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When you feel far from Allah
Distance from Allah is a feeling many Muslims know and few talk about. Four verses of the Quran speak directly to it: about nearness, about mercy, and about where hearts find rest.
Many Muslims know the feeling, even if they rarely say it aloud. Prayer feels like a routine. The Quran sits on a shelf. Allah feels distant, and the distance brings its own guilt, which makes it harder still to come back.
This reading does not try to explain why that happens; the reasons are different for everyone. It simply brings together four verses of the Quran that speak directly to the feeling, with a short explanation of each and a few reflections. Where a thought is our own, it is marked as a reflection.
“I am near”
وَإِذَا سَأَلَكَ عِبَادِى عَنِّى فَإِنِّى قَرِيبٌ ۖ أُجِيبُ دَعْوَةَ ٱلدَّاعِ إِذَا دَعَانِ ۖ فَلْيَسْتَجِيبُوا۟ لِى وَلْيُؤْمِنُوا۟ بِى لَعَلَّهُمْ يَرْشُدُونَ
And when My servants question thee concerning Me, then surely I am nigh. I answer the prayer of the suppliant when he crieth unto Me. So let them hear My call and let them trust in Me, in order that they may be led aright.
This verse sits among the verses about fasting in Surah Al-Baqarah (2:183–187).
There is something in its form worth noticing. In the same surah, several verses begin “They ask thee…” and then continue with “Say:”, giving the Prophet words with which to answer (for example 2:189, 2:215 and 2:219). Here, the question is about Allah Himself, and there is no “Say.” The answer comes directly: fa-inni qarib, “then surely I am near.”
If you feel far, this verse does not begin by asking how far you have gone. It begins with where Allah is: near. The distance we feel is real as a feeling, but the verse describes the other side of it.
“Despair not of the mercy of Allah”
۞ قُلْ يَٰعِبَادِىَ ٱلَّذِينَ أَسْرَفُوا۟ عَلَىٰٓ أَنفُسِهِمْ لَا تَقْنَطُوا۟ مِن رَّحْمَةِ ٱللَّهِ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يَغْفِرُ ٱلذُّنُوبَ جَمِيعًا ۚ إِنَّهُۥ هُوَ ٱلْغَفُورُ ٱلرَّحِيمُ
Say: O My slaves who have been prodigal to their own hurt! Despair not of the mercy of Allah, Who forgiveth all sins. Lo! He is the Forgiving, the Merciful.
The verse is addressed to people who “have been prodigal to their own hurt,” that is, who have wronged themselves through their own wrongdoing. Even so, they are addressed as ’ibadi, “My servants” (Pickthall: “My slaves”). The command is not to despair.
Scholars discuss in detail what sincere repentance involves. If you have questions about your own situation, a qualified teacher you trust is the right person to ask.
Guilt can be useful when it turns us back toward Allah. It does harm when it convinces us that we are too far gone to return. This verse speaks directly to the second kind.
Where hearts find rest
ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ وَتَطْمَئِنُّ قُلُوبُهُم بِذِكْرِ ٱللَّهِ ۗ أَلَا بِذِكْرِ ٱللَّهِ تَطْمَئِنُّ ٱلْقُلُوبُ
Who have believed and whose hearts have rest in the remembrance of Allah. Verily in the remembrance of Allah do hearts find rest!
Dhikr, translated here as “remembrance,” means keeping Allah in mind: in the prayer, in recitation of the Quran, and in words of praise and remembrance said throughout the day.
The verse does not promise that life will stop being difficult. It names a place where hearts can rest within it. Remembrance does not have to be elaborate to begin. A few honest words, said with attention, are a beginning.
“Remember Me, I will remember you”
فَٱذْكُرُونِىٓ أَذْكُرْكُمْ وَٱشْكُرُوا۟ لِى وَلَا تَكْفُرُونِ
Therefore remember Me, I will remember you. Give thanks to Me, and reject not Me.
The order of this verse is gentle. We are asked to remember, and we are told that we will be remembered. However small our remembrance feels, the verse places it inside a relationship.
A small way back
If you have felt far for a long time, it can help to make the first step very small:
- Speak to Allah in your own words. Outside the formal prayer, you can call on Him in any language, about anything. Verse 2:186 speaks of answering the one who calls. If you are unsure about what is appropriate within the prayer itself, ask a qualified teacher.
- Read one verse with its meaning. Not a page; one verse. Perhaps one of the four above.
- Return to one prayer with attention. Choose a single prayer in the day and try to be present for one phrase of it.
A note on wellbeing: feeling spiritually distant is common, and it is not the same as being without hope. If what you are feeling is heavy or persistent, please also speak to someone you trust, or to a qualified professional. Seeking that help is not a failure of faith.
Sources and credits
- Quran text. Arabic of 2:186, 39:53, 13:28 and 2:152 from the Tanzil Project Uthmani text, reproduced without alteration; checked against the Quran.com (Quran Foundation) Uthmani text. tanzil.net
- Translation. M. M. Pickthall, The Meaning of the Glorious Koran (1930). Public domain.
- Textual observations. Statements about the form and placement of verses can be checked directly in any mushaf: compare 2:186 with 2:189, 2:215, 2:217, 2:219, 2:220 and 2:222; the verses on fasting are 2:183–187.
This is introductory educational material, not a religious ruling. Quran references can be checked in any printed mushaf. See our approach for how readings are prepared and sourced.
Related: What you say in every prayer: Al-Fatihah, verse by verse · A small, steady practice with the Quran
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