AMANA RASUL
Amana Rasul often refers to the last 2 ayat of Surah Baqarah verse 285-286.
The last 2 ayat of Surah Baqarah (commonly referred to as Amana Rasul ayat) are two fairly short ayats that contain a lot of barakah (blessings). From Bukhari, we are told these two ayat are sufficient for anyone who will read them at night.
SURAH BAQARAH VERSE 285
آمَنَ الرَّسُولُ بِمَا أُنْزِلَ إِلَيْهِ مِنْ رَبِّهِ وَالْمُؤْمِنُونَ ۚ كُلٌّ آمَنَ بِاللَّهِ وَمَلَائِكَتِهِ وَكُتُبِهِ وَرُسُلِهِ لَا نُفَرِّقُ بَيْنَ أَحَدٍ مِنْ رُسُلِهِ ۚ وَقَالُوا سَمِعْنَا وَأَطَعْنَا ۖ غُفْرَانَكَ رَبَّنَا وَإِلَيْكَ الْمَصِيرُ
Aamanar-Rasoolu bimaaa unzila ilaihi mir-Rabbihee walmu’minoon; kullun aamana billaahi wa Malaaa’ikathihee wa Kutubhihee wa Rusulihee laa nufarriqu baina ahadim-mir-Rusulih wa qaaloo sami’naa wa ata’naa ghufraanaka Rabbanaa wa ilaikal-maseer
“The Messenger [Muhammad (Peace be upon him)] believes in what has been sent down to him from his Lord, and [so do] the believers. Each one believes in Allah, His Angels, His Books, and His Messengers. They say: “We make no distinction between one another of His Messengers” – and they say: “We hear, and we obey. [We seek] Your Forgiveness, our Lord, and to You is the return [of all].” [source]
These verses are very comprehensive and encapsulate what it truly means to be a Muslim. It gives us a framework teaching us what we are required to believe in, the values we should uphold, and the ethics of our conduct. “Each one believes in Allah and His angels and His Books and His Messengers. […] We do not differentiate between any of His Messengers.” This one ayah encompasses 5 articles of faith:
- To believe in the Oneness of Allah (tawheed).
- To believe in all His Angels.
- To believe in all His Books.
- To believe in all His Prophets.
- To believe in the Day of Resurrection.
It was narrated that Ibn Abbas said:
“When Jibril was with the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), he heard a sound from above like a door opening. Jibril, peace be upon him, looked up toward the sky and said: ‘This is a gate in Heaven that has been opened, but it was never opened before.” He said: “An Angel came down from it and came to the Prophet (ﷺ) and said: ‘Receive the glad tidings of two lights that have been given to you and were never given to any prophet before you: The Opening of the Book (Al-Fatihah) and the last verses of Surat Al-Baqarah. You will never recite a single letter of them but you will be granted it.'”
Sunan an-Nasa’i 912
Here Allah (swt) says, “The Messenger [Muhammad (ﷺ)] believes in what has been sent down to him from his Lord” but he doesn’t only mention the imaan of the Prophet, he also includes “And so do the believers” referring to the entire Ummah. In this response we are directly mentioned with the Prophet (ﷺ), we are the last Ummah on earth and he commended us for being among the believers. All the communities Allah previously sent guidance for have either perished or been led astray.
