How to Bridge the Generation Gap?

Words of Inspiration

The Father

My child! I take the Dua (prayer) that our fourth Imam, Imam Sajjad (as), is using as a wish for his children as words of inspiration, and thus, I ask Allah to make the same wish come true for you.

(25) وَ كَانَ مِنْ دُعَائِهِ عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ لِوُلْدِهِ عَلَيْهِمُ

السَّلَامُ

1- O God, be kind to me through
the survival of my children, setting them right for me,
and allowing me to enjoy them!

  1. اللَّهُمَّ وَ مُنَّ عَلَيَّ

بِبَقَاءِ وُلْدِي وَ بِإِصْلَاحِهِمْ لِي

و بِإِمْتَاعِي بِهِمْ .

2- My God, make long their lives for me,
increase their terms,
bring up the smallest for me,
strengthen the weakest for me,
rectify for me
their bodies, their religious dedication,
and their moral traits,
make them well in their souls, their limbs,
and everything that concerns me of their affair,
and pour out for me and upon my hand
their provisions!

  1. إِلَهِي امْدُدْ لِي فِي أَعْمَارِهِمْ ،

وَ زِدْ لِي فِي آجَالِهِمْ ،

وَ رَبِّ لِي صَغِيرَهُمْ ،

وَ قَوِّ لِي ضَعِيفَهُمْ ،

وَ أَصِحَّ لِي أَبْدَانَهُمْ وَ أَدْيَانَهُمْ وَ أَخْلَاقَهُمْ ،

وَ عَافِهِمْ فِي أَنْفُسِهِمْ وَ فِي جَوَارِحِهِمْ

وَ فِي كُلِّ مَا عُنِيتُ بِهِ مِنْ أَمْرِهِمْ ،

وَ أَدْرِرْ لِي وَ عَلَى يَدِي أَرْزَاقَهُمْ .

3- Make them pious, fearing,
insightful, hearing, and obedient
toward Thee,
loving and well-disposed toward Thy friends,
and stubbornly resistant and full of hate
toward all Thy enemies!
Amen!

  1. وَ اجْعَلْهُمْ أَبْرَاراً أَتْقِيَاءَ

بُصَرَاءَ سَامِعِينَ مُطِيعِينَ لَكَ ،

وَ لِأَوْلِيَائِكَ مُحِبِّينَ مُنَاصِحِينَ ،

وَ لِجَمِيعِ أَعْدَائِكَ مُعَانِدِينَ وَ مُبْغِضِينَ ، آمِينَ .

4- O God,
through them
strengthen my arm,
straighten my burdened back,
multiply my number,
adorn my presence,
keep alive my mention,
suffice me when I am away,
help me in my needs,
and make them
loving toward me,
affectionate, approaching, upright,
obedient, never disobedient, disrespectful,
opposed, or offenders!

  1. اللَّهُمَّ اشْدُدْ بِهِمْ عَضُدِي ،

وَ أَقِمْ بِهِمْ أَوَدِي ،

وَ كَثِّرْ بِهِمْ عَدَدِي ،

وَ زَيِّنْ بِهِمْ مَحْضَرِي ،

وَ أَحْيِ بِهِمْ ذِكْرِي ،

وَ اكْفِنِي بِهِمْ فِي غَيْبَتِي ،

وَ أَعِنِّي بِهِمْ عَلَى حَاجَتِي ،

وَ اجْعَلْهُمْ لِي مُحِبِّينَ ،

وَ عَلَيَّ حَدِبِينَ مُقْبِلِينَ مُسْتَقِيمِينَ لِي ،

مُطِيعِينَ ، غَيْرَ عَاصِينَ وَ لَا عَاقِّينَ وَ لَا مُخَالِفِينَ وَ لَا خَاطِئِينَ .

5- Help me in their upbringing,
their education, and my devotion toward them,
give me among them from Thyself male children,
make that a good for me,
and make them a help for me
in that which I ask from Thee!

  1. وَ أَعِنِّي عَلَى تَرْبِيَتِهِمْ وَ تَأْدِيبِهِمْ ، وَ بِرِّهِمْ ،

وَ هَبْ لِي مِنْ لَدُنْكَ مَعَهُمْ أَوْلَاداً ذُكُوراً ،

وَ اجْعَلْ ذَلِكَ خَيْراً لِي ،

وَ اجْعَلْهُمْ لِي عَوْناً عَلَى مَا سَأَلْتُكَ .

6- Give me and my progeny refuge from the accursed Satan,
for Thou hast created us, commanded us, and prohibited us,
and made us desire the reward of what Thou hast commanded, and fear its punishment!
Thou assigned to us an enemy who schemes against us,
gave him an authority over us in a way that Thou didst not give us authority over him,
allowed him to dwell in our breasts
and let him run in our blood vessels;
he is not heedless, though we be heedless,
he does not forget, though we forget;
he makes us feel secure from Thy punishment
and fills us with fear toward other than Thee.

