:53)

➡️ Keep going, my dear brother/sister. You are stronger than Shaytan, and Allah sees your effort. 🤍

🌸 May Allah grant you ease, comfort and a heart full of tranquillity. Ameen. 🤲

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10 Green Hadith

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

10 Green Ahadith
By Muhammad Fathi
1 Muharram 1440

federico-beccari-633001-unsplashDid the Prophet (Peace and blessings be upon him) say anything about saving our planet? Did he promote any ideas or practices relevant to the world’s growing concern about the future of the earth and its resources?
Below is a collection of the Prophet’s Ahadith
 
Plant a tree even if it is your last deed:
1. Anas (May Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “If the Hour (the day of Resurrection) is about to be established and one of you was holding a palm shoot, let him take advantage of even one second before the Hour is established to plant it.” (Reported by Ahmad and Al-Bukhan on the authority of Anas in Al Adab Al-Mufrad,)
 
Planting trees is a renewable source of hasanat:
2. Anas also reported that the Prophet said, “If a Muslim plants a tree or sows seeds, and then a bird, or a person or an animal eats from it, it is regarded as a charitable gift (sadaqah) for him.“ (Bukhari)
 
Conserve resources even when used for rituals:
3. Abdullah ibn Amr ibn Al-`Aas (May Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet passed one day by Sa`d ibn Abi Waqas (May Allah be pleased with him) while he was performing wudu’ (ritual cleaning of body parts in preparation for prayer). The Prophet asked Sa`d, “What is this wastage?” Sa`d replied “Is there wastage in wudu also?” The Prophet said, “Yes, even if you are at a flowing river.” (Ahmad and authenticated Ahmad Shakir)
 
Keeping environment clean is important:
4. The Prophet warned, “Beware of the three acts that cause you to be cursed: relieving yourselves in shaded places (that people utilize), in a walkway or in a watering place.” (Narrated by Mu`adh , hasan by Al-Albani)

5. Abu Zarr Al-Ghafari (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “Removing harmful things from the road is an act of charity (sadaqah).” (Narrated by Abu Dharr Al-Ghafari)
 
No for over-consumption! Consider recycling and fixing before buying new items:
6. Abdullah ibn `Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet said, “The believer is not he who eats his fill while his neighbor is hungry.” (Saheeh al-Bukharee (112))

7. Asked about what the Prophet used to do in his house, the Prophet’s wife, `A’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her), said that he used to repair his shoes, sow his clothes and used to do all such household works done by an average person. (Sahih Bukhari)

8. The Prophet said, “Whoever kills a sparrow or anything bigger than that without a just cause, Allah will hold him accountable on the Day of Judgment.”  The listeners asked, “O Messenger of Allah, what is a just cause?” He replied, “That he will kill it to eat, not simply to chop off its head and then throw it away.” (An-Nasa’i)
 
Animals should be cared for:
9. Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Prophet said, “A man felt very thirsty while he was on the way, there he came across a well. He went down the well, quenched his thirst and came out. Meanwhile he saw a dog panting and licking mud because of excessive thirst. He said to himself, “This dog is suffering from thirst as I did.” So, he went down the well again, filled his shoe with water, held it with his mouth and watered the dog. Allah appreciated him for that deed and forgave him.“ The Companions said, “O Allah’s Messenger! Is there a reward for us in serving the animals?” He replied: “There is a reward for serving any living being.” (Bukhari)

10. Abdullah ibn `Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Prophet said, “A woman entered the (Hell) Fire because of a cat which she had tied, neither giving it food nor setting it free to eat from the vermin of the earth.” (Bukhari)

The pen is closest to my heart, so may Allah make a means of hidayat for me and a change for all. In sha Allah…
Ameen