By Maulana Hafiz Abdullah
(Originally published under a pseudonym for personal safety)
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
All praise be to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds,
The Master of the Day of Judgment.
You alone we worship, and from You alone we seek help.
O Allah, our Lord,
Guide the people of Burma from this deep darkness into light,
From confusion into clarity,
And onto the Straight Path —
The path of those upon whom You have bestowed Your Mercy,
Not the path of those who have gone astray or earned Your anger.
O Allah, we, the citizens of Burma, are weak and powerless,
Unable to resist the cruelty and injustice of the current military rulers.
Please, soften their hearts, awaken their conscience,
And inspire them with repentance and redemption.
Replace their tyranny with a just and compassionate government —
A democratic federal leadership that respects human rights,
Equal rights for all citizens,
Regardless of race, religion, creed, or origin.
Ya Allah,
Remove the oppressors from power.
Relieve our people from this inhumane military regime
That governs through fear, violence, and brute force.
Let them be replaced by wise, merciful, and fair leaders
Who govern according to justice and the rule of law —
Not by the law of the jungle, not by the barrel of the gun.
O Allah, heal our wounds —
The visible and invisible, the physical and spiritual.
Our land is plagued by disease,
By the devastation of COVID-19 and other illnesses.
We are also suffering from man-made disasters:
War, displacement, corruption, and cruelty —
And from natural disasters that add to our burdens.
Our people’s minds and hearts are weary, our spirits broken.
The economy has collapsed.
Inflation rises by the day.
Livelihoods have vanished.
Hunger, joblessness, and hopelessness are spreading.
O Allah, have mercy on us all.
Protect us from every danger —
From civil war, from hatred, from chaos,
And from the enemies within ourselves.
Unite our divided hearts.
Cure us of racism, discrimination, and pride.
Help us to live together — peacefully, equally, lovingly.
Dear Allah,
Release Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, all political leaders,
And every political prisoner unjustly detained.
Restore their health, strength, and wisdom.
Let them lead us into a new and progressive era —
But also, O Lord, soften their hearts toward all citizens.
Remove any bias or attachment they may have
Toward the military that betrayed the people.
Let true reconciliation be rooted in justice, not submission.
Forgive us, Ya Allah,
For every sin — major or minor,
Intentional or unintentional,
Spoken or hidden.
Grant us, the people of Burma:
Peace in our land,
Health in our bodies,
Wealth in our homes,
Unity in our hearts,
And compassion among our communities.
Because of cruel, incompetent, and corrupt rulers,
We have become poor, humiliated, and despised by the world.
Raise us up again, O Allah.
Restore our dignity, renew our hope,
And open doors of success —
Even in the fields we have yet to imagine.
Ameen.
Maulana Hafiz Abdullah
(A Burmese Muslim who once had to hide his name, but never his prayer.)