  1. وَ أَعِذْنِي وَ ذُرِّيَّتِي مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ ،

فَإِنَّكَ خَلَقْتَنَا وَ أَمَرْتَنَا وَ نَهَيْتَنَا

وَ رَغَّبْتَنَا فِي ثَوَابِ مَا أَمَرْتَنَا وَ رَهَّبْتَنَا عِقَابَهُ ،

وَ جَعَلْتَ لَنَا عَدُوّاً يَكِيدُنَا ،

سَلَّطْتَهُ مِنَّا عَلَى مَا لَمْ تُسَلِّطْنَا عَلَيْهِ مِنْهُ ،

أَسْكَنْتَهُ صُدُورَنَا ،

وَ أَجْرَيْتَهُ مَجَارِيَ دِمَائِنَا ،

لَا يَغْفُلُ إِنْ غَفَلْنَا ،

وَ لَا يَنْسَى إِنْ نَسِينَا ،

يُؤْمِنُنَا عِقَابَكَ ، وَ يُخَوِّفُنَا بِغَيْرِكَ .

7- If we are about to commit an indecency,
he gives us courage to do so,
and if we are about to perform a righteous work,
he holds us back from it.
He opposes us through passions,[^1]
and sets up for us doubts.
If he promises us, he lies,
and if he raises our hopes, he fails to fulfil them.
If Thou dost not turn his trickery away from us,
he will misguide us,
and if Thou dost not protect us from his corruption, he will cause us to slip.

  1. إِنْ هَمَمْنَا بِفَاحِشَةٍ شَجَّعَنَا عَلَيْهَا ،

وَ إِنْ هَمَمْنَا بِعَمَلٍ صَالِحٍ ثَبَّطَنَا عَنْهُ ،

يَتَعَرَّضُ لَنَا بِالشَّهَوَاتِ ،

وَ يَنْصِبُ لَنَا بِالشُّبُهَاتِ ،

إِنْ وَعَدَنَا كَذَبَنَا ،

وَ إِنْ مَنَّانَا أَخْلَفَنَا ،

وَ إِلَّا تَصْرِفْ عَنَّا كَيْدَهُ يُضِلَّنَا ،

وَ إِلَّا تَقِنَا خَبَالَهُ يَسْتَزِلَّنَا .

8- O God,
so defeat his authority over us through Thy authority,
such that Thou holdest him back from us
through the frequency of our supplication to Thee
and we leave his trickery and rise up among those preserved by Thee from sin!

  1. اللَّهُمَّ فَاقْهَرْ سُلْطَانَهُ عَنَّا بِسُلْطَانِكَ

حَتَّى تَحْبِسَهُ عَنَّا

بِكَثْرَةِ الدُّعَاءِ لَكَ

فَنُصْبِحَ مِنْ كَيْدِهِ فِي الْمَعْصُومِينَ بِكَ .

9- O God, grant me my every request,
accomplish for me my needs,
withhold not from me Thy response
when Thou hast made Thyself accountable for it to me,[^2]
veil not my supplication from Thyself, when Thou hast commanded me to make it,[^3]
and be kind to me through everything that will set me right in this world and the next,
in everything that I remember or forget,
display or conceal,
make public or keep secret!

  1. اللَّهُمَّ أَعْطِنِي كُلَّ سُؤْلِي ،

وَ اقْضِ لِي حَوَائِجِي ،

وَ لَا تَمْنَعْنِي الْإِجَابَةَ وَ قَدْ ضَمِنْتَهَا لِي ،

وَ لَا تَحْجُبْ دُعَائِي عَنْكَ وَ قَدْ أَمَرْتَنِي بِهِ ،

وَ امْنُنْ عَلَيَّ بِكُلِّ مَا يُصْلِحُنِي فِي دُنْيَايَ وَ آخِرَتِي

مَا ذَكَرْتُ مِنْهُ وَ مَا نَسِيتُ ،

أَوْ أَظْهَرْتُ أَوْ أَخْفَيْتُ

أَوْ أَعْلَنْتُ أَوْ أَسْرَرْتُ .

10- In all of this, place me through my asking Thee among those who set things right,
those who are answered favourably when they request from Thee
and from whom is not withheld
when they put their trust in Thee,

  1. وَ اجْعَلْنِي فِي جَمِيعِ ذَلِكَ مِنَ الْمُصْلِحِينَ بِسُؤَالِي

إِيَّاكَ ، الْمُنْجِحِينَ بِالطَّلَبِ إِلَيْكَ

غَيْرِ الْمَمْنُوعِينَ بِالتَّوَكُّلِ عَلَيْكَ .

