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It was mentioned in the two Sahīh Collections that ‘Āmir ibn al-Tufayl and Arbad ibn Qays plotted against the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) and sought to kill him. So, he supplicated against them.
Consequently, ‘Āmir got a gland in his neck while he was in the house of a woman from Banu Salūl. Thereupon, he jumped towards his horse, took his spear, and kept saying: “A gland like the gland of camels and a death in the house of a woman from Banu Salūl!” He was still in this condition until he fell off his horse, dead.
As for Arbad ibn Qays, he went out with a camel that he intended to sell. Thereupon, Allah sent a thunderbolt upon him and his camel, burning both. Who preserved the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him)? He is Allah, the Preserver.
He Almighty says in His Book: {...But Allah is the best Preserver, and He is the Most Merciful of those who show mercy.} [Surat Yūsuf: 64]
Our Lord, Exalted be He, preserves the heaven and the earth and what is between them. He sustains their existence by His power, hence, they neither perish nor swerve. Carrying them does not tire Him, Exalted be He, given His complete power and perfect ability. Listen to the verse that says: {Allah keeps the heavens and earth from vanishing. If they were to vanish, there is none to sustain them other than Him...} [Surat Fātir: 41]
Also, our Lord preserves all deeds of His servants, good and bad, open and secret, small and great. He records all their words and knows their intentions. Nothing escapes His knowledge. {...And with Us is a preserving record.} [Surat Qāf: 4]
And our Almighty Lord preserves His servants from destruction and violent deaths. He has, thus, appointed angels to preserve them as He says: {For each person there are successive angels in front of him and behind him, guarding him by the command of Allah...} [Surat ar-Ra‘d: 11]
General: It comprises all creatures as He facilitates their affairs and interests. Allah Almighty says: {...Surely my Lord is All-Preserver over everything.} [Surat Hūd: 57]
Special: It is a better status than the former category. It only includes the close servants of Allah as He preserves them in terms of their worldly interests, health, children, and properties. He has, thus, appointed angels to preserve them. He also preserves for them their religion from suspicions and vain inclinations and from their enemies among the humans and jinn. Then, He makes them die as believers. Allah Almighty says: {For each person there are successive angels in front of him and behind him, guarding him by the command of Allah...} [Surat ar-Ra‘d: 11]
Moreover, Allah Almighty undertakes to preserve His noble Book from distortion and alteration throughout the ages. He says: {It is We Who have sent down the Reminder, and it is We Who will preserve it.} [Surat al-Hijr: 9]
He preserves the Ka‘bah and sustains its existence, though it was only a building made of stones and based in an uncultivated valley. He preserved it so that it remains a witness to His great preservation and to His perfect power and ability.
The disbelievers of Quraysh assembled around a cave which harbored two men: Muhammad (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) and Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him). They wanted to kill both. So, Abu Bakr began to fear and looked at his great companion, who said to him: “What do you think of two (persons) the third of whom is Allah?” [Narrated by Al-Bukhāri and Muslim]
If you are encompassed by Allah’s care, then rest assured for you are safe.
He is the All-Preserver!
Tyrants scheme against the pious, yet Allah Almighty preserves His close servants. Moses (peace be upon him) said: {...“Our Lord, we fear that he may hasten to punish us or transgress all bounds.” Allah said: “Fear not. I am surely with you both; I hear and I see.”} [Surat Taha: 45-46] Allah reassured him, preserved him, and supported him against his enemy.
Who can grant victory against the enemies? He is Allah, the Preserver of His close servants, even if they are small in number. {...And if there are among you a thousand, they will overcome two thousand by the permission of Allah...} [Surat al-Anfāl: 66] {Do not lose heart nor grieve, for you have the upper hand, if you are [truly] believers.} [Surat Ᾱl-‘Imrān: 139]
Allah, the All-Preserver, preserves the offspring of His close servants in their lives and after their death. An example here is Ya‘qūb (Jacob) (peace be upon him) to whom Allah restored his beloved child Joseph (peace be upon him) after long years of absence and who said: {...But Allah is the best Preserver, and He is the Most Merciful of those who show mercy.} [Surat Yūsuf: 64]
Another example is when Moses and Al-Khidr (peace be upon both of them) went to a village and asked its people for food, but they refused to host them. Then, Moses and Al-Khidr found a wall on the point of collapse; so, Al-Khidr rebuilt it. {As for the wall, it belonged to two orphan boys in the city, and there was a treasure under it that belonged to them. Their father was a righteous man, so your Lord willed that they should reach their maturity and retrieve their treasure, as a mercy from your Lord; I did not do it of my own accord. This is the interpretation of that which you could not bear with patience.”} [Surat al-Kahf: 82]
Also, the just Caliph ‘Umar ibn ‘Abdul-‘Azīz died and was survived by seven sons and seven daughters. He left them nothing except Allah Almighty. So, Allah preserved them. Scholars said: “His children became among the richest of people.”
The Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) gave the following advice to Ibn ‘Abbās (may Allah be pleased with him and his father): “O boy, I shall teach you some words [of advice]: Be mindful of Allah and He will protect you. Be mindful of Allah and you will find Him with you.” [Narrated by Al-Tirmidhi; Sahīh (authentic)]
It was said to Muhibb al-Dīn al-Tabari, a leading Shāfi‘i scholar: “You jumped off the ship while you are an old man?” In response, he said a sentence that went down in history: “These are body organs which we preserved when we were young, and so Allah preserved them for us when we became old.” {...But Allah is the best Preserver, and He is the Most Merciful of those who show mercy.} [Surat Yūsuf: 64]
Scholars said: “Be mindful of Allah’s commands by observing them, and of His prohibitions by avoiding them, and of His limits by not transgressing them, and Allah will preserve for you your life, religion, property, children, and all that He gave you in this world out of His bounty. The Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Be mindful of Allah and He will protect you. Be mindful of Allah and you will find Him with you.” [Narrated by Al-Tirmidhi; Sahīh (authentic)]
As for the Hereafter, Allah Almighty gives them glad tidings about the great win. He says: {...And those who observe the limits set by Allah. And give glad tidings to the believers.} [Surat at-Tawbah: 112]
The more you preserve the limits set by Allah Almighty, the more you will be preserved by Him. This includes the following:
Preserving monotheism and the rituals of religion, notably the prayer: {Be mindful of the prayers, especially the middle prayer; and stand before Allah in complete devotion.} [Surat al-Baqarah: 238]
Preserving the hearing, sight, and heart from what is unlawful: {...Indeed, the hearing, the sight, and the heart, all of them will be called to account.} [Surat al-Isrā’: 36] {...Therefore the righteous women are obedient, and protect what Allah has entrusted them with in [their husband’s] absence...} [Surat an-Nisā’: 34]
Preserving the private parts: {And those who preserve their private parts.} [Surat al-Mu’minūn: 5]
Preserving oaths: {...And preserve your oaths...} [Surat al-Mā’idah: 89]
It is authentically reported that the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) used to supplicate Allah saying: “Allāhumma ihfazhni min bayni yadayya wa min khalfi wa ‘an yamīni wa ‘an shimāli wa min fawqi wa a‘ūdhu bi‘azhamatika an ughtāla min tahti (O Allah, preserve me from in front of me, from behind me, on my right, on my left, and from above me, and I seek refuge in Your greatness that I should be swallowed up from underneath me).” [Narrated by Al-Tirmidhi; Sahīh (authentic)] And whenever the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) went to bed, he would ask Allah Almighty to preserve him.
If the righteous person entrusts something to Allah, He preserves it for him as the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said to Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him): “I entrust you to Allah with Whom trusts are never lost.” [Narrated by Ibn Mājah; Sahīh (authentic)]
In another Hadīth, the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said: “If Allah is entrusted with something, He preserves it.” [Narrated by Al-Bayhaqi in Al-Sunan al-Kubra; Sahīh (authentic)]
How excellent it is to seek refuge with Allah for your children! The Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) used to seek Allah’s refuge for Al-Hasan and Al-Husayn (may Allah be pleased with both of them). When you entrust your children to Allah, you have indeed entrusted them to the All-Preserver. {...But Allah is the best Preserver, and He is the Most Merciful of those who show mercy.} [Surat Yūsuf: 64]
O Allah, we entrust to You ourselves, our parents, our children, and every blessing You have endowed us with.