Ihsan

Bismillah

My Allah, many an enemy drew up the sword of hostility against me, honed the dagger's edge, sharpened the arrows' points, made ready deadly poisons, levelled his bow at me, and, keeping an eye on me, harboured evil thoughts to force me to swallow, against my will, the deadly bitter poison.

You came to know that I am too weak to bear hardships and too exhausted to withstand misfortunes, and took notice of my shortcoming that I cannot confront the enemy who had planned to attack me, and perceived my isolation amid the multitude of gathering enemies, sitting in ditches, ready to pounce upon me, while I gave no thought to sitting in ambush and retaliating.

So with Your might, You came to stand by me, and Your help made me strong and disappointed him in spite of the larger number [of his forces], by rendering his weapons unserviceable.

And You gave me the upper hand over him by catching him in the very trap he laid for me, and threw him into the abyss he dug for me, and gave no hand to his grudging deed, and did not allow him to assuage the fury of his anger. Biting his thumb, he turned back on his heels, and his comrades, ashamed, dispersed in haste.

So praise be to You, O Lord, in [Your] invulnerable Omnipotence, and prudent Forbearance. Bless Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, and let me be among those who thank You for Your bounties and remember You for Your favours.

My God, many a disobedient tyrant has tried treacherously to oppress me, has laid traps to catch me, was continuously spying on me, and, like a beast of prey who lies in wait for his prey, has tried to surprise me, whereas in public he received me with open arms and a welcoming smile on his face, as if innocent.

So when You took notice of his clandestine trickery and foul play and the fact that in spite of professing the same faith he was devising schemes to injure me, then You contemptuously caught hold of him and threw him down headlong, completely destroying him; after which he found himself in the ditch he had dug for me, smeared with the dust below his feet poverty and disease overtook him.

Thus You rewarded him in kind by making the stones and arrows he hurled at me rebound upon him, and by putting his own rope around his neck. Shame and disappointment came upon him, he suffered disgrace and dishonour, his pride and arrogance gave way to humility, his power turned into helplessness, and finally, at the last moment, when he was sure to overwhelm me, he fell into his own trap and was caught and bound with the rope made for me in the days of his authority.

In fact it was me who would have suffered likewise if You,
O my Lord, had not come to my rescue with Your mercy.

So praise be to You, O Lord, in [Your] invulnerable Omnipotence, and prudent Forbearance. Bless Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, and let me be among those who thank Your for Your bounties and remember You for Your favours.