A Supplication For The Month Of Sha'ban

A Supplication For The Month Of Sha'ban

It is recommended to say the following confidential prayer (munajat) that has been narrated by Ibn Khulawayh who commented on it, saying, “This is the confidential prayer of Imam `Ali Amir al-Muminin and the Holy Imams (`a) who used to say it in the month of Sha`ban.” O Allah,

اَللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ عَلَی مُحَمَّدٍ وَ آلِ مُحَمَّدٍ وَ اسْمَعْ دُعَائِی إِذَا دَعَوْتُک وَ اسْمَعْ نِدَائِی إِذَا نَادَیتُک وَ أَقْبِلْ عَلَی إِذَا نَاجَیتُک فَقَدْ هَرَبْتُ إِلَیک وَ وَقَفْتُ بَینَ یدَیک مُسْتَکینا لَک مُتَضَرِّعا إِلَیک رَاجِیا لِمَا لَدَیک ثَوَابِی وَ تَعْلَمُ مَا فِی نَفْسِی وَ تَخْبُرُ حَاجَتِی وَ تَعْرِفُ ضَمِیرِی وَ لایخْفَی عَلَیک أَمْرُ مُنْقَلَبِی وَ مَثْوَای وَ مَا أُرِیدُ أَنْ أُبْدِئَ بِهِ مِنْ مَنْطِقِی وَ أَتَفَوَّهَ بِهِ مِنْ طَلِبَتِی وَ أَرْجُوهُ لِعَاقِبَتِی وَ قَدْ جَرَتْ مَقَادِیرُک عَلَی یا سَیدِی فِیمَا یکونُ مِنِّی إِلَی آخِرِ عُمْرِی مِنْ سَرِیرَتِی وَ عَلانِیتِی وَ بِیدِک لابِیدِ غَیرِک زِیادَتِی وَ نَقْصِی وَ نَفْعِی وَ ضَرِّی إِلَهِی إِنْ حَرَمْتَنِی فَمَنْ ذَا الَّذِی یرْزُقُنِی وَ إِنْ خَذَلْتَنِی فَمَنْ ذَا الَّذِی ینْصُرُنِی. إِلَهِی أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ غَضَبِكَ وَ حُلُولِ سَخَطِكَ إِلَهِی إِنْ كُنْتُ غَیْرَ مُسْتَأْهِلٍ لِرَحْمَتِكَ فَأَنْتَ أَهْلٌ أَنْ تَجُودَ عَلَیَّ بِفَضْلِ سَعَتِكَ إِلَهِی كَأَنِّی بِنَفْسِی وَاقِفَهٌ بَیْنَ یَدَیْكَ وَ قَدْ أَظَلَّهَا حُسْنُ تَوَکُّلِی عَلَیْكَ فَقُلْتَ [فَفَعَلْتَ‏]مَا أَنْتَ أَهْلُهُ وَ تَغَمَّدْتَنِی بِعَفْوِكَ إِلَهِی إِنْ عَفَوْتَ فَمَنْ أَوْلَى مِنْكَ بِذَلِكَ وَ إِنْ كَانَ قَدْ دَنَا أَجَلِی وَ لَمْ یُدْنِنِی [یَدْنُ‏]مِنْكَ عَمَلِی فَقَدْ جَعَلْتُ الْإِقْرَارَ بِالذَّنْبِ إِلَیْكَ وَسِیلَتِی إِلَهِی قَدْ جُرْتُ عَلَى نَفْسِی فِی النَّظَرِ لَهَا فَلَهَا الْوَیْلُ إِنْ لَمْ تَغْفِرْ لَهَا إِلَهِی لَمْ یَزَلْ بِرُّكَ عَلَیَّ أَیَّامَ حَیَاتِی فَلا تَقْطَعْ بِرَّكَ عَنِّی فِی مَمَاتِی إِلَهِی كَیْفَ آیَسُ مِنْ حُسْنِ نَظَرِكَ لِی بَعْدَ مَمَاتِی وَ أَنْتَ لَمْ تُوَلِّنِی [تُولِنِی‏]إِلا الْجَمِیلَ فِی حَیَاتِی. إِلَهِی تَوَلَّ مِنْ أَمْرِی مَا أَنْتَ أَهْلُهُ وَ عُدْ عَلَیَّ بِفَضْلِكَ عَلَى مُذْنِبٍ قَدْ غَمَرَهُ جَهْلُهُ إِلَهِی قَدْ سَتَرْتَ عَلَیَّ ذُنُوبا فِی الدُّنْیَا وَ أَنَا أَحْوَجُ إِلَى سَتْرِهَا عَلَیَّ مِنْكَ فِی الْأُخْرَى [إِلَهِی قَدْ أَحْسَنْتَ إِلَیَ‏]إِذْ لَمْ تُظْهِرْهَا لِأَحَدٍ مِنْ عِبَادِكَ الصَّالِحِینَ فَلا تَفْضَحْنِی یَوْمَ الْقِیَامَهِ عَلَى رُءُوسِ الْأَشْهَادِ إِلَهِی جُودُكَ بَسَطَ أَمَلِی وَ عَفْوُكَ أَفْضَلُ مِنْ عَمَلِی إِلَهِی فَسُرَّنِی بِلِقَائِكَ یَوْمَ تَقْضِی فِیهِ بَیْنَ عِبَادِكَ إِلَهِی اعْتِذَارِی إِلَیْكَ اعْتِذَارُ مَنْ لَمْ یَسْتَغْنِ عَنْ قَبُولِ عُذْرِهِ فَاقْبَلْ عُذْرِی یَا أَکْرَمَ مَنِ اعْتَذَرَ إِلَیْهِ الْمُسِیئُونَ. إِلَهِی لا تَرُدَّ حَاجَتِی وَ لا تُخَیِّبْ طَمَعِی وَ لا تَقْطَعْ مِنْكَ رَجَائِی وَ أَمَلِی إِلَهِی لَوْ أَرَدْتَ هَوَانِی لَمْ تَهْدِنِی وَ لَوْ أَرَدْتَ فَضِیحَتِی لَمْ تُعَافِنِی إِلَهِی مَا أَظُنُّكَ تَرُدُّنِی فِی حَاجَهٍ قَدْ أَفْنَیْتُ عُمُرِی فِی طَلَبِهَا مِنْكَ إِلَهِی فَلَكَ الْحَمْدُ أَبَدا أَبَدا دَائِما سَرْمَدا یَزِیدُ وَ لا یَبِیدُ كَمَا تُحِبُّ وَ تَرْضَى إِلَهِی إِنْ أَخَذْتَنِی بِجُرْمِی أَخَذْتُكَ بِعَفْوِكَ وَ إِنْ أَخَذْتَنِی بِذُنُوبِی أَخَذْتُكَ بِمَغْفِرَتِكَ وَ إِنْ أَدْخَلْتَنِی النَّارَ أَعْلَمْتُ أَهْلَهَا أَنِّی أُحِبُّكَ إِلَهِی إِنْ كَانَ صَغُرَ فِی جَنْبِ طَاعَتِكَ عَمَلِی فَقَدْ كَبُرَ فِی جَنْبِ رَجَائِكَ أَمَلِی إِلَهِی كَیْفَ أَنْقَلِبُ مِنْ عِنْدِكَ بِالْخَیْبَهِ مَحْرُوما وَ قَدْ كَانَ حُسْنُ ظَنِّی بِجُودِكَ أَنْ تَقْلِبَنِی بِالنَّجَاهِ مَرْحُوما إِلَهِی وَ قَدْ أَفْنَیْتُ عُمُرِی فِی شِرَّهِ السَّهْوِ عَنْكَ وَ أَبْلَیْتُ شَبَابِی فِی سَکْرَهِ التَّبَاعُدِ مِنْكَ إِلَهِی فَلَمْ أَسْتَیْقِظْ أَیَّامَ اغْتِرَارِی بِكَ وَ رُكُونِی إِلَى سَبِیلِ سَخَطِكَ. إِلَهِی وَ أَنَا عَبْدُكَ وَ ابْنُ عَبْدِكَ قَائِمٌ بَیْنَ یَدَیْكَ مُتَوَسِّلٌ بِكَرَمِكَ إِلَیْكَ إِلَهِی أَنَا عَبْدٌ أَتَنَصَّلُ إِلَیْكَ مِمَّا كُنْتُ أُوَاجِهُكَ بِهِ مِنْ قِلَّهِ اسْتِحْیَائِی مِنْ نَظَرِكَ وَ أَطْلُبُ الْعَفْوَ مِنْكَ إِذِ الْعَفْوُ نَعْتٌ لِكَرَمِكَ إِلَهِی لَمْ یَكُنْ لِی حَوْلٌ فَأَنْتَقِلَ بِهِ عَنْ مَعْصِیَتِكَ إِلا فِی وَقْتٍ أَیْقَظْتَنِی لِمَحَبَّتِكَ وَ كَمَا أَرَدْتَ أَنْ أَكُونَ كُنْتُ فَشَكَرْتُكَ بِإِدْخَالِی فِی كَرَمِكَ وَ لِتَطْهِیرِ قَلْبِی مِنْ أَوْسَاخِ الْغَفْلَهِ عَنْكَ إِلَهِی انْظُرْ إِلَیَّ نَظَرَ مَنْ نَادَیْتَهُ فَأَجَابَكَ وَ اسْتَعْمَلْتَهُ بِمَعُونَتِكَ فَأَطَاعَكَ یَا قَرِیبا لا یَبْعُدُ عَنِ الْمُغْتَرِّ بِهِ وَ یَا جَوَادا لا یَبْخَلُ عَمَّنْ رَجَا ثَوَابَهُ إِلَهِی هَبْ لِی قَلْبا یُدْنِیهِ مِنْكَ شَوْقُهُ وَ لِسَانا یُرْفَعُ إِلَیْكَ صِدْقُهُ وَ نَظَرا یُقَرِّبُهُ مِنْكَ حَقُّهُ إِلَهِی إِنَّ مَنْ تَعَرَّفَ بِكَ غَیْرُ مَجْهُولٍ وَ مَنْ لاذَ بِكَ غَیْرُ مَخْذُولٍ وَ مَنْ أَقْبَلْتَ عَلَیْهِ غَیْرُ مَمْلُوکٍ [مَمْلُولٍ‏]. إِلَهِی إِنَّ مَنِ انْتَهَجَ بِكَ لَمُسْتَنِیرٌ وَ إِنَّ مَنِ اعْتَصَمَ بِكَ لَمُسْتَجِیرٌ وَ قَدْ لُذْتُ بِكَ یَا إِلَهِی فَلا تُخَیِّبْ ظَنِّی مِنْ رَحْمَتِكَ وَ لا تَحْجُبْنِی عَنْ رَأْفَتِكَ إِلَهِی أَقِمْنِی فِی أَهْلِ وَلایَتِكَ مُقَامَ مَنْ رَجَا الزِّیَادَهَ مِنْ مَحَبَّتِكَ إِلَهِی وَ أَلْهِمْنِی وَلَها بِذِکْرِكَ إِلَى ذِکْرِكَ وَ هِمَّتِی فِی رَوْحِ نَجَاحِ أَسْمَائِكَ وَ مَحَلِّ قُدْسِكَ إِلَهِی بِكَ عَلَیْكَ إِلا أَلْحَقْتَنِی بِمَحَلِّ أَهْلِ طَاعَتِكَ وَ الْمَثْوَى الصَّالِحِ مِنْ مَرْضَاتِكَ فَإِنِّی لا أَقْدِرُ لِنَفْسِی دَفْعا وَ لا أَمْلِكُ لَهَا نَفْعا إِلَهِی أَنَا عَبْدُكَ الضَّعِیفُ الْمُذْنِبُ وَ مَمْلُوكُكَ الْمُنِیبُ [الْمَعِیبُ‏]فَلا تَجْعَلْنِی مِمَّنْ صَرَفْتَ عَنْهُ وَجْهَكَ وَ حَجَبَهُ سَهْوُهُ عَنْ عَفْوِكَ إِلَهِی هَبْ لِی كَمَالَ الانْقِطَاعِ إِلَیْكَ وَ أَنِرْ أَبْصَارَ قُلُوبِنَا بِضِیَاءِ نَظَرِهَا إِلَیْكَ حَتَّى تَخْرِقَ أَبْصَارُ الْقُلُوبِ حُجُبَ النُّورِ فَتَصِلَ إِلَى مَعْدِنِ الْعَظَمَهِ وَ تَصِیرَ أَرْوَاحُنَا مُعَلَّقَهً بِعِزِّ قُدْسِكَ إِلَهِی وَ اجْعَلْنِی مِمَّنْ نَادَیْتَهُ فَأَجَابَكَ وَ لاحَظْتَهُ فَصَعِقَ لِجَلالِكَ فَنَاجَیْتَهُ سِرّا وَ عَمِلَ لَكَ جَهْرا. إِلَهِی لَمْ أُسَلِّطْ عَلَى حُسْنِ ظَنِّی قُنُوطَ الْإِیَاسِ وَ لا انْقَطَعَ رَجَائِی مِنْ جَمِیلِ كَرَمِكَ إِلَهِی إِنْ كَانَتِ الْخَطَایَا قَدْ أَسْقَطَتْنِی لَدَیْكَ فَاصْفَحْ عَنِّی بِحُسْنِ تَوَکُّلِی عَلَیْكَ إِلَهِی إِنْ حَطَّتْنِی الذُّنُوبُ مِنْ مَكَارِمِ لُطْفِكَ فَقَدْ نَبَّهَنِی الْیَقِینُ إِلَى كَرَمِ عَطْفِكَ إِلَهِی إِنْ أَنَامَتْنِی الْغَفْلَهُ عَنِ الاسْتِعْدَادِ لِلِقَائِكَ فَقَدْ نَبَّهَتْنِی الْمَعْرِفَهُ بِكَرَمِ آلائِكَ إِلَهِی إِنْ دَعَانِی إِلَى النَّارِ عَظِیمُ عِقَابِكَ فَقَدْ دَعَانِی إِلَى الْجَنَّهِ جَزِیلُ ثَوَابِكَ إِلَهِی فَلَكَ أَسْأَلُ وَ إِلَیْكَ أَبْتَهِلُ وَ أَرْغَبُ وَ أَسْأَلُكَ أَنْ تُصَلِّیَ عَلَى مُحَمَّدٍ وَ آلِ مُحَمَّدٍ وَ أَنْ تَجْعَلَنِی مِمَّنْ یُدِیمُ ذِکْرَكَ وَ لا یَنْقُضُ عَهْدَكَ وَ لا یَغْفُلُ عَنْ شُکْرِكَ وَ لا یَسْتَخِفُّ بِأَمْرِكَ إِلَهِی وَ أَلْحِقْنِی بِنُورِ عِزِّكَ الْأَبْهَجِ فَأَكُونَ لَكَ عَارِفا وَ عَنْ سِوَاكَ مُنْحَرِفا وَ مِنْكَ خَائِفا مُرَاقِبا یَا ذَا الْجَلالِ وَ الْإِکْرَامِ وَ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَى مُحَمَّدٍ رَسُولِهِ وَ آلِهِ الطَّاهِرِینَ وَ سَلَّمَ تَسْلِیما كَثِیرا.

 (please do) send blessings to Muhammad and the Household of Muhammad, listen to my prayer whenever I pray You, listen to my call whenever I call upon you, and accept from me whenever I confidentially whisper to You, for here I am fleeing into You, standing before You, showing submission to You, imploring You, and hoping for the reward that You have. You do know what is in my inner self, recognize my needs, recognize my hidden affairs, and all my moves and stillness are known by You. So are all the utterance which I want to begin with, all the requests that I want to express, and all the expectation that I hope for my future. All that which You, O my Master, have decided for me up to the end of my life, including my secret and open matters, shall be experienced by me. And it is in Your Hand, not anybody else’s, are all increase and decrease, and all my benefits and harms that come upon me. O my God, if You deprive me (of Your sustenance), then who else can ever provide me with sustenance? If You disappoint me, then who else can ever back me? O my God, I do seek Your protection against Your wrath and against the befalling of Your ire upon me. O my God, if I do not deserve Your mercy, You are still expected to confer upon me with Your expansive favor. O my God, I now imagine how I will stand before You, shaded by my good idea about You on account of my trust in You, and You will decide for me that which befit You and You will include me with Your forgiveness. O my God, if you pardon me, then who else is worthier than You are in pardoning. If my time of death is approaching while my deeds are still too short to approach me to You, I am then considering my confession of being guilty to be my means towards You. O my God, I have wronged myself when I allowed myself to behave unrestrainedly; therefore, woe will betide me if You do not forgive. O my God, You have never ceased Your favors from me all over my lifetime; so, (please) do not stop Your favors from covering me after my death. O my God, how can I despair of Your nice custody over me after my death while You have not shown me but the good throughout my lifetime? O my God, (please) manage my affairs in the very way that befits You, and confer upon me—a sinful who is covered by his ignorance—with Your favors. O my God, You have concealed my sins in my worldly life, but I need Your concealment more urgently in the Next Life. You have thus not disclosed my sins before any of Your righteous servants; therefore, (please) do not expose me on