11- those accustomed to seek refuge in Thee,
those who profit through commerce with Thee,
those granted sanctuary
through Thy might,
those given lawful provision in plenty from Thy boundless bounty
through Thy munificence and generosity,
those who reach exaltation after abasement
through Thee,
those granted sanctuary from wrong
through Thy justice,
those released from affliction through Thy mercy,
those delivered from need after poverty through Thy riches,
those preserved from sins, slips, and offenses
through reverential fear toward Thee,
those successful in goodness, right conduct, and propriety through obeying Thee,
those walled off from sins through Thy power,
the refrainers from every act of disobedience toward Thee,
the dwellers in Thy neighbourhood!

  1. الْمُعَوَّدِينَ بِالتَّعَوُّذِ بِكَ ،

الرَّابِحِينَ فِي التِّجَارَةِ عَلَيْكَ ،

الْمُجَارِينَ بِعِزِّكَ ،

الْمُوَسَّعِ عَلَيْهِمُ الرِّزْقُ الْحَلَالُ مِنْ فَضْلِكَ ،

الْوَاسِعِ بِجُودِكَ وَ كَرَمِكَ ،

الْمُعَزِّينَ مِنَ الذُّلِّ بِكَ ،

وَ الْمُجَارِينَ مِنَ الظُّلْمِ بِعَدْلِكَ ،

وَ الْمُعَافَيْنَ مِنَ الْبَلَاءِ بِرَحْمَتِكَ ،

وَ الْمُغْنَيْنَ مِنَ الْفَقْرِ بِغِنَاكَ ،

وَ الْمَعْصُومِينَ مِنَ الذُّنُوبِ وَ الزَّلَلِ

وَ الْخَطَاءِ بِتَقْوَاكَ ،

وَ الْمُوَفَّقِينَ لِلْخَيْرِ وَ الرُّشْدِ وَ الصَّوَابِ بِطَاعَتِكَ ،

وَ الْمُحَالِ بَيْنَهُمْ وَ بَيْنَ الذُّنُوبِ بِقُدْرَتِكَ ،

التَّارِكِينَ لِكُلِّ مَعْصِيَتِكَ ،

السَّاكِنِينَ فِي جِوَارِكَ .

12- O God, give me all of that through Thy bestowal of success and Thy mercy,
grant us refuge from the chastisement of the burning,
and give to
all the Muslims, male and female,
and all the faithful, male and female,
the like of what I have asked for myself and my children,
in the immediate of this world
and the deferred of the next!
Verily Thou art the Near, the Responder,
the All-hearing, the All-knowing,
the Pardoner, the Forgiving,
the Clement, the Merciful!

  1. اللَّهُمَّ أَعْطِنَا جَمِيعَ ذَلِكَ بِتَوْفِيقِكَ وَ رَحْمَتِكَ ،

وَ أَعِذْنَا مِنْ عَذَابِ السَّعِيرِ ،

وَ أَعْطِ جَمِيعَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ وَ الْمُسْلِمَاتِ

وَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَ الْمُؤْمِنَاتِ

مِثْلَ الَّذِي سَأَلْتُكَ لِنَفْسِي وَ لِوُلْدِي

فِي عَاجِلِ الدُّنْيَا وَ آجِلِ الْآخِرَةِ ،

إِنَّكَ قَرِيبٌ مُجِيبٌ

سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌ

عَفُوٌّ غَفُورٌ

رَءُوفٌ رَحِيمٌ .

13- And give to us in this world good,
and in the next world good,
and protect us from the chastisement of the Fire**!** [^4][^5]

  1. وَ آتِنَا فِي الدُّنْيَا حَسَنَةً ،

وَ فِي الْآخِرَةِ حَسَنَةً

وَ قِنَا عَذَابَ النَّارِ .

The Child

I have heard that parent's prayers for their children will be granted. I pray to almighty All to grant you all you have asked for Him because of good and pure intention. And to realize all your prayers for me.

[^1]: One is tempted to translate shahawat as 'lusts', but the Qur'anic context shows that the objects of desire in themselves are not necessarily negative; the Qur'an blames only the fact that man allows himself to be occupied by them in lieu of God. For example, Decked out fair to men is the love of passions - women, children, heaped-up heaps of gold and silver, horses of mark, cattle, and tillage. That is the enjoyment of the present life; but God - with Him is the fairest resort (3:14). Arberry translates the term here as 'lusts', Pickthall as 'joys'.

[^2]: Cf. 12.10.

[^3]: These four lines refer to 2:186 and 40:60.

[^5]: Al-Sahifa Al-Sajjadiyyah, Prayer, No,25 (For his offspring)