The best deed after the obligatory duties varies from one person to another, depending on what they are able to do and what is best at any given time, so it is not possible for to give a comprehensive, detailed answer that suits everyone. But what those who have knowledge of Allaah and His commands are agreed upon is that constantly remembering Allaah (Dhikr) is the best thing with which a person may occupy in general. Therefore the hadeeth of Abu-Hurayrah narrated by muslim says: Mufarridoon have gone ahead. They said: "O messenger of Allaah. Who are the Mufarridoon ? He said: "those men and women who remember Allaah so much".
And Abu Dawood narrated from Abul-Dardaa (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) that the prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam ) said: "Shall I not tell you the best of your deeds and which is most pure in the sight of your lord, that which raises you more in status and is better for you than giving gold and silver (in charity), and better than your meeting with your enemy and striking their neck s and they strike your necks? They said: Yes, O messenger of Allaah, He said, Remembering Allaah (dhikr)
There is a great deal of Quraanic evidence to support this. The least that a person should do is to persist in reciting the adhkaar (pl. of dhikr ) which have been narrated from the teacher of good and the leader of pious (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam ), such as the adkhaar to be recited at a certain times ,at the beginning and end of the day, when going to bed and Waking up from sleep and after the prescribed prayers ;and the adhkaar to be recited on certain occasions, such as that to be said when eating and drinking, when getting dressed, when having intercourse, when entering or leaving the home, the mosque or the washroom when it rains ,when thunder is heard ,and so on .
Books have been compiled on this topic called `Aml al-Yawm Wal-Laylah (Actions of the day and night ) One of the best books written on this topic is the small book Saheeh al-kalim al-Tayyib, Which is derived from the book of shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah called al-Kalim al- Tayyib; this has been edited by al- Allaamah al-Albaani . Then one should persist in remembering in general, the best of which is Laa ilaaha ill-Allaah There may be some situations where certain kinds of dhikr is preferable, such as saying subhaana Allaah wal-hamdulillaah wa Allaahu akbar wa laa hawlah wa laa quwwata illa billaah.
Moreover ,one should realize that everything that the tongue utters or the heart imagines that may bring one closer to Allaah, such as seeking knowledge or teaching, enjoining what is good and forbidding what is evil ,is a kind of dhikr or remembering Allaah . Hence the one who occupies in the pursuit of beneficial knowledge after performing the obligatory duties Or who joins a gathering in order to learn or teach, which Allaah and His messenger has called fiqh understanding, is also doing something which is one of the best forms of remembering Allaah (dhikr) If you think about it, you will not find much difference of opinion among the earliest concerning what is the best of deeds.
Whenever a person is confused he should pray istikhaarah as prescribed in the shareeah, for the one who prays to Allaah asking Him for that which is best (istikhaarah) will not have any regret. He should do that a lot, and make a lot of duaa for that is the key to every goodness. He should not be hasty and say I prayed but I did not get an answer. He should seek out the times of special virtue, such as the end of the night the times following the prescribed prayers, the time of the adhaan, when the rain is falling and so on.
This article was culled from the publications of Deen Communication Limited