the Resurrection Day before all the witnesses. O my God, it is Your magnanimity that expanded my hope, and surely Your pardon is more preferable than my deeds. O my God, so (please) delight me when I meet You on the day when You shall judge between Your servants. O my God, I submit to You the apology of one who cannot dispense with the acceptance of his excuse; so, (please) accept my excuse, O most Magnanimous of all those before whom the guilty make an apology. O my God, (please) do not reject my request, do not fail my big hope for You, and do not disappoint my desire and expectation for You. O my God, had You wanted to humiliate me, You would not have guided me (to You). Had You decided to disclose me, You would not have saved me. O my God, I do not expect You to reject my request that I spent my whole lifetime asking for it from You. O my God, all praise be to You, forever, forever, perpetually, everlastingly, increasingly, and unperishably, as exactly as You like and please. O my God, if You punish me for my offense, I shall demand with Your pardon, if You punish me for my sins, I shall demand with Your forgiveness, and if You decide to send me to Hell, I shall declare to its inhabitants that I love You. O my God, if my deed is too little when compared to the true obedience to You, then my hope for You is too big when compared to my prospect from You. O my God, how can it be that I return from You with disappointment and deprivation while I expect, depending upon Your magnanimity, that You will endow me with safety and mercy? O my God, I have spent my whole lifetime with the vigor of being negligent to You and I have spent my whole youth with the inebriety of being far away from You. O my God, I have not thus woken up to myself during the period when I seductively felt safe from Your punishment and when I was taking the path that ends with Your ire. O my God, nevertheless, I am—Your servant and the son of Your servant—now standing before You and begging You in the name of Your generosity. O my God, I am, being Your servant, disowning all that with which I used to face You; namely, my shameless inconsideration of You, and I am hereby appealing for Your pardon since pardon is one feature of Your generosity. O my God, I had no strength by which I would rid myself of the acts of disobedience to You except after You aroused me to love You. Hence, I have become as exactly as You want me to be. I have thus thanked You, for You have included me with Your generosity and You have purified my heart from the filths of being inattentive to You. O my God, (please) look at me in the same way as You have looked at one whom You called and he has responded to You and whom You have conferred with Your aid and he thus has obeyed You. O He Who is too close to depart from one who is inadvertent to Him! O He Who is too magnanimous to deprive one who hopes for His reward! O my God, (please) grant me a heart whose longing for You will approach it to You, a tongue whose truthfulness is directed to You, and a sight whose righteousness advances towards You. O my God, he who recognizes You shall never be anonymous, he who seeks Your