Sometimes life feels like a storm you can’t escape. You try to do everything right pray, repent, work hard yet nothing seems to move. The walls close in. The world feels silent. Even your du’as echo back without an answer.
That’s what happened to Prophet Yunus (A.S.).
He was sent to guide his people, but when they rejected his message, he left in anger before Allah gave permission. A decision made in haste led him into a test no human had ever faced: the belly of a whale, deep in a sea of darkness.
The Qur’an describes it powerfully:
“And he cried out in the darkness, ‘There is no god but You; Glory be to You! Truly, I have been among the wrongdoers.’”
(Surah Al-Anbiya, 21:87)
Three layers of darkness surrounded him the night, the sea, and the whale. Yet from that unseen prison came one of the most beautiful du’as ever recited. And Allah responded. He saved Yunus (A.S.), restored his mission, and turned despair into deliverance.
What does that mean for you?
It means that no darkness is permanent when your heart still remembers Allah. You might not be inside a whale, but you could be trapped in guilt, heartbreak, poverty, or anxiety. You might feel forgotten but the story of Yunus (A.S.) whispers otherwise.
The moment you return to Allah sincerely, the chains of your hardship begin to loosen. Your du’a doesn’t have to be long it just has to be real. The shortest du’a from the deepest heart can open the widest doors of mercy.
So, if you’re struggling, repeat the same words Prophet Yunus (A.S.) said:
لَا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا أَنْتَ سُبْحَانَكَ إِنِّي كُنْتُ مِنَ الظَّالِمِينَ
La ilaha illa Anta, Subhanaka inni kuntu minaz-zalimin.
Say it with tears if you must. Say it until your storm calms. Because the Lord who saved Yunus from the depth of the sea can save you from whatever is drowning your heart.
Never mistake silence for absence.
Allah hears you even from the depths.
