“O My servants, all of you are astray except for those I have guided, so seek guidance of Me and I shall guide you,” (Muslim).
As Allah (swt) gave Himself the attributes of Guidance and Light, how
can we ever believe that we will be in darkness for too long?
Say, for example, you are drowning in a pool. Who will you usually
call out for? The lifeguard. The lifeguard is already there, watching
out for people, and because that is his job, when you call out to him
he’ll jump in there to save you. Now Allah (swt) is over and above any
analogy, but as Allah (swt) gave Himself the attribute of guidance,
telling you that He is THE Guide and He is THE Light of the heavens and
the earth, then how can you be lost for too long? Especially if you seek
Him. Are we saying that lifeguards do their job better than Allah
(swt)?
So what does it mean to go to Allah al-Haadi? It means to take the
first step of realizing that He has this attribute, and having the
certainty that Allah (swt) will not turn a seeker away. Secondly, it
means to ask Him. Make du`a’ (supplication), pray istikhara (the prayer
for guidance) and talk to Him. Thirdly, it means to use the means around
us. Re-assess your goals, seek people’s advice and take the steps
needed to try to find an answer. When we feel an internal instability,
these steps may be hard, but Allah (swt) tells us “And those who strive
for Us – We will surely guide them to Our ways […]“ (Qur’an, 29:69).