shelter shall never be disappointed, and he whom is attended by You shall never be boring. O my God, he who abides by Your Path shall be enlightened, and he who resorts to You shall be succored. I am thus having recourse to You, O my God! So, (please) do not disappoint me as regards Your having mercy upon me and do not divest me of Your kindness. O my God, grant me, among those who show servitude to You, the position of one who (incessantly) longs for more love for You. O my God, (please) inspire me with passionate love for ceaseless reference to You, and (please) devote all my pursuit to my attaining the delight of the success that is achieved through Your Names and the amount of Your Holiness. O my God, I beseech You in Your name to put me in the position of those who are obedient to You and in an honorable standing of Your pleasure, for I, verily, have no power to rescue or to benefit myself. O my God, I am Your servant—the feeble and sinful— and Your slave—the penitent. So, (please) do not include me with those against whom You have turned Your face or those whom are deprived of Your pardon because of their inattentiveness to You. O my God, (please) grant me absolute devotion to You and illuminate the sights of our hearts with the light of observing of You so that the sights of the hearts will penetrate the Screens of Light and arrive at the Core of Magnificence, and that our souls hang to the Majesty of Your Holiness. O my God, (please) make me of those who responded to You when You called at them, those who were shocked for Your Majesty when You observed them and You have thus taken into their confidence and they acted for You openly. O my God, I have shaded neither despair nor gloom over my good idea about You and I have never lost hope in Your excellent magnanimity. O my God, if my sins have overthrown me in Your sight, then please pardon me for my excellent trust in You. O my God, if my wrongdoings have caused me to lose Your honorable kindness, then my belief in You has called my attention to the generosity of Your sympathy. O my God, if my inadvertence has screened me against readying myself for meeting You, then my recognition of the generosity of Your bounties has a wakened me. O my God, if Your grave chastisement has drawn me to Hellfire, then Your opulent reward has drawn me to Paradise. O my God, You alone do I pray and You alone do I implore and desire. I beseech You to bless Muhammad and the Household of Muhammad and to include me with those who always mention You, who never breach their covenant to You, who never fail to thank You, and who never belittle Your Affairs. O my God, (please do) take in me with the most brilliant Light of Your Dignity so that I will recognize You and I will leave everybody else, and that I will be fearful of and careful with You. O Lord of Majesty and Honor! May Allah send blessings to Muhammad, His Messenger, and upon his Household the Infallible, and exalt them very much. This confidential prayer (mun¡j¡t), ascribed to the Holy Imams (`a), is highly significant since it comprises excellent meanings. It is advisable to say it with presence of heart all the time.