Prayer and Love

When I’m writing this, I’m not fully sure my readers will understand my thought I’m trying to convey — and that’s okay. Because I know that each person has gone through different experiences in their life that shaped how they understand what love is. And the way people relate to the word “love” can vary so much depending on what they’ve been through.

Still, I’m giving it a try.

I came across this understanding of love during a specific phase of my life — a time when I was about to decide on companionship, on marriage, on what kind of love I want to live with. I had been reading some Islamic and theological reflections on love, and they offered a perspective that truly reshaped my thinking. Interestingly, many of them had very little to say about romantic love between partners.

That made me realize something.

The goal of these works wasn’t primarily to describe human-to-human love. Their aim was much deeper — to break down our existing notions of love and rebuild it from scratch. They tied the entire concept of love to the very purpose and meaning of life itself. They spoke of an unconditional love — a divine love — far beyond anything we’ve experienced. A love unmeasurable by any worldly relationships. The love from the Divine. And the idea is not that we can fully return that love to the Almighty, because that’s impossible. But that we dedicate our lives trying to do so — that we live with the intention of giving back to the One who loved us first and most.

When that becomes the goal of life, everything else — every relationship, every moment, every action — starts aligning with that goal. You don’t love someone just for their presence in your life. You love them for the sake of the One who brought them into your life.

A love rooted in such a spiritual foundation — love for the sake of God — will look radically different from the kinds of love we usually see around us today. In a world shaped by postmodern ideas, most expressions of love are actually a form of self-love. We love what makes us feel good. We choose what satisfies us. But the kind of love I’m talking about has a different compass. It is selfless, and sincere, and hard to understand — and it is rooted in Prayer.

One of the moments that shaped this understanding for me came from within my own home. Some nights, when I would get up for a glass of water, I would see my Umma finishing her Tahajjud Prayer in the middle of the night when everyone else is sleeping. Sometimes, sitting quietly on her prayer mat, and I could see the subtle shaking of her shoulders — weeping, with her hands raised in Dua (Prayer).

I didn't ask her who she was praying for. But I know, a mother doesn’t cry in the middle of the night unless she’s carrying the weight of her children in her heart. And in that moment, I realized something profound about the connection between prayer and love:

The purest form of love — whether between spouses, friends, close relatives, or even people who simply crossed paths in our lives — is love through prayer. What greater form of love can there be than to remember someone in our prayers, in our whisper to God — wishing the best for the other person without them even knowing it?

I wanted to share a reflection that I read once — and I’m paraphrasing it here:

When someone sincerely prays for you, it means they’re carving out a moment from their life just to mention your name in the most personal of settings. They are speaking to the Divine about you. You are becoming part of their most intimate connection with the One who hears all. What better bond can there be than being remembered in someone’s prayer?

So, love doesn’t always need to be through direct interaction. There is a kind of connection that happens…when two people communicate through their prayers, out of faith and submission. They meet each other in their Duas.

When two souls make sincere Dua for each other, they are not just talking to God — they are building something silently between themselves, too.

A connection.

A bond.

A love that doesn’t ask to be seen or heard — only to be accepted by the One who knows what lies within hearts.

To all the people who are part of my life — I want you to know, I love you for the sake of Allah. And if you ever prayed for me, even once, thank you for including me in that most sacred space between you and your Lord. - Shezin

If you’ve read this far, just drop me a ‘hi’ — I’d love to know you made it to the end. 😊

• Hi!