1- How do we know whether the calamities will last or not?
In the authentic book “Kāfī” it reads:
Once, Imām Ṣādiq (pbuh) stated to his companions, ‘Can you recognize whether the disaster you suffer, will last long or not?’ The companions said, ‘No!’ The Imām reacted, ‘Whenever reading is inspired [and you perform it] to each of you, it means the disaster doesn’t last [and it will be]!’ (Kāfī, Vol. 2, P. 470)
2- Why are the healthy people expected to read prayers as the sick people?
Do you know, that reading prayer is not just to remove the disasters, but to prevent the coming disasters? Yes, no one knows what will happen in the future.
Amīr al Mu’menin (pbuh) stated:
Stop the waves of disasters with prayer. Yes, the ones who are healthy for the time being, don’t need reading prayer less than the one who suffers calamities and are close to death; as they [who are healthy] are not safe from future disasters! (Rāwandī, Al-Daawat or Salwat al-Hazīn, P. 21)
3- Why isn’t there any solution for the healing?
Sometimes, God considers us a long period of hard disease or death. Then, the common treatments will not be effective. In these situations, only prayer can [usually] change the disasters.
The Prophet (pbuh&h) stated, “Nothing changes divine decree, except reading prayers.” (Makārim al-Akhlāq Vol. 2, P. 7)
4- How constant and unchanging are the divine decrees?
There are two types of books that God referred to, in the Qur’an. In these two books, God there are people’s fates and destinies. These are such as when we are born, married, have a hard disease, and die. In this regard, someone asked Imām Ṣādiq (pbuh), and he stated:
In the first book [Lawh Mahv and Isbāt1], God keeps or changes whatever he wills. Related to that, praying changes fate and it was titled “This is the prayer which changes the destiny”. But when fate is kept in the main book [Umm Al Kitāb” or “Lawh Mahfūz”2], reading prayers will not affect it anymore. (‘Ayyashi, Tafseer, Vol. 2, P. 22)
1- It is the knowledge that is capable of erasure and substitution; the knowledge which is liable to change from time to time by God.
2- It means the knowledge which cannot be apprehended by others; the knowledge which is firmly protected by God.
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