The Key to Answered Supplication

«الدُّعَاءُ مَوْقُوفٌ بَيْنَ السَّمَاءِ وَالْأَرْضِ لَا يَصْعَدُ مِنْهُ شَيْءٌ حَتَّى تُصَلِّيَ عَلَى نَبِيِّكَ»

Supplication (du'a) is suspended between heaven and earth and none of it ascends until you send blessings upon the Prophet ﷺ.

Sheikh Abdullah Siraj al-Din explains a profound principle recorded from the early authorities: Salawat upon the Prophet ﷺ is itself always accepted by God — it is never rejected. Supplication (du'a), by contrast, may or may not be accepted. But when a person frames his du'a with Salawat at the beginning and at the end, God — in His generosity — does not accept the two ends and reject what lies between them. Salawat thus becomes the vehicle that carries every other prayer to acceptance.

• Salawat is always accepted — it is never rejected by God
• Du'a framed with Salawat at the beginning and end is carried by the certainty of the Salawat's acceptance
• This teaching motivates the practice of beginning and ending every supplication with blessings upon the Prophet ﷺ