SURAH BAQARAH VERSE 286
لَا يُكَلِّفُ اللَّهُ نَفْسًا إِلَّا وُسْعَهَا ۚ لَهَا مَا كَسَبَتْ وَعَلَيْهَا مَا اكْتَسَبَتْ ۗ رَبَّنَا لَا تُؤَاخِذْنَا إِنْ نَسِينَا أَوْ أَخْطَأْنَا ۚ رَبَّنَا وَلَا تَحْمِلْ عَلَيْنَا إِصْرًا كَمَا حَمَلْتَهُ عَلَى الَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِنَا ۚ رَبَّنَا وَلَا تُحَمِّلْنَا مَا لَا طَاقَةَ لَنَا بِهِ ۖ وَاعْفُ عَنَّا وَاغْفِرْ لَنَا وَارْحَمْنَا ۚ أَنْتَ مَوْلَانَا فَانْصُرْنَا عَلَى الْقَوْمِ الْكَافِرِينَ
Laa yukalliful-laahu nafsan illaa wus’ahaa; lahaa maa kasabat wa ‘alaihaa maktasabat; Rabbanaa laa tu’aakhiznaaa in naseenaaa aw akhtaanaa; Rabbanaa wa laa tahmil-‘alainaaa isran kamaa hamaltahoo ‘alal-lazeena min qablinaa; Rabbanaa wa laa tuhammilnaa maa laa taaqata lanaa bih; wa’fu ‘annaa waghfir lanaa warhamnaa; Anta mawlaanaa fansurnaa ‘alal qawmil kaafireen (section 40)
“Allah does not charge a soul except [with that within] its capacity. It will have [the consequence of] what [good] it has gained, and it will bear [the consequence of] what [evil] it has earned. “Our Lord, do not impose blame upon us if we have forgotten or erred. Our Lord, and lay not upon us a burden like that which You laid upon those before us. Our Lord, and burden us not with that which we have no ability to bear. And pardon us; and forgive us; and have mercy upon us. You are our protector, so give us victory over the disbelieving people.” [source]
In the last verse of Surah Baqarah, Allah describes the resilience and strength the human spirit possesses, “Allah does not charge a soul except [with that within] its capacity.” This is why it’s important for us to avoid complaining at all costs, it is a disease of the mind that will never improve the situation. Spend a second complaining and you have wasted a second. When you complain, what you are really doing is making yourself out to be the victim and unknowingly blaming individual tests we all must face. Instead, it is much better for you to make the choice and view yourself as a survivor rather than a victim when a calamity strikes.
This does not mean we should be embarrassed or ashamed of crying or feeling weak. We learned that Prophet Yaqub (as) cried so much his vision became impaired. Suffering is inescapable, letting the tears fall shows that you have the courage to work through the pain. In Surah Yusuf Ayat 86 Yaqub (as) says, “I only complain of my suffering and my grief to Allah, and I know from Allah that which you do not know.” Complaining outwardly to everyone but Allah is the thief of patience.
Narrated Anas bin Malik:
The Prophet (ﷺ) passed by a woman who was weeping beside a grave. He told her to fear Allah and be patient. She said to him, “Go away, for you have not been afflicted with a calamity like mine.” And she did not recognize him. Then she was informed that he was the Prophet (ﷺ) . so she went to the house of the Prophet (ﷺ) and there she did not find any guard. Then she said to him, “I did not recognize you.” He said, “Verily, the patience is at the first stroke of a calamity.”
Sahih al-Bukhari 1283
It is always best that we say Alhamdulillah and accept both the good and the bad of life. We don’t know what Allah could be saving us from when things don’t the way we planned. When Thomas Edison was asked what it felt like to fail 1000 times when inventing the light bulb Edison replied, “I didn’t fail 1,000 times. The light bulb was an invention with 1,000 steps.” Each failure was not viewed as a personal shortcoming of Edison but represented progress, moving a step closer to getting it right. The opportunity lies in the way we wear our burden and how we let it define us.
DUA FOR WUDU (BEFORE WUDU AND AFTER WUDU)
The ayah continues and warns us that we, “will have [the consequence of] what [good] it has gained, and it will bear [the consequence of] what [evil] it has earned.” Meaning you will reap the harvest of whatever you plant, if you plant bad you reap bad. Things have an interesting way of coming back around. You can’t get what you need without having first planted the seed, it’s like a person who plays video games all day and wonders why he or she can’t their dream job.
Similarly, on the day of qiyamah, every being will be rewarded for the services they rendered. Whatever good or bad deeds will be stacked in front of them and here they face the consequence of what one has earned.
DUA AFTER LEAVING THE BATHROOM
The verse then breaks into three beautiful supplications asking Allah for strength, forgiveness, victory, and for his